#i should probably disclaimer this that i am a white woman

[thepradapariah]

Your Rising Sign ✨. The Male Gaze 👀. & Female Character Movie/TV Tropes 📺.

Are you the manic pixie dream girl or the femme fatale?!

Astro Observations 🪐

Using Movies & TV shows, I’ll be talking about observations I’ve made about rising signs! This is just my opinion! You are more than welcome to share your thoughts in the comment section!

(If you know your sidereal Rising Sign Naksaktra EVEN BETTER!)

Disclaimer:

BARE WITH ME HERE!!! This post is written in a VERY generalized way. I am not trying to be exclusionary at all! I want this to be a fun post about movies & astrology. Please be creative with your pronouns if needed! This post is for anyone who wants to read it, no matter your gender or preference, but it will be written in traditional cis-gender fashion, BUT!!!!! I have tried to incorporate all female identifying communities within the examples! I hope there is something for everyone :)

Before we begin:

Definitions:

✨What is the Male Gaze?

“In feminist theory, the male gaze is the act of depicting women and the world, in the visual arts and in literature, from a masculine, heterosexual perspective that presents and represents women as sexual objects for the pleasure of the heterosexual male viewer. In the visual and aesthetic presentations of narrative cinema, the male gaze has three perspectives: (i) that of the man behind the camera, (ii) that of the male characters within the film's cinematic representations; and (iii) that of the spectator gazing at the image.” — Wikipedia

✨What is a Character trope?

“A trope is an idea, pattern or motif that appears often enough in a particular art form that consumers of that art form begin to form particular associations with that idea.” - The Novel Factory

Introduction:

Men tend to be VERY simple creatures. Yes, they may present themselves as the broody artist w a checkered past or a sci-fi-nerdy-glasses-wearing-type fellow who LOVES Star Wars & Comic-Con. But believe it not, both these men have something in common…Their simplicity. Most men see life in black & white. They tend to take things at face value & rarely feel the need to dig deeper into something unless they are called to. This is not to over generalize (or perhaps that’s exactly what this is) but to draw attention to the straight forward attitude men usually have towards life. (I blame this on their primal hunter/gathering nature, but that’s another topic for another day). Men tend to prefer life & communication to be clear & concise, whereas woman tend to be far more “colorful” in our approach. We don’t spare any details when talking w our girlfriends about the latest gossip as if it’s our life’s duty, where men can sit in silence, playing video games & be perfectly content. In fact, I learned in sociology, that men can actually have ZERO brain activity happening at times (besides the automatic stuff, like breathing lol). Meaning— men can actually sit & think about nothing. Women, not so much, we are constantly stimulated, thinking & planning ahead. Because of this cosmically cerebral mis-match, the way men & woman tend to view each other can be a point of contention. Woman tend to over complicate men & men tend to over simplify woman. Thus giving us the ongoing battle of real complex female characters VS. the over simplified version of them through the Male Gaze. Do men think woman just sit around playing in make-up & fashion, bursting out into random tears & having pillow fights all day? If you ask Hollywood— probably. In this post, we will be specifically looking at how men over simplify woman using Movie/TV tropes & comparing them to the display of our rising sign, &/or if you know it, your rising Nakshatra.

You should know, that before I got into tarot & astrology, I graduated from the film school at New York University. So I am WELL AWARE of the film/tv writing process & thought this would be a cool way to combine my education of films & my love for astrology to teach & critique how woman tend to be represented in Cinema & Television— and in return, real life. (Art meets Life, amiright?)

There has been a discourse in the film & tv world about how woman are represented through the male gaze. I’m sure you’ve heard of the “manic pixie dream girl” trope over saturating the market right now. (Don’t worry, we will get into this later). Woman feel as if these are shallow representations of the feminine experience. While I agree with this statement, usually we don’t see very fleshed out, complex & interesting woman from male writers. (*cough cough* Euphoria Season 2.) I’m arguing here that until we form deep & intimate connections with men, they tend to see us, woman, as these movie tropes, IRL (in real life). If you don’t understand what I’m saying, hang in there w me.

Because men tend to be simple & take things at face value, they can miss out on the nuances of the woman they are with. How many times have we seen in movies a wife gets a haircut & the husband doesn’t notice? See, no eye for detail, or subtlety. Those small details that make us unique from other woman tends to go over their heads from time to time. And in a day in age where woman are generalized more on a mass scale through social media, it’s easy for men to get carried away thinking woman are all the same or simply, just not that complicated. This isn’t a bad thing, per say, this is just the default until we are able to build a lasting, deep connection between masculine & feminine energy.

In this post, we are going to be breaking down this “conundrum” by RISING SIGNS/1H/Nakshatras. Why? Because the rising sign is how you are seen in the world. The first house rules the body, & what people project on to you as well as what you project onto other people. (The beauty of the 1H/7H axis…more about this later) As a sidereal astrology girly, I think the first house/Rising Sign Nakshatra rules the personality more so than the sun & moon sign. After all, it is called “person”-ality, & the 1H is the house of person, whereas the 7H is the house of partner.

✨Why Does this Matter?

Well first off, it matters how much you want it to matter. This post is for inspiring self expression. By seeing how you effortlessly come across through the male gaze, you may be able to craft your own unique persona or perfect one of these tropes. I am not writing this post because you have to see yourself the way men see you or over simplify yourself while getting to know someone, I’m writing this to give you some indication of HOW men see you so you can put on a SHOW! I’m hoping this gives you the encouragement to take your narrative into your own hands & present your femininity in a way that’s true & authentic to you. I am an absolute FAN of these female tropes. Movies & tv shows have helped me curate the kind of woman I want to come across as. Nothing like seeing a great character on TV that you want to emulate. We all have the ability to play pretend. Look at using the male gaze as a game of dress-up. You can ALWAYS play the part in the ever going Hollywood Film— Your Life.

✨What is the First House?

The first house is the house of first impressions— the cover of the book men are judging.

Because your first house is home to your rising sign, to put it simply, the first house is how you come off to others at first glance. Even though I’m sure you’re a beautiful, complex & intriguing creature, for the sake of this article, we are looking at the first house through a “shallow” perspective. You may feel as if these descriptions don’t fit you at all, in fact, you may feel like this is the total opposite of who you actually are! (Blame the contradiction of 1H/7H axis for this one) However it’s not about how you feel, it’s about how you come across…

Read this article as if you are your crush meeting you for the first time. (Read that again, very meta, I know). The Male Gaze in movies/tv has been argued to be lazy & uninspired writing. I personally think that’s just the male gaze in general. I kid, I kid. Lol. But seriously…they are very simple minded, so we can use this to our advantage to give some of the best performances of our lives!

***If you are reading for your Sidereal Vedic Rising (which is HIGHLY suggest), please look up the degree, so you can read for the specific Nakshatra)

(If you are a man reading this, I don’t mean to drag you. We all know the childhood fact, Men are from Mars & Woman are from Venus. Lol.)

Through the Male Gaze, we will be breaking down how you come off through your rising sign & placements as Classic Movie & TV Character Tropes.

How to Read:

✨IF YOU KNOW YOUR SIDEREAL VEDIC RISING NAKSHATRA: Read that first! That will be the most specific to the trope. (I didn’t double dip, each nakshatra is only used ONCE)

______________

✨If you DON’T know your Sidereal Rising Nakshatra & your reading as a Western/Tropical Girlie———>

✨You can read for the sign in your first house (your rising sign) &/or planets placed in your FIRST OR SEVENTH HOUSE!

✨7H placements cast a direct aspect on your 1H, so if your rising sign doesn’t resonate, check your 7H placements! They have a major influence as well!

✨If you have multiple planets in your 1H &/or 7H, the planet with the LOWEST degree is the dominant planet. Ex: If you have Saturn at 26 degrees and Venus at 2 degrees, you would read the Venus tropes.

✨Unlike men, I’m giving you some flexibility (Lol) Your placements may overlap. For example, if you’re a Pisces Rising— read the blurbs for Manic Pixie Dream Girl & Girl Next Door. One description will probably fit better than the others, but you got options! If you know your sidereal chart for your rising Nakshatra, you’ll get

***There is NO direct correlation between the signs & Naks picked, this is a matter of opinion, so I put what I felt worked!***

Please please please keep in mind, movies & tv characters are larger than life, so please have fun with this post!!! This is over the top!! If you can imagine that you were an old Hollywood glamour queen or a modern cinema starlit, this would be your starring role!!!

⚠️ I do not want to offend ANYONE by using traditional gender pronouns. I am a cis-gender heterosexual female, so I am writing from the perspective I know best. I am NOT trying to say this is the only perspective that matters. I have included cis-woman, trans women & lesbians as examples in this post. Please feel free to share any insights you have, no matter the gender, non-gender or perspective! I’m truly open & supportive. This is not an exclusionary post.

⚠️ SPOILER ALERT!!!! I am using Movies & Television shows as examples, so be prepared!

⚠️ Of course, special shout-out to my little sister! Without her, none of this would be possible!!

On with the Show! 🌹

💋 Manic Pixie Dream Girl

Nakshatras: Ardra, Punarvasu, Swati, Vishika, Mula

Zodiac: Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius, Pisces (All Mutable Rising Signs) & Aquarius

Planets: Neptune, Mercury, Jupiter (1st or 7th House, lowest degree)

Tarot Card: Princess of Cups (Earth & Water)

✨Definition

“[The Manic Pixie Dream Girl] exists solely in the fevered imaginations of sensitive writer-directors to teach broodingly soulful young men to embrace life and its infinite mysteries and adventures… [The MPDG] seems to exist only to provide spiritual or mystical help to the protagonist. The MPDG has no discernible inner life. Instead, her central purpose is to provide the protagonist with important life lessons. “

-Wikipedia (Manic Pixie Dream Girl was coined by Nathan Rabin)

✨The Manic Pixie Dream Girl is arguably THEE female movie trope of the last 40 years in pop culture. As movies moved away from the Bombshell aesthetic of the 1950’s, most notably, Marilyn Monroe; Audrey Hepburn as Holly Golightly in Breakfast at Tiffany’s introduced a new kind of woman. (Even her last name, go-lighly is a play on her attitude towards the world) A woman who throws caution to the wind & isn’t afraid to take risk. In fact, this woman LIVES to take risk! She flutters in & flutters out of the Male gaze, usually chasing some wild dream of being a fashion designer, writer, actress ect, OR is a notch above (or under, depending on how you look at it) an aimless sexy hobo. Regardless of her career ambitions, she’s always as creative as she is elusive— yet somehow, is always able to drop into the male’s life right in the knick of time, whisking the male away on some fever-dream like adventures. Encountering the Manic Pixie Dream Girl almost ALWAYS accompanies a spiritual Awakening for our male protagonist. Upon meeting this woman, usually in some weird, “only happens once in a life-time” way, his world gets thrown into a chaotic flurry. Everything he thought he knew he now knows he never knew anything about it at all. He questions life, he questions reason, he question society, capitalism, the “American Dream”, etc. This is BEST demonstrated by Marla (Helena Bonham Carter) in Fight Club, directed by David Fincher. (If you haven’t seen this movie, you MUST (18+), Brad Pitt is at PEAK sexiness…s/o to the Female Gaze lol) Fight Club is a wicked tale of a man fighting himself, society & his own psyche after meeting a woman who mirrored him so closely, it triggered a masculinity awakening. This is the function of the Manic Pixie Dream Girl. She is so free, so unbound, so fluid, & feminine, she helps to bring to life the masculine side of a man by reflecting his own inner chaos back to him.

As a Ardra, Punarvasu, Swati, Vishika, Mula Rising or Mutable Rising Sign: Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius, or Pisces, this could be one of the ways you appear through the male gaze. Because your temperament & view of life can be so changeable, you can come across as a free-spirit, a loss soul, or a wonderer. Perhaps you are, & perhaps you aren’t, but as quickly as you change a hairstyle, you change your goals in life. The male feels as if he needs to tame you, give you structure, security or direction OR he feels like he wants to join you! Break away from the daily grind of life, break societies expectations of him & rendezvous w you, eating cereal, painting & watching cartoons all day. You can represent a child-like wonder and be the embodiment of the “wild-side” of life! As the mutable rising signs of the Zodiac, you tend to be moody & unpredictable. Through the Male Gaze, men may find it hard to connect with you because you always seem “elsewhere”. You always seem a little dazed, perhaps a little confused, but certainly “pixie” like in your approach to life. To the right male, you are fascinating, like a Jackson Pollock painting (the splatter paint dude) in the works— each stroke improvised, never knowing where the paint is going to land, but intrigued more by your process than the final product.

✨Music:

Female Gaze: Like a Bird- Nelly Furtado

Male Gaze: Sex And Candy- Marcy Playground

✨Examples

Holly Golightly- Breakfast at Tiffany’s

Jules- Euphoria

Summer- 500 Days of summer

Robyn Brooks- High Fidelity

Helena- Fight Club

Cat- Victorious

Issa- Insecure

Raven- That’s So Raven

Bubbles- Powerpuff Girls

Emily- Emily in Paris

Sally Bowles- Cabaret

💋Ice Queen

Nakshatras: Jyestha, Dhanishta, Uttara Bhadrapada

Zodiacs: Aquarius, Libra, Cancer, Scorpio

Planets: Saturn, Uranus, Moon, Venus

Tarot Card: Queen of Swords (Water & Air)

✨Defintion:

“…Cool, reserved, and giving nothing away. She may want love as ardently as anyone, but she masks her soft heart behind a wall of ice. It is up to someone else, typically her Love Interest, to soften her cold demeanor and win her love.

The Ice Queen is considered dangerous to love because she will not (or cannot) love back. She's not much for friendship either, preferring to be alone.” tvtropes .org

✨The Ice Queen is cold & unforgiving. She IS the resting bitch face personified, unimpressed & unfazed by those around her. Seemingly aloof, the male in the story is always trying to breakthrough her tough and unbothered exterior. Her coldness posses a real challenge to anyone who is interested in her romantically. She’s just a bitch. And a bad one at that! The Ice Queen is stern in her appearance & her approach to life. Usually divorced, or widowed, but doesn’t have to be, she walks as if she carries the weight on the world of her shoulder. She’s been abandoned by happiness in life, but she’s so regal, no one knows how deep her scars cut. She can resemble the Boss Bitch/Diva trope, because she normally holds a lot of power, but she carries a certain detachedness that is unique to this trope. She is NOTHING nice. The Ice Queen is hard to please & has no issues letting people know she’s unsatisfied. The Male wants to “warm her up”, breakthrough her cold exterior & get to know why she is so damn mean! In some cases he succeeds, in others he realized she’s just a mean & shallow as he originally thought. Elvira Hancock in Scarface is the prototype for this feminine character trope. Not only is her nose typically buried nose deep in snow (if you get it, you get it), she’s. a. straight. cold-hearted. biotch. She’s unbelievably gorgeous & unapproachable, & this is exactly what draws the male protagonist in to her. But even after the male “wins her over”, she was never satisfied. An Ice Queen to her CORE, she was never one to be defrosted. Defamed? Maybe…Defrosted…never.

It’s worth noting that the Ice Queen is usually HIGHLY fashionable. Not the cheap stuff either— the Ice Queen is a Queen none the less. She’s not the T-shirt & jeans girl next door, or the purple hairdo manic pixie…she’s class & sophistication. First rule, you gotta be hot to be so cold.

If you are a Jyestha, Dhanishta, Uttara Bhadrapada Rising or an Aquarius, Libra or Cancer Rising, or have Saturn, Uranus, the Moon, or Venus aspecting your first house, you may find that you come across as the Ice Queen through the male gaze. You carry a certain reserved & detached aura upon first meeting someone. Rarely would you put all your cards on the table. There is also a certain maturity that you carry with you when you walk into a room. Men will assume “oh, this girl, she’s been through some stuff”. You may find that you are somewhat withdrawn in social situations, although people may be very drawn to you. You don’t necessarily care about being liked, but you certainly care about being respected. You come off as if you don’t tolerate any kind of messiness. Men may think you play hard to get or that you just think you’re better than the average. Whatever! You don’t care what they think. You’re too busy reading or being an intellectual (whatever that means lol…this is the male gaze we are talking about). Again, to the right egotistical man who believes he can “warm you up”, you are a welcomed and ongoing challenge. The Ice Queen is the female trope of male dissatisfaction. When a Male encounters the Ice Queen in cinema, she tend to represent a part of the male that will NEVER be pleased, content or accepted. Normally the man after this cold woman’s stone-cold heart is trying to prove his worth to the world around him, & the Ice Queen serves as the perfect trophy. If he can impress her/have her, he can impress anyone & have the World! The Ice Queen is the ultimate prize for the male protagonist w ego/self-esteem issues. Nothing humbles a man quite like a cold-hearted bitch. You may find in your dating life, Male’s feel the need to impress you for no good reason..or maybe you enjoy watching men walk on their heads for a date w you! Either way, as the Ice Queen female trope you carry a certain air about you that commands attention & respect. You carry authority over yourself & those around you. The male gaze says although your intimidating, your worth a try to shut down all the haters, even if you’re hater number 1!

✨Music:

Female Gaze: Needed Me- Rihanna

Male Gaze: Roses- OutKast, Cooler than Me- Mike Posner

✨Examples

Elvira Hancock-Scarface

Camille- The Sapranos

Lady Mae Greenleaf- Greenleaf

Elsa- Frozen

Jade- Victorious

Elekta Evangelista- Pose

Claire- House of Cards

Molly- Insecure

Lucille- Arrested Development

Betty Draper- Mad Men

Mother Shannon, House of Balenciaga- Legendary

Cersei Lannister- Game of Thrones

Dominique La Rue- Harlem Nights

Gru’s Mom- Despicable Me

💋Femme Fatale

Nakshatras: Ashwini, Bharani, Ashlesha, Purva Bhadrapada, Shatabisha

Zodiacs: Aries, Scorpio, Cancer

Planets: Mars, Pluto

Tarot Card: Queen of Wands (Fire & Water)

✨Definition

“A femme fatale,sometimes called a maneater or vamp, is a stock character of a mysterious, beautiful, and seductive woman whose charms ensnare her lovers, often leading them into compromising, deadly traps. She is an archetype of literature and art. Her ability to enchant, entice and hypnotize her victim with a spell was in the earliest stories seen as verging on supernatural; hence, the femme fatale today is still often described as having a power akin to an enchantress, seductress, witch, having power over men. Femmes fatales are typically villainous, or at least morally ambiguous, and always associated with a sense of mystification, and unease.”

-Wikipedia

✨The Femme Fatale is arguably the most ICONIC of the female movie tropes. A popular trope of Film Noir “movement” in the late 1940s, early 1950s, the Femme Fatale is a sexual seductress with a naughty side. Enchanting as she is dangerous, the male gaze ogles her, even though it may cost him his life— or at least his job & social standing. Medusa is one of the best representations of this trope. If a man locks eyes w her, he’s as good as dead— yet, time & time again, men tried to defeat her, only to meet a tragic end. As time progressed, the story of the woman who turns men to stone (definitely a sexual innuendo if you ask me) found new life in television & film. The Femme Fatale is a beautiful disaster just waiting to happen. She’s wild, like the Manic Pixie Dream Girl, but she has a certain knack for danger and crime. She lures the male in & traps him like a spider in her web. The male is usually a little weary of the woman, but is overcome w her grace & charm, or he’s truly an unsuspecting victim who gets completely taken advantage of an entangled in whatever mess she’s made for herself. One way or the other, the male often ends up in a position of life & death after lusting after this dark & intriguing beauty. The film, Carmen Jones, starring Dorthy Dandridge, is a classic tale of a woman w loose morals who ends up (spoiler alert) dead. Unlike most of the other female tropes, the femme fatale almost always suffers consequences for her actions. She either ends up in jail, or dead, or kills her lover, or he ends up in jail, or her lover ends up dead. Tragic, I know. Again, think of Medusa…she killed everything she laid her eye on, & then ultimately had to be killed. (RIP Medusa, you were a baddie). No one gets out scotch free when dealing w this character. The femme fatale is mysterious, almost like a mythical creature or an enchantress, & the male is instantly drawn into her, whether they exchange words in a bar, or she simply flicks her cigarette & he rushes to relight it. One thing is for sure, she lives by her own rules & is bound by nothing…not the law or death itself. She’s usually a criminal minded free-spirit, manipulating her way through life to survive.

If you are an Ashwini, Bharani, Ashlesha, Purva Bhadrapada Rising Or an Aries, Scorpio, or Cancer Rising, or you have Pluto or Mars aspecting your 1H, you may come off as the femme fatale through the male gaze. Your dark, broody & secretive nature is fascinating to them, and they want to join you on a passionate journey through time & space or save you from whatever sticky situation you may have put yourself in. They want to play detective & you are the perfect case to crack. When the femme fatale enters the male’s life, she instantly posses a threat to his usually naive understanding of the world. She’s not your typical housewife— far from it. She challenges the traditional social construct of beauty & submission. Normally from a troubled/difficult past past, the femme fatale will only submit to law & death, she’s been forced to learn the ugly sides of life & uses them to her advantage. You may find that male’s tend to want to dominate you or control your direction in life in relationships, but you are REPULSED by this notion. This trope teaches men (and woman sadly), that freedom comes w a cost. Hopefully it’s not your life, but if it is, you sure make a sexy corpse!

✨Music:

Female Gaze: Wild side- Normani

Male Gaze: Dirty Diana -Michael Jackson

✨Examples

Filomena (Sophia Lauren)- Marriage Italian Style

Cat Woman- Batman

Carmen- Carmen Jones

Dr. Frank-N-Furter (played by the wonderful Lavern Cox)- The Rocky Horror Picture Show

Jennifer- Jennifer’s Body

Gilda (Rita Hayworth)- Gilda

Amy Dunne- Gone Girl

Laura Biel- 365 Days

Alex Vause- Orange Is the New Black

💋Queen Bee/Mean Girl

Nakshatras: Krittika, Purva Phalguni, Chitra, Purva Ashadha

Zodiacs: Libra, Capricorn, Aries, Leo, Taurus & Gemini

Planets: Venus, Mars, Sun, Mercury

Tarot Card: Princess of Swords (Earth & Fire)

“The Mean Girl trope had us all believe that the dark side to womanhood is catty, conniving competitiveness.”

The swaddle.com

“Mean girls are often overly concerned with appearance. They may place a high priority on their clothing, their make-up, and even their weight. Likewise, they may zero in on these things in others, pointing out everything from acne and weight gain to clothing choices and hairstyles.”

-theteenmagazine.com

✨Somewhere between The Ice Queen and The Diva, there lies a sweet sour sweet CLASSIC female trope that always leaves the girls GAGGING in disbelief, like “did she just say that?!!” The Queen Bee/Mean Girl trope has her fair share of representation in film & TV, particularly in teen dramas, but she is NOT limited to high school. The Queen Bee is in charge, she knows what she wants, she knows how she likes it & she has ZERO problem letting her loyal subject know. Sometimes, she is portrayed w a deep deep deep DEEP down heart of hold, but most of the time, she’s just a straight biotch from beginning to end. You DON’T want to cross her, or you just might end-up on her ever growing hit-list. If there is one thing Ms. Mean Girl can do..it’s hold a grudge. As stated above, the Queen Bee/Mean girl trope serves the stereotype of the cattiness & competitiveness of femininity. And it is a fact that in the wild, the female animals are usually far more aggressive than their male counterparts. (Think Lion, or a Mama Bear). Boys may have their sports, but lady’s have their looks & they will secure that W come hell or high water all the way to Prom Queen.

If you are a Krittika, Purva Phalguni, Chitra, Purva Ashadha Rising or Libra, Taurus, Aries, Leo or Gemini Rising, OR if you have Venus, Mars or the Sun aspecting your 1H/7H, you may come off as the typical Mean Girl Trope through the Male Gaze. You’re aloof, yet decisive about the things you truly care about— like— “Wednesdays, we wear pink”. You keep people on the tip of their toes with witty banter & effortless conversation. If they don’t know the latest trends, the current celebrity gossip or who dumped whom…well, you’re just not interested in what they have to say, so why bother? You can play the villain easily & have no problem being unliked as long as you are respected. You are a social butterfly, a socialite, if you will. You know how to make the streets talk with admiration & envy. People may be afraid that they can’t meet your standards, but good, they probably can’t. NO UGLY FRIENDS is the motto— people may think you actually hold try-outs for who is allowed to sit with you at the table. Through it all, you know how to take control & lead— this energy oozes from you as people seem to just step aside as you sashay down the halls. Always up on the latest fashion, you always come w your A-game and your enemies will NEVER catch you slipping. There is a beautiful confidence that you exude because you know you are the one and only. People may be extremely intimidated by you, but the real ones will bow at your feet.

The shadow side of this trope is the shadiness. Queen Bees/Mean girls are known for being just that—MEAN. People may assume that you are quite backstabby & mischievous. YOU, of all the movie tropes, don’t mind playing

d-i-r-t-y! People perceive you as never wanting to let go of that crown & you’ll do whatever it takes to keep the social order in tact. Think “Status-Quo” High School Musical w Sharpay, the ULTIMATE representation of this trope, screaming from the top of the cafeteria! (THIS IS NOT WHAT SHE WANTS! THIS IS NOT WHAT SHE PLANNED!!!!!) She didn’t care who she had to cut, scheme, lie, trick, plot & sabotage to make SURE Ms. Gabriella did not get the spotlight w her man, Troy. Think of the lengths you’ll go to to get what you want. You come off as spicy, cunt-y (in the best way), & beautiful. You are a glamour girl & never afraid to throw some shade here & there, making you the ultimate reigning Queen Bee!

✨Music

Female Gaze: Feeling Myself- Nicki Minaj

Male Gaze: Mad at myself- Issues

✨Examples

Maddie- Euphoria

Regina George- Mean Girls

CoCo- Dear White People

Lulu- Pose

Toni- Girlfriends

Emma Roberts in Coven & Scream Queens

Blair- Gossip Girl

Cheryl Blossom- Riverdale

Santana- Glee (Rest in Peace)

Buttercup- Powerpuff Girls

Alison DiLaurentis- Pretty Little Liars

Sharpay- High School Musical

The Heathers

Penelope- My Dog (LOVE HER, but she’s such a Bitch—a bad one though lol)

💋Ingenue/Damsel in Distress

Nakshatras: Mrigashirsa, Rohini, Hasta, Revati

Zodiacs: Cancer, Capricorn, Libra, Aries (All Cardinal Rising Signs) & Pisces, Taurus

Planets: Moon, Venus, Saturn

Tarot Card: Queen of Cups (Water) Libra, Aries

“The ingénue usually has the fawn-eyed innocence of a child but subtle sexual appeal as well.”

“The damsel in distress is a recurring narrative device (or trope) in which one or more men must rescue a woman who has either been kidnapped or placed in general peril. Kinship, love, or lust (or a combination of those) gives the male protagonist the motivation or compulsion to initiate the narrative. The female character herself may be competent, but still finds herself in this type of situation.”

Wikipedia

✨The Ingenue/Damsel in Distress is one of the most recognizable female movie tropes to date. From the tales of The Greeks, to King-Kong, to Broomhilda from Djengo— there is always some damsel…somewhere…that is…in fact…in…distress. The Ingenue is a naive babe, just learning the ins & outs of life. She’s pretty, she’s unassuming & adorably doe-eyed, full of wonder for the life ahead of her— just waiting for a strong man to show her the way! The ingenue is common, but in the best way. She’s not an ice-cold bitch like the Ice Queen or the Queen Bee, but she sits more in her femininity that the Tomboy or the Diva. She’s divine & subtle and a man is always lurking around the corner, waiting to whisk her away from all the evils in the world. If this sounds like a Disney Princess, it’s because it is. Most Disney Princesses would fit into the Ingenue/Damsel in Distress character trope, but just like most of the Princesses, no matter how young & impressionable, the Ingenue is usually the one who makes a way for herself in the end.

If you are a Mrigashirsa, Rohini, Hasta, Revati Rising or a Cardinal rising (Aries, Cancer, Libra Capricorn) or Pisces, the male gaze may perceive you as the Ingenue/Damsel in Distress trope. Your beauty & grace exceed you, & your youth is ever-present. When the male sees you, they just want to protect you & hold you dear. You spark masculinity in those who are attracted to you because you come across so soft & gentle. But don’t get it twisted, you can be a little spicy! You certainly have a little sass to you, but you try not to wear it on your sleeve. You are a true darling to those who are deserving. You serve ultimate demure womanliness & you seem to glide through any room you’re in. Although your impulsiveness & naiveté may land you in some sticky situations, there’s always a lovely leading man just beyond the pines to lead you out of the darkness and into their arms (Awwwwwwwwwww). You may be the type to need help opening the pickle jar, or clumsily fall into some big strong arms— you don’t mind being on the receiving end of affection & people just swoon over you. Unlike the Door Next Door, there can still be an “unapproachability” factor to you. You’re not the girl from down the street, you’re the new girl in town; a little lost, a little curious, but always cute! You may find that men tend to underestimate you & you’re constantly trying to prove yourself. OR you can find yourself in situations where your voice tends to be over powered as you get lost in a sea of toxic masculinity! Either way, you know how to leave a room in awe. You carry just enough mystique & intrigue that male’s fight to know more about you, but yet they just feel as if you’re a naturally good person. You’re coy, but not too coy. You’re shy, but not too shy. You are the perfect “woman”. You may have a past, but your future is always bright! A hero waits around the corner for the perfect time to catch you when you fall or introduce you to a world you didn’t know existed.

As the Ingenue/Damsel in Distress, your energy is POWERFUL, almost as if you’re sexily yelling “Fire! Fire! Save me! Help me!” when you walk into the room. You know how to keep the male gaze & they will break their necks to see you eloquently walk by. Before the reign of the Manic Pixie Dream Girl, you were the trope on top— the beautiful default representation of hyper-femininty in the 20s/30s/40s. You set the standards for the early starlets, they were nothing if they weren’t the lovely ingenue!

✨Music

Female Gaze: Bring Me to Life- Evanessance, Pretty When I Cry- Lana Del Ray

Male Gaze: Let Me Love You- Mario

✨Examples

Betty Draper- Mad Men

Celie- The Color Purple

Neytiri- Avatar

Autumn- P-Valley

Daisy- The Great Gatsby

Persephone- The [Abduction] of Persephone

Irene- Drive

Angel Evangelista- Pose

Disney Princesses

Broomhilda- Django Unchained

Piper Chapman- Orange Is the New Black

Mississippi- P-Valley

Penelope- The Odyssey

Satine- Mulan Rouge

💋Girl Next Door/Tomboy

Nakshatras: Anuradha, Uttara Ashadha, Shravana

Planets:Jupiter, Venus, Neptune

Zodiacs: Virgo, Sagittarius, Pisces, Taurus, Libra

Tarot Card: Princess of Pentacles (Earth)

“The girl next door is usually from a small town or an un-flashy neighborhood. Her personality tends to be down-to-earth, supportive, and approachable. For both her main boy and her culture at large, the girl next door embodies an idealized, wholesome femininity.”

-the-take.com

✨The Girl Next Door/Tomboy Trope is by far the most realistic & relatable female trope of all. She’s not flashy. She’s not mean. She’s kind & sometimes even “one of the guys”. She gives off an innocence that makes her irresistible to the male gaze because she’s just so darn cool. She’s “not like the other girls”. Although she may prefer a comfy t-shirt & jeans, she’s comfortable in her femininity. She doesn’t try to compete with other woman— even though other woman my try & compete with her. Why? Because she’s usually the girl surrounded by all the guys— not because she flaunts her beauty, but rather because she’s not stuck on herself. She challenges the status quo demonstrating that sexy can be fun, sexy can be sweet & sexy can be “normal”. Zendaya is arguably the IT girl of a generation & she usually plays this type of character. She comes across as someone you can sip cool-aid with after she beats you in a round of basketball! For some, that’s sexier than Marilyn Monroe herself! This is the All-American (no matter the race) beauty that only lives a few doors down. This trope is most likely to be in the “friend-zone”, until one day the male realizes…”OH MY GOSH! SHE HAS BOOBS!”

If you are an Anuradha, Uttara Ashadha, Shravana Rising OR a Virgo, Sagittarius, Pisces, Taurus, Libra Rising, you could come off as the Girl Next Door/Tomboy female trope. You’re approachable & not stuck on yourself & that makes you highly desirable through the male gaze. You’re simple & non-demanding like some of your other female counterparts and this makes you a breath of fresh air in a Kardashian fueled instagram dystopia. Don’t get me wrong, I’m sure you know how to clean up nicely! When it’s times for you to put on a skirt & heels, you knock ‘em dead. You’re stunning! But you’d much rather lead with personality than looks. You have an effortlessness about you that can’t be obtained by just anyone. At times you may feel a bit awkward about your sexuality, but again, through the right male’s gaze, this is SUCH a turn on. This is an extremely powerful trope because you are realistic. You may have big dreams, but you feel like you come from humble beginnings. You’re authentic to yourself, not to Chanel & Gucci. Sometimes, you may feel overlooked & one-up’d by the “popular girl”, but there is ALWAYS someone who thinks you are the most beautiful girl in the room because you light up the room like no body else & don’t get me started on the way you flip your hair & how it gets the boys overwhelmed. You don’t know you’re beautiful…and that’s….that’s what makes you so beautiful. How lovely!

If you are the Girl Next Door Trope, you don’t have to worry about putting on a show to impress the boysies around you. Just continue to be you’re cool & down to Earth self. Even though it seems like we live in Shallow Land, where everything is based on superficial looks & flawless instagram selfies, you’re super special because you don’t give in. Don’t conform & don’t rush to be the “it” girl. You don’t need the BBL & the thick lashes. (NOTHING IS WRONG W THIS!!! NOTHING~~~) Your natural beauty is more than enough through the Male Gaze!

✨Music

Female Gaze: All You Wanted- Michelle branch

Male Gaze: Hey There Delilah- The Plain White Tees

*sorry I couldn’t link it! Ran out of space!

✨Examples

MJ (Zendaya)- Spider-Man

Zoe- Grownish

Victoria-Victorious

Monica- Love & Basketball

Bella- Twilight

Justice-Poetic Justice

Peggy- Mad Men

Moeisha- Moeisha

Betty Cooper- Riverdale

Blanca Rodriguez- Pose

Apollonia- Purple Reign

Danielle- The Girl Next Door

💋Diva/Boss Bitch

Nakshatras: Pushya, Magha, Uttara Phalguni

Planets: Sun, Saturn, Mars

Zodiacs: Leo, Scorpio, Taurus, Aquarius (All Fixed Rising Signs) & Sagittarius, Capricorn

Tarot Card: Queen of Pentacles (Earth & Water)

“The strong, dark, beautiful woman. She's often a go-getter, chasing stardom, wealth, or just recognition for her talents. If she becomes an Idol, she's not constrained by the pressures of always appearing youthful, innocent, and approachable.

Part of her allure is instead her maturity, either in personality or in sexuality. When she walks in the room she not only turns heads, but she demands respect and won't hesitate to set you straight if she doesn't get it.”

-tvtropes.org

✨The Diva/Boss Bitch Female trope is THEE BADDEST BITCH. She’s worked hard to get where she is & she isn’t going to let some MAN come along and knock her off her thrown. This female trope demands a certain level of respect when she walks into the room— all heads turn because they know she’s the boss, just waiting to give quick & sharp directions. Usually fashionable, because she can AFFORD it (hello!), she knows how to command in any setting while looks good. A trend setter! She may be one of the most intimidating of the female tropes through the Male Gaze, on par with the Ice Queen, because the Diva carries a certain masculine energy. She usually is running things & bossing men around herself. She doesn’t let her sex get in the way of her ambition & talent. This character trope is not afraid to speak her mind because she knows she has just as much right to a seat at the table as anyone. She’s hard to impress & won’t settle for anything less than perfect. Mediocrity will NOT FLY with the Diva. She expects & she will have the best.

If you are a Pushya, Magha, Uttara Phalguni Rising or a Leo, Scorpio, Taurus, Aquarius, Sagittarius, or Capricorn Rising, you may come off as the Diva/Boss Bitch female character trope. You seem to prioritize work, success & your ambition over friendships & relationships. You force the males who gaze upon you to reevaluate their own status & merit in the world. They know you can’t be easily swayed & have to step to you with their best foot forward. Usually depicted as an insatiable boss, men may feel you’re an insatiable lover— demanding & hard to please…whatever, this doesn’t stop you! You know what you want & if they don’t get it for you, you’ll get it your damn self. You come off as self-assured & somewhat egotistical. You’re proud of your work & you expect to be treated like the BOSS that you are. If someone has a problem with that, well then, they can just get in line! Olivia Pope in Scandal is a great example of this trope in action. First, she has a J.O.B. & she’s DAMN good at it. The best, even. Her sex appeal through the male gaze is due to her wits & her competence. Like you, as soon as she walks into the room, people know it’s business time.

If you are the Diva/Boss Bitch Trope, don’t let ANYONE discredit your hustle—not another woman, not a man…NO ONE! You’ve worked hard to get where you are, and it shows because of the way you carry yourself. You can be one of the classiest tropes of all & that’s more impressive than you could ever know. Your beauty lies in the fact that you are sophistication personified. Your intrigue lies in the fact of your rarity! Not every woman is as ambitious or as capable as you are. You make men shiver when they lay eyes on you because you have an aura that screams “STEP YOUR GAME UP OR GET TO STEPPING!” Never try to dim who you are. You’re bossy & you’re the bitch they all LOVE to hate! Let them! You’d probably hate you too if you weren’t you because you are just too fly to handle! Confidence oozes from your pores because you know your stuff. Although it’s lonely at the top, you enjoy the view of downtown from your corner office! It’s hard to compete where others don’t compare Ms. Diva! Own it!

✨Music

Female Gaze: Flawless- Beyoncé

Male Gaze: Ms. Independent- Ne-yo

*sorry I couldn’t link it! Ran out of space!

✨Examples

Olivia Pope- Scandal

Blossom- Powerpuff Girls

Miranda Priestly— Devil Wears

Annalise Keeting- How To Get Away With Murder

Sylvie- Emily in Paris

Jaqueline- Boomerang

Shug Avery- The Color Purple

Cookie- Empire

Mercedes- P-Valley

Matron “Mama” Morton- Chicago

[trashinaglass-archive]

New Daddy

Family Man pt 2 (read pt 1 here)

Request by @deepintothenature

Hi. I just read Family man and i loved it. If you accept request would you please write one about reader giving birth to their son?

A/n: I would’ve had this posted by Father’s Day if I were a good writer. But I am, in fact, a very mediocre writer so it wasn’t ready. I didn’t proof read it very closely so if something sounds stupid, my b

Full disclaimer, I’ve never had a child so sorry if anything sounds stupid.

Ends with sexual innuendos bc when does my writing not? Sorry not sorry

One thing you learned while pregnant was that people love talking about themselves. You had heard so many stories about when I was pregnant this or my delivery that to last you a lifetime. And while some of them included helpful advice, no one wanted warn you just how painful labor truly is. You didn’t expect it to easy, but you also didn’t expect it to be this bad.

Your knuckles were turning white from gripping onto the bed railing so hard, trying to breathe through the current contraction. Chris was standing next to you, one hand stroking your hair while the other rested on your hands.

“I feel so bad,” Chris said softly as he watched you. “Is there anything I can do?”

“Keep your penis away from me for the rest of your life,” you said, catching your breathe as the contraction finally subsided. The nurses giggled at your comment, probably hearing it multiple times a day by now.

“Well I don’t really like that idea.”

The anesthesiologist chuckled as she entered the room, a cart full of medication and told in tow. “Well, hopefully, I can help.” Chris stood back to let the woman do her job, watching intently as you did what you were instructed. She had been trying to make conversation with you, but you were too exhausted to contribute much of anything.

Chris, on the other hand, was in awe by the entire process. He had seen you take hits, so he knew you were strong, but he this was a whole new level of strength. And all he could do was stand there and watch.

A few hours later, you were finally holding you’re baby boy.

You and Chris were huddled together as you looked down at the tiny human lying on your chest. His thumb stroked across the baby’s forehead soothingly. “You look just like your mama,” Chris whispered in a higher than normal pitched voice.

“I don’t know. That’s a pretty distinct Evans nose,” you booped the baby’s nose gently.

Chris’s smile was so contagious. This was a moment he had been looking forward to for so long. You always knew he was a family man, but seeing him in the moment just confirmed what you already knew: he was going to be the best dad.

“You did amazing,” he whispered as he turned to look at you. You smiled and looked back down, Chris taking the opportunity to place a kiss to the top of your head.

A ringtone went off moments later. “Who’s that?” you asked, watching Chris as he stood up to grab the phone on the table behind him.

“Scott. We got a baby yet or what?”

You roll your eyes playfully, expecting nothing less from your brother in law. “Should we FaceTime them?”

He shrugged, putting his free hand in his pocket. “If you want. I can also ignore them if you’d prefer that.”

The skin between your brows bunched up at the suggestion. “I mean, I don’t necessarily want anyone in the room passing him around, but I don’t want to just ignore them either.” You took a moment to consider before deciding getting it over with would probably be easiest. “Let’s FaceTime them.”

Chris nodded once before sitting in the chair next to you. His elbows rested on his knees as he opened the phone and began the video call. It didn’t take long before your brother in law answered.

“Where’s the baby!” He shouted immediately followed by the sound of a few smacks as if he was being reprimanded.

“What? You mean this guy?” Chris’s Boston accent jumping out stronger than ever as he kneeled next to your hospital bed with the camera facing the both of you and the little boy on your chest, partially covered by your hospital gown.

A chorus of awws rang out as the group took in the newest edition. “He looks just like you, y/n,” Chris’s mother commented. Your cheeks flushed slightly, feeling pride at the comment.

“I did put in a lot of work,” you smiled, partly joking but also kind of serious. His mom and sister shared a look of understanding, having done the same themselves.

“He hasn’t been too much trouble yet?” his sister asked.

“Not yet, but knowing Chris and Scott…” you trailed off followed by objections from both men.

“He’ll be awesome,” Scott answered for you with a slight scoff.

The youngest sister laughed. “Yeah, that’s one word for it.” You smiled at the camera and let Chris finish up the conversation, before you both said your goodbyes and ended the call.

The nurses came in not too long after to check on mom and baby as well as explain a few things before leaving. The baby was placed in a clear bassinet next to your bed to allow him and you to get some rest for the night.

“You comfy over there?” You ask quietly, watching Chris as he tried sleeping in the chair. He chuckled before answering.

“There’s been worse,” he shrugged.

“Do you want lay with me?”

He shook his head, “I’m fine. As long you’re comfortable.”

“I’ll rephrase that… will you lay with me?” You ask him. No more convincing is needed as Chris made his way to where you were lying, situating yourselves so he was lying on his back with you lying almost completely on top of him. Hands started rubbing softly along your back, as you sigh in content. “I deserve cuddles after today.”

“You do,” he laughed. “You do deserve cuddles. I also got you a little something.” Chris reached into the pocket of his sweats on the opposite side on you, pulling out a small box.

Your brows furrowed in confusion as you lift your head to look between him and the box. The thought of a push present had honestly never crossed your mind, but Chris was such a thoughtful guy. It was the least he could do for you. You took the box gently, as if whatever was inside was going to shattered at a single touch. Opening the box, you found a ring covered in small colored gems. The baby’s birthstone. “Oh my god,” you gasped, covering your mouth slightly. “You didn’t have to do that.”

“You deserve it,” He said simply before he picked the ring out of its spot in the box and took your hand, sliding on your finger. “Perfect,” he whispered, leaning does to place a kiss to your knuckle. “I love you.”

“I love you too, Daddy,” you teased. A grin appearing on your face when you feel the muscles in Chris’s hand tighten as if he wanted to do something but knew he couldn’t.

“You better be careful with that word. We might find ourselves back here next year.”

“Absolutely not,” you replied quickly. “It’s going to be a few years before I even consider another.”

“But you will consider it?” he asked hopefully, always the one to dream of having a big family like his own.

You settle your face onto his chest, ready to close your eyes and sleep for forever. “My vagina needs to heal first.”

Your head moved with Chris’s chest as he silently laughed, not willing to miss the opportunity to he was handed. “I will take great care of your vagina, don’t you worry.”

You didn’t react or say anything back as you moved your hand a few inches higher to pinch and twist his nipple, making him yelp in surprise.

[soleminisanction]

There are very few ""headcanons"" out there that get a bigger side-eye from me than people who try to make Stephanie Brown into a Black girl.

Firstly because that is not a headcanon. That's just a whole-ass retcon created out of thin air. A headcanon would be saying she's a natural redhead like how Morgan Kohan played her on Batwoman, or that she's mixed-race because of the curly way some artist draw her hair. There's definitely flexibility in race interpretations for comics but looking at the blue-eyed blonde-hair white girl and declaring her "actually Black" is not one of them.

Secondly, because I have seen (and sometimes gotten) a lot of harassment from Steph fans aimed specifically at Tim's actual, canon Black love interests and teammates. I still seethe at the memory of this one CBR interview I read back when YJ2019 was running, where Brian Michael Bendis and David F. Walker were clearly there to talk up Naomi and Teen Lantern, and in the middle of their heart-felt conversation about the importance of representation for young Black girls, the interviewer butted in to interject, "But you know who I want to see more of?? Stephanie!!!" This going on while Steph fans on Twitter were going on racist tirades because the book dared to highlight the history of Teen Lantern, a character who was actually advertised to be a part of the book and a new member of the team, instead of giving them more of their white-blonde fav who had never been affiliated with YJ and was never part of the advertising.

Thirdly, she was created and so often written by Chuck Dixon, a blatant racist, and as a result there are so many little scenes of her that have uncomfortable racial elements to them. Like the one where he created a pair of Black girls just so Stephanie could call them "raging morons" to their faces and then later talk about how stupid and immature they are compared to her. (Which I am still convinced was Dixon directly criticizing the much better teen pregnancy subplot from Icon & Rocket). Or the borderline-blackface white savior ""demon"" where she wears a dead gnu and maybe accidentally calls herself a bitch in Swahili. (Disclaimer: I do not speak Swahili, and thus do not know how a sentence structure that should read "I am thorn" turns into "I'm a bitch" or "I'm crazy," but I checked that translation with three different robo-translators and got the same results so, shrug.)

And finally -- god, Steph is just, such a walking avatar of white women's privilege. Her entire thing is demanding that she get her way, never letting anyone tell her no, and still being treated by the narrative as a pure-hearted ""beacon of hope"" that everybody needs to protect and nurture at all times.

The inciting incident of War Games can be boiled down to, "A white girl got told no, and made it everybody else's problem." The first attempted Black member of the Batfamly fucking died during that event and got almost entirely forgotten because people only went to bat for the white girl who caused the whole mess and the white woman who got character assassinated to kill her off.

If Stephanie were Black, she wouldn't exist anymore. Fuck, if she were a brunette or just as butch as Carrie Kelly, she probably wouldn't exist anymore. She certainly wouldn't be Batgirl, I can't imagine Dan Didio replacing Cass with another woman of color.

And it's not even just her? Her father is also a very white character. It is incredibly easy to summarize Arthur Brown as a mediocre white man lashing out at the world for not handing him the success he felt entitled to. Take that petulant entitlement away from him and you lose his entire character.

I'm ranting about it on my own blog instead of picking a fight because everybody's entitled to their own fandom experience and blah blah, but this is just. Yeah. Ugh.

[dogboyklug]

part 1 - [you are here!] - part 3

yepyep . making true on my promise to make this a three parter i guess! hopefully the final part will be out soon

disclaimer: i am not blaming trans women as a whole for my trauma, nor am i saying that the patriarchy doesnt exist. lol. ok bye

text transcript / partial id once again under the cut!

UH-OH! part 2: no lol

i was a

uh

xenogender kid? double-rainbow freak?

[a drawing of very slightly younger me, awkwardly smiling and going "yaaaay".]

we don't have any slurs i think which is good but you get the idea

i tried a

[caps] LOT [end caps]

of other terms before i really settled with this one

[a drawing of a man with a shadow over his eyes. he has two sharp horns protruding out of his head. the drawing is captioned "genderfaun".]

[a drawing of little me singing "lemon boy" by cavetown, captioned "soft boi".]

[and, finally, a drawing of a slightly abstract creature with a long dress and tall horns, drawn in grey, and with vines crawling around it, captioned "voidpunk [hi fomes]']

it wasn't an instant click.

it took a lot of hearing the word, seeing the community in the corner of my eye, and finding 15 subreddits before i started thinking

[a drawing of younger me, looking at a subreddit, and going "oh, shit,"]

[followed by a decently well-drawn frontal sketch of me, genuinely smiling, sparkles around him, going "it me!!!"]

okay, so, like,

[caps] THIS. [end caps]

this has to be it.

i'm happy

i know who i am

i know [caps] WHAT [end caps] i am

i found an amazing community with amazing people working together to create something beautiful

[caps] THIS [end caps] is the end [caps] RIGHT?????

[a drawing of me, sobbing cartoonishly, my glasses foggy due to the tears.]

[followed, in the next page, by a half-view of my face, my glasses clouded due to light shining on them harshly.]

turns out knowing yourself and who you are and where you belong

isn't always quite enough.

[a drawing of me, face down, cushioned by my arms, my glasses next to me. below the drawing, black spikes rise, covering the bottom half of the comic.]

a lot of things happened very very quickly.

at least it sure felt that way

[a drawing of me, white against black, staring in horror at my phone.]

turns out my brother wasn't the only person who didn't believe my identity made sense.

there was - and probably still IS - a group of trans people dedicated to making sure trans men know their place.

we are the oppressors, we cannot be oppressed, no men can be oppressed.

no men can be [as in, feel] harmed. no men can be kind. no men can be loving. no men should be allowed to exist

testosterone is poison. it makes you violent, and it makes you cruel. it makes you ugly, and unlovable.

you are encroaching on trans territory by simply existing as a trans man.

anything you do or say or think or feel or know is at the expense of the oppressed. of trans women

your existence harms them and must be stopped.

[a crude, nearly featureless drawing of me, holding my glasses, staring in shock.]

i was fourteen ish when someone i knew on a discord server asked,

"if all men were to be killed and you were included would you feel gender euphoria?"

[a drawing of younger me, looking at his phone, one eye obscured, going "huh?"]

she was a trans girl and i think her name was lily.

but, uh, obviously,

men are oppressors

[a drawing of me, looking to the ground.]

men can't be oppressed

men can't be hurt! so

it's fine.

so if you really ARE hurt or oppressed,

[caps] YOU'RE A WOMAN [end caps]

and that means you feel dysphoric

[a drawing of me, gripping at my own shirt, staring at the camera, smiling in fear.]

and you wouldn't want to feel dysphoric, right?

that's

[caps] REALLY

THE WORST

PART OF

THIS

SITUATION

RIGHT?

[an incredibly messy, quickly-scribbled drawing of me, quite literally falling apart, now grinning slightly wildly, massive bags under his eyes.]

[caps] THE WORST POSSIBLE OUTCOME [end caps]

[in large font] ...uh oh.

[a small drawing of me, a single tear coming out of one of my eyes, a hand raised up as if to brush it away, obviously scared.]

[bcolfanfic]

everytime i listen to picture me better by weyes blood i can't help but think of young vets buck and bucky. my heart hurt everytime i think of those boys. you've written them so perfectly. <3

what are some songs you associate with either of them?

heyy sorry it took me so long to get to this (and everything else in my box)- it’s finals szn at my law school and my brain is gonna be at like- total capacity till next thursday at 5pm central time. buttttt. i am big music as a story mood setter person so lotsss of thoughts. gonna focus on young vets au here, but i can make another similar post for show canon if ppl like this? im biggg into oldies music so that would actually be fun to me!

disclaimer: re: the young vets au the “veterans” part of the story takes place starting in august 2021 after the us pulled out of afghanistan. If you see a song and think “but wait that didn't come out until this year so they couldn't listen to that in 2022/2023” simply work with me here and don’t think that <3 LOL.

bucky

biggg zach bryan person and i think in general really likes that specific niche of “new age” country music. gets *irritated* by the hardcore conservative military country music lmfao, those vets that go hard in the sand for songs like courtesy of the red white and blue? not his people. that song gives him hives. also a big fleetwood mac guy, just scratches an itch on his brain. likes florence + the machine too.

east side of sorrow - zach bryan

i lost friends in the august heat / at night it was God I'd always meet / i said, "Lord, won't you bring me home? / i've got women in the west i wanna hold

oklahoma smokeshow - zach bryan

there's so much whiskey in his coke it'll make her nose bend / but she swears that his love is a damn God send / she's known God since she was a child

el dorado - zach bryan

you used to say you'd settle down / but that kind girl from school in town /she was gone before you got back home

to El Dorado, hell if I know if you're still alive /there's a note in the glovebox in your drive / El Dorado, hell if they know the difference in a hero / and a man i wish was still by my side

burn, burn, burn - zach bryan

i wanna be a child climbin' trees somewhere / breathin' in the fresh outside air / before I knew this life was unkind

you should probably leave - chris stapleton

sun on your skin, 6 am /and i been watchin' you sleep / and honey, i'm so afraid you're gonna wake up and say / that you should probably leave

me against the mountain - ian munsick

it’s me against the mountain / most days the mountain wins / but i’ll meet you tonight my love or i’ll meet my end / either way an angel’s waitin when i fought this fight

painkillers - rainbow kitten surprise

living just comes with a bit of heartache / heartache comes with a bit of young faith / faith stays young till your heart get broken / hope grows up to become someday / i never hurt no one and no one will ever hurt me / i believe i believe i believe i believe

motorcycle - colter wall

well, i figure i'll buy me a motorcycle / wrap her pretty little frame around a telephone pole / ride her off a mountain like old arlo

physco - jack kittel

don't hand me johnny's pup, mama / 'cause i might squeeze him too tight / i'm having crazy dreams again, mama

go your own way - fleetwood mac

if i could / baby, i’d give you my world / open up / everything's waiting for you

third eye - florence + the machine

i'm the same / i'm the same / i'm trying to change

astrovan - mt. joy

he said son you're famous in heaven / maybe you're famous in heaven / maybe there is no heaven / maybe we're all along together now / but i don't wanna see those tears again / you know Jesus drives an astrovan

gold dust woman - fleetwood mac

take your silver spoon, dig your grave / heartless challenge / pick your path and i'll pray

all these things that i’ve done - the killers

i got soul / but i'm not a solider

between me and you - brandon flowers

the first time that i saw your face / time stood still / i found my place / now i'm watching it tear out of my arm

gale

listens to zach bryan for bucky but his country music niche is more on the tyler childers side of things. likes older music too bc it’s what his mom would play around the house and he finds it comforting. i think he likes pop music more than bucky does lol, bucky ribs him a lil about some of it but he finds it endearing. the taste they share the most i think is the fleetwood mac and the killers/brandon flowers stuff.

follow you to virgie - tyler childers

back when all us boys were tryin' / to make sense of all these string / i can see her in the corner / singing along to all our crazy dreams

coal - tyler childers

so sometimes, i imagine that I'm getting pretty close to hell / and in my darkest hour, i cry out to the Lord / he says, "keep on a-mining, boy, 'cause that's why you were born

nose on the grindstone - tyler childers

well daddy, i've been tryin', i just can't catch a break / there's too much in this world that i can't seem to shake / but i remember your words, lord, they bring me the chills / keep your nose on the grindstone and out of the pills

folsom prison blues - johnny cash

i bet there's rich folks eatin' from a fancy dinning car /they're prob'ly drinkin' coffee and smoking big cigars / well i know i had it comin' i know i can't be free / but those people keep a movin' and that's what tortures me

old rugged cross - alan jackson (i’ve made a woowoo post about this before/bucky being gale’s cross to carry but. in my mind he listens to this on the drive home when bucky’s in the hospital. has to pull over to cry a lil. sweet boy.)

to the old rugged cross i will ever be true / it's shame and reproach gladly bear

where we’ll never grow old - johnny cash

when our work here is done / and our life's crown is won / and out troubles and trials are o'er / all our sorrows will end / and our voices will blend / with the loved ones who've gone on before

(sittin on’) the dock of the bay - otis redding

sittin' here resting my bones / and this loneliness won't leave me alone / it's two thousand miles i roamed / just to make this dock my home

wouldn’t it be nice - the beach boys

oh we could be married / and then we'd be happy / woudn't it be nice?

the chain - fleetwood mac

listen to the wind blow, down comes the night / running in the shadows / damn your love / damn your lies

romeo and juliet - the killers

i can't do the talk like the talk on the TV / and i can't do a love song like the way it's meant to be / i can't do everything but i'd do anything for you / i can't do anything except be in love with you

xo - beyonce

in the darkest night hour (in the darkest night hour) / i'll search through the crowd (i'll search through the crowd) / your face is all that i see / i'll give you everything

if i ain't got you - alicia keys

said nothing in this whole wide world don't mean a thing / if i ain't got you with me, baby

sweet escape - gwen stefani

come on let's bounce / counting on you to turn me around / instead of clowning around / let's look for some common ground

come on over baby - christina aguilera

now baby don't be shy / you better cross the line / i'm gonna love you right / all i want is you

the clock was tickin’ - brandon flowers

jackie flips the pages and she dreams little dreams / a cottage in the country built with real wood beams / there's a baby in the bedroom, he's starting to scream / she holds him though he probably won't remember it

[meme-streets]

blondie gender thoughts

these are sort are a combination of headcanon and analysis, so i’ll start with the former. some of this is under the cut as this got rather long.

if you’ve seen me rambling on here you know my feelings about supernatural blondie & his weird relationship to his own humanity. and i feel like he doesn’t want to be a person and doesn’t fully think of himself as a person but rather as a sort of mythic figure. so, while i understand where people are coming from when they say all his weird bullshit is like a masculinity thing or an internalized homophobia thing, i don’t think it’s quite that–i think it’s something that’s very personal and specific to him. his thought process is not “if i do xyz, i won’t be a proper man,” it’s “if i do xyz, i will be dead.” i figure he probably doesn’t think about gender like at all. and iirc we never even see him interact with a woman onscreen (in gbu, i mean), so he is defined entirely by his relationships to other men, and i think that results in something like this: he’s a man in that he is among men, and he is treated as a man, and he does the things that a man does (in the new mexico territory, in 1862). he is a man by relation and a man by narrative function, but there’s nothing under there, nothing that goes all the way down–which is how he is with just about everything. he’s all gender role and no gender identity; after all, he has no identity at all, really, so why should he? and i think that gender role (or at least the primary one) is more specifically “gunslinger” than it is “man.” the gender binary that exists in blondie’s head is closer to “liable to shoot me” and “not liable to shoot me” and these do not necessarily map onto man and woman. do you see what i’m saying. agender blondie. at least a little bit.

furthermore, i think there’s something interesting about his relationships to tuco and angel eyes specifically. the weird homoerotic subtext. the way they fight over him. the fact that angel eyes basically kidnaps him and dresses him up and tries to force a partnership like some kind of dracula’s bride type bullshit. the fact that blondie implicitly asks tuco for help killing five dudes and for some reason tuco interprets this as blondie wanting him to kill all five dudes himself, as if blondie is a damsel in distress that tuco has to rescue–when he thinks it’s just angel eyes he literally even says “i’ll kill him and be right back.” as @the-lions-mouth pointed out to me awhile back, angel eyes saying “i want the blond alive” as if blondie is a hot girl. narratively, blondie is a drifting, gunslinging man, but narratively he is also (in some weird sense) the love interest, the girlfriend in the love triangle. he is also, narratively, tuco’s guardian angel, and angel eyes specifically refers to him as a “golden haired angel,” which strikes me as having some kind of weird subtext that i can't quite pin down. so to the aforementioned gender roles i shall also add "girlfriend" and "angel", and also "obligatory white guy in a western," but that's another post entirely.

and again: never do we see this man flirt with a woman or even, if my memory serves, interact with one (in gbu specifically). so far as straight romance goes he's essentially a sexless character, and yet there's definitely some sexual subtext especially with the guns (the way it zooms him on him holstering his gun when talking to angel eyes, the holster shots in the final duel). which is not necessarily entirely relevant to the gender thing but it is interesting to note, and (getting back into headcanon here) i think would be an aspect of the way he relates to the men around him–sometimes he sleeps with them, or at least he think about it.

additionally: blondie is rather visually distinct from the men around him. (obligatory disclaimer that clothes don't equal gender; i am talking about a character from a movie made in the 1960s and the significance of the visuals to the audience, you understand). he has a rather soft silhouette–with the iconic poncho, certainly, which is extremely distinguishing–but also with some his other outfits, especially the dark shirt he wears he wears at the beginning. observe:

that shirt is huge on him. i've marked up the image a bit to draw your attention to a few details (yes i know this is a pepe silvia moment but just bear with me). first of all: the distance between what appears to be the actual point of his shoulder and where the seam for the sleeve lies. it's hanging off him, which both significantly softens the line of his shoulder and also makes him look like a kid who got into his dad's wardrobe. second of all: note the fold of fabric hanging over his belt in the second image i have circle as it's a little hard to see behind his sleeve. it's at the very least way too big around and quite possibly too long as well, though that's hard to tell with it tucked in. third of all: the distance between the cuff of his sleeve and his actual hand, marked in the first image–granted it appears his cuffs are unbuttoned which would make them wider, but still, the sleeves are billowing off him. note also the deep folds everywhere in the fabric; he is absolutely swimming in that shirt. (yes, the fact that eastwood is very tall and rather skinny makes it unsurprising that most shirts long enough would be too wide, but this is a movie set; the choice not to tailor it feels deliberate). it looks like a hippie shirt, almost a blouse, not to mention the pattern, while not actually floral, is close. there's also the silk scarf he wears, which stands out rather dramatically from the usual neckerchief and even from the one angel eyes wears; i still think it's meant to resemble a noose. i'm not saying this is meant to look feminine so much as unique, in a way that signals to the audience (to use a clichéd phrase): "hey! this one's not like the rest!"

there's also the second duster he has, the one he gives to the dying soldier:

the lapels are hanging fully off his shoulders–once again softening his silhouette–and the sleeves, while not terribly loose, are long enough he's had to roll them at the cuffs. the costume designers for this seem to love putting blondie in oversized clothes. again, not so much feminine so much as different.

this isn't even all i could talk about but i'm beginning to sound obsessive. all this to say: blondie is very distinct from the men around him, both visually and in terms of character. he is among men but he is not necessarily the same as them. what i'm getting at here is that i feel like blondie does manhood like a job rather than something that has any real emotional significance to him like it does to tuco (but, ah, that's for another time). assigned male by narrative.

[weirdgerman]

Does your back hurt? IT’S WITCHES

Okay. I am being so, so honest with you right now. That probably makes me sound less honest. But I mean it. I picked this word yesterday. I already knew I was going to write about back pain yesterday. I didn’t start yet, but it was a firm plan I had. And then, this morning, literally the first thing that happened to me right after getting up, I pull a muscle in my back.

Coincidence?

It can’t be.

Magic??

Probably!

(Disclaimer: I was being honest about yesterday’s plans and today’s back pain. I do not actually believe that magic causes pain. If you or your loved ones suffer from pain, please seek out evidence-based magic. I mean medicine. Evidence-based medicine.)

So, you know how we didn’t have a lot of that, back in the olden days. Evidence-based medicine. What we have always had, as a species, thanks to our hilariously engineered bipedal bodies, is back pain. Now, don’t get me wrong! I am not here to normalize having chronic back pain, and if that applies to you, you should really get that checked out. But something much more normal is having the occasional lumbar blunder. Muscles and nerves are all finicky and under a lot of constant strain and movement back there, and sometimes, for reasons that, honestly, even today are often still beyond us, we just get really sharp pains in our lower backs. A more Latin term for this is lumbago, which you may have heard before.

All of those sound like words of a sane person, yes? In 2023. Lower back pain, or lumbago, that’s what it is, you either just name the pain, or you use the language all of us have at some point agreed should be the language of medicine. To imply that there is something perfectly explicable at play here.

WRONG!! It’s WITCHES!!

I have heard German people say “Lumbago,” but only because I’ve worked in hospitals, and the only ones I’ve heard using that term were German nurses. Take that with a grain of salt, obviously, because everyone else I know talks funny. I’m not actually a great sample size for regular German speech. I know all the weird words, though. Like Hexenschuss.

Yeah, that’s right. Hexe means witch (which is a pretty cool word for them, I think), and Schuss means shot, and when you get a sudden pain in your lower back then that’s because a witch just shot you. No, seriously. More than once I’ve had an actual certified doctor tell me with a straight face that what I’m experiencing is a witch’s shot. Because that’s what we call it. And it really is because, several hundred years ago, we figured that if we can’t explain something, it’s probably because witches.

As a little bonus, here’s a picture from the German Wikipedia page for Hexenschuss, from circa 1490:

(ID: A black-and-white woodcut depicting a woman aiming a bow and arrow at another person from the back. The person seems to be in the process of stumbling and falling, missing one shoe. End ID)

Happy Halloween!

[prongsmydeer]

Ayesha Liveblogs the Good Place S1-S2

I’ve watched this first ep like three times and it took me until now to realize Michael is probably named after the show creator lmao

“One of the other people in your neighbourhood is your actual soulmate, and you will spend eternity together.” I just noticed Eleanor turning around and checking out Jianyu 

What happens if you were already married to your soulmate? Do they have a separate afterlife for singles 

“Why does she still have that accent? No one else here has an accent.” Chidi’s accent should definitely sound more Senegalese or at the very least have the tinge of a Francophone if there’s any accent retention after-death

Love how even when Tahani and Eleanor are being snarky about each other it’s through the lens of finding each other cute:

Unclear if the look on Jianyu/Jason’s face is guilt or worry for himself lol:

“It’s merely the construct of a dog. It feels no pain, or joy, or love.” This is because all dogs are in the Other Good Place LOL

Honestly I’m with Eleanor I didn’t realize Chidi ever had his own apartment in this show lol

“I won’t let you down... starting now.” I enjoy that Chidi’s face is a cross between ‘what have I gotten myself into’ and genuinely endeared by Eleanor’s ridiculousness

“I got a present for you... Senegal.” “That’s not a present; that’s just common decency.” Talking to white people really be like that sometimes

“I have what doctors call ‘directional insanity.” I’m Chidi, Chidi is me

I admire Jason’s prolonged stoicism lmao that takes dedication 

“Basically my life’s work is 3,600 pages of garbage.” Every writer has this feeling every so often LOL

“Not to mention, you have a rockin’ bod.” I really do hope they make a point of Eleanor being bisexual 

Lmao the transition from Jianyu to Jason is INCREDIBLE someone give Manny Jacinto an Emmy 

“Everyone here thinks I’m Taiwanese. I’m Filipino. That’s racist. Heaven is so racist.” GOD THE WRITING ON THIS SHOW IS INCREDIBLE

“Is she single, or is she married to Michael?” Team Jason/Janet 4ever

The depiction of Florida on this show is right on brand with everything I have ever imagined about Florida 

The hope on Eleanor’s face when Chidi offers Jason a lifeline GOD we love a man

“I am here to learn about ethnics.” Everything Jason says is so funny I’m losing my mind

Kristen Bell is really the only person who can pull off this role of being so excited for doing the bare minimum of human decency and actually make it endearing 

Based on Michael’s timing of showing up every time Eleanor and Chidi are mid-argument I wonder how much of his day is just dedicated to creeping on them in preparation for dramatic moments lmao

“It’s very... middle thermometer.” They’ve managed to capture my South Asian parent-child experience in less than ten words lmao 

Disclaimer/sidenote: Despite saying this, I am exhausted of the way people in western media write South Asian parents lmao. Give me an Ek Ladkhi scene where the parents are also willing to beat down people who insult their kids. It’s so one-sided:

Rich people are wild I cannot imagine giving up millions of dollars just because my parents loved me less than my sibling. Even if you didn’t want the money it could serve so much use to other people

I love how down Eleanor is to have sex with any person she meets given the right circumstances

“I know we’ll never be soulmates, but we’re friends.” ARE YOU SURE ELEANOR

“How do you row a boat?” With great difficulty; oars are very heavy

Which woman is so hard up for available friends that they would entrust Early Eleanor with a dog with kidney disease

“She’s so pretty like Nala from the Lion King.” The levels to this comment

"Three person couple.” “Does not compute.” Janet said no polyamory rights kjhkjhkjhjk

I really enjoy this montage of Michael and Eleanor enjoying human activities they are truly #friendgoals lmao

“Do you like France as much as I do?” “Well, they enslaved my country for 300 years, so no. But, they have great museums.” “Yes.” Tahani and Chidi’s conversation about France kills me lmao

I guess Tahani can’t really fault colonialism since she’s British LMAO

I like that they experiment with all the younger main characters together lmao there’s some implied chemistry in a lot of directions with Eleanor, Tahani, Chidi, Jason and Janet 

Fshjdghkjdshgkjhds

Eleanor: But leave up the sexy mailman. To remember me by.

Chidi: [nods seriously]

Janet’s delivery always kills me but her Count Chocula Sobs and whispered confident, “Yeah,” is truly something else:

“Those are the coolest boots I’ve ever seen in my life.” I’m so Chidi sometimes u catch urself telling very pointless lies for either a very mediocre reason or no reason at all just because ur caught up in a conversation and can’t stop saying things to fill the silence and then later it haunts u

“Killing is one of the most famous moral no-nos.” Every line of this show is beautifully written

KDJHFKSJHFKJ I love that this episode is the turning point for Chidi actually having his own moral failings

"And even if she were okay, it would be too painful for me to live with these lies.” CHIDI U HAVE BEEN LYING SINCE EP 1 LMAO IT’S A LITTLE LATE TO DECIDE U DON’T WANT TO

“The problem in the neighbourhood is me.” Say what you will about Eleanor at least in the afterlife she really cares about her friends:

“You will spend eternity with murderers, arsonists, and people who take off their shoes and socks on commercial airlines.” By this metric, at least one member of my immediate family is going to The Bad Place

If, as by Michael’s measure of Eleanor we are counting on the impact of our actions and not just intentions (i.e. Eleanor making her cousin happy as a positive) then objectively it is bizarre that none of the good Tahani has done for others through charity or even just like, hosting events for other people, means anything in the afterlife. What gives

“You’re too nice to humiliate.” I feel like this is foreshadowing of Michael being a Ineffective Demon and Great Friend

“There should be a medium place for people like me who kind of sucked, but in a fun, chill way.” [Sad chuckle] “I agree.” Awwww Chidi is sad to see her go

“You should smile more.” Adam Scott really has mastered the art of portraying an unpleasant man lmao

OMG CHIDI AND ELEANOR HOLDING HANDS WHEN SHE GETS OFF THE TRAIN

“You know, it doesn’t matter if you know things. All that matters is what’s in your heart.” Jason said Himbo/Bimbo rights

“Sorry you’re snorting the... concept of time?” I’m sure people on cocaine feel this way occasionally

“Who are they gonna believe, me, or a woman?” Men really do be like that sometimes 

“He’s the wise, eternal Judge who sits on high, has the final say on all disputes between our two realms.” “And his name is... Shawn?” The real tipping point for believing this is not The Good Place should’ve been how every person in charge of it is depicted as a white man lmao

Djfhkjh I forgot when Tahani found out about Jason. The end of episode reveals are great they really do know how to make you want to watch the next one 

How does Tahani know every celebrity EXCEPT Ariana Grande lmao 

“Oh Ariana, we’re really in it now.” God. I love Jason so much 

“Hooking up with someone with the exact same name is kind of a fun, narcissistic fantasy, I could be into it.” [’NSYNC voice] bi bi bi

Who in their right mind would let Chidi be a team captain lmao

“Congratulations, Chidi. You filibustered recess.” Kjfgjdhgj teach them early  

Every time Eleanor mentions a political philosopher I had to study I feel sympathy for how truly boring they are lmao. Honestly I didn’t retain much

KJHFJHSKJHFKJHKJAHKJ ELEANOR’S MONOLOGUE ABOUT LOVING CHIDI LMAO

Chidi running away because two beautiful and fun women have expressed feelings for him, is really a my-diamond-shoes-are-too-tight scenario

Janet giving Jason his favourite kind of wings 💗 They’re so sweet

“So you also love Chidi? And you just told him, right before I did?” “Technically you told him that he loves you, but yes.” lmao u right Eleanor

Happy Pride Month to Tahani whose every interaction with a man screams of comphet LMAO

I know Eleanor and Tahani is not what they’re aiming for here but jhgkjhg:

Eleanor: Are you ready to take our bonding to the next level?

Tahani: [gay intrigue]

Ahhh Uzo is such a good friend he knows Chidi and he’s so chill about him being anxious I love this dynamic I feel bad that Chidi’s dead

“Jianyu is a hot dummy, definitely my type.” LMAO I FORGOT ABOUT THIS AND ALSO ELEANOR REALLY WOULD SLEEP WITH ALL OF HER FRIENDS (EXCEPT MICHAEL OBVS) LMAO

OH MY GOOOOD POOR UZU AND A MONTH BEFORE HIS WEDDING TOO

“Does anyone here object to this marriage?” “Of course we do, how could we not object?” “Yes, it is a terrible idea.” “Overruled.” JANET KJHJKGHJKFH

Get someone who looks at you the way that Jason and Janet look at each other:

“True love is what Janet and Jianyu have.” YEAH IT IS

Digital Getdown being on the Jasonet wedding playlist was really an iconic move

Really it has to be a very mundane kind of torture to having someone foist a love confession on you lmao but I guess [Sartre voice] Hell is other people 

“I got ten bucks to my name. I spent 8 of it on this burrito, and the other 2 on the guac.” Been there Pillboi

The fact that Jason thinks Michael is Janet’s dad kkjdhgkjhg 

“I wasn’t a failed DJ, I was pre-successful.” I want to live in Jason’s brain

God we love a man who has emotional intelligence. Jason may not have a lot of logical reasoning skills but he knows how to calm someone down and how to love 

“Even when I do nice things, I’m only doing something so I get something out of it—the ability to stay here—which means none of this had any real moral value.” This is excellent Tahani foreshadowing but also I call bullshirt. 1) Doing good things inherently makes you feel better, so I think it would be very hard to find entirely selfless actions and 2) If you give care, time, or money to just causes and helping others whether you’re doing it for recognition or not you still have vastly improved someone’s life. It DOES count

“What if he reboots me and we fall out of love?” 😭😭😭 Let them be together!!!

Having Mindy live with her incurable addiction but be unable to fulfill it is a very medium thing to do

Eleanor’s first act of making herself comfortable in the Medium Place being putting photos of Tahani, Jason and Chidi 😭😭😭😭 She is SO endearing

Ajfhdkjhfsj Chidi immediately still wanting to jump in to defend Eleanor even after watching firsthand all the horrible things she did what kind of wholeass love and friendship

I have so many questions about where Janet’s genitals are located based on those diagrams, why did the second one not work

“I brought you two a little treat.” Oh my god Michael in Janet’s outfit hjkhkjhgkjfdk

Also I know it’s meant to be some form of torture, and like remind them of their impending doom. But what I see is a guy giving his friends a little snack

“I’m sorry Eleanor, but I engaged a ride-or-die protocol, so I’m loyal to Jason forever.” Get u a wife like Janet

The real question is why they had Kristen Bell play her high school self in a flashback if they were going to cast a teenager to play her later anyway 

Also as much as I love Kristen Bell: Definitely not a high schooler LMAO 

Maybe to draw a distinction between things she purposely did without regard for other people (as her main self) vs. when she was subject to other people’s neglect as a kid 

“I was dropped into a cave, and you were my flashlight.” Eleanor saying goodbye with a reference to Plato’s Allegory of a Cave the ROMANCE

I’d heard that the actors didn’t know about the reveal until they shot this scene so I’d be curious to see if they broke at some point 

“Didn’t you raise like, $1,000 for charity or whatever?” “60 billion actually. But it didn’t matter, because my motivations were corrupt.” Yeah call me a consequentialist but for one final time: I just can’t buy that doing nice things for a selfish reason COMPLETELY negates it??? Tangibly improving someone’s life situation, no matter what reason, seems like a good action. Fuck you Kant

“Side note, I might legit be into Tahani.” Tahani’s [gay surprise] expression oh my god 

I love how quick Eleanor is to think on her feet. Improv master lmao

Hjhjhkjhkjhlkjh now reading the credits: Pleased that they cast a Bengali actress as a Real Eleanor (who said she was from Bangladesh—even though they were accurate for Manny Jacinto’s ethnicity I wasn’t really sure if they would be regionally specific, like as far as I know William Jackson Harper doesn’t specifically identify as Senegalese

Also: Kills me that Bambadjan’s real name is Bambadjan, which implies both that his name is better than whatever name they had in the script, and that he is playing himself

“Eleanor - Bad Place,” would actually be one letter less than “Eleanor, Find Chidi,” but I understand that the message is less about identifying the lie and more about finding morality and her friends

We are finally progressing into the parts of the show I don’t know/remember 

“I won’t let you down.” “I think you will. I think this entire project of yours is stupid and doomed to fail. I think you’re going to be retired, eliminated from existence, and burned on the surface of a billion suns. And I have no doubt that you and your cockamamie experiment will go down in history as colossal failures.” “You know I think that—” “Toodeloo.” My high school guidance counselor to me when I said I wanted to go to school out of province lmao

“I can’t wait to have breakfast with Kant, and lunch with Michel Foucault, and then have dinner with Kant with Kant again so we can talk about what came up at breakfast.” “I’m sorry Chidi, all the great philosophers in history ended up in the Bad Place.” I believe this

I thought for a second Pedro, Angelique and Pevita were ALL Chidi’s potential soulmates and got excited, but straight people strike again lmao:

I have been wondering for a while whether or not sexuality plays into soulmates though. Does anyone have platonic soulmates in the afterlife lmao

“But good, would I go as far as to say to say you look good? Doubtful.” Chidi trying to be the appropriate amount of nice turns into negging lmao

Rhkjhgjhgg Eleanor immediately recognizing the slightly more whack energy this time around

“Charmed, I’m short.” Fghgkhgkgh the immediate fixation on her soulmate’s height and appearance in a way she didn’t do so meanspiritedly for any of the gang. Tahani said all of my friends are hot and Eleanor’s the only one allowed to be short

Tahani said: If Eleanor’s busy, I’ll step up to the plate to represent the Girlies Who Are Seconds Away From Losing It at All Times:

“Some of the [soulmate] pairings are platonic, some are romantic.” I guess that answers that question

Honestly didn’t think about it until now but it’s impressive that Jason can wear a Buddhist’s monks’ clothes the exact correct way based only on a single observation. He shows his intelligence in his way!!

“I am a Ferrari, and you don’t keep a Ferrari in the garage.” Vicky aka Real Eleanor knows her worth

The parallel storylines revealing what each character has been doing are very fun

Genuinely impressed by how much prop paper Kristen Bell just ate

“I’m too young to die, and too old to eat off the kids menu! What a stupid age I am.” Me too, Jason:

I also think having to go to a jazz show would tip me off that I’m in hell

“This is your soulmate, Tahani.” I know you can have a platonic soulmate now but I believe in my heart that this one wasn’t 

“Can you just chill out? Is that possible, Janet? Can you just chill out a little?” “Nope, it’s gonna be the same every time.” Me talking to my mother LMAO

“We are on strike until our demands are met.” #PayYourWriters

It’s impressive how many times Michael has managed to lose most of the only four people his entire neighbourhood is designed for

Chidi not hesitating for a second to tell Eleanor he loves her back:

“How many times have Chidi and I slept together?” “Eight different days, but like 20 different sessions.” GOOD FOR THEM LMAO

“I want to team up with you guys.” Michael said: Let me in the gang 💗

I am also genuinely endeared by Michael. His definition of torture is honestly so polite. Jazz and froyo LMAO 

“I’m sorry, has it been 100 hours?” Hahahaha I love how Tahani is genuinely intimidated by Eleanor’s confident dismissal 

Ethics question: If Tahani’s lack of care of other people is the reason she ended up in the Bad Place, do they also take into account the emotional abuse by her whole family and the way other people insistently dismissed her for Kamilah as part of that motive? Does enduring that so many times without complaint not tip the scales in her favour at all?

“And since you’re the only actual humans here, I’m on board for whatever fun little schemes you guys come up with.” Janet’s ride-or-die protocol is still engaged at heart

“Make all your memos one page, max, with pictures.” Vicky would’ve fit right in for the [Redacted] presidency

“These Millennials, they have no work ethic. Oh, sorry, a Millennial is someone who’s only been torturing people for a thousand years.”

This really is a good summary of what it’s like to take a philosophy class:

“Man, repressing your feelings is great.” Michael’s midlife crisis is very human man, down the to convertible and the much younger woman

Gdhkhdkjdh Tahani 🤝 Michael

Having very benign visions of what being tortured is like, as with someone throwing a better party than you

This is the line I quote most from this show out of everything:

[Gasps] “A family pack?” Me 🤝 Eleanor

Unprocessed spicy memories bubbling up in the middle of a mundane task in a communal space 

“You’re cool, dope, fresh and smart-brained. I’ve never seen you dance, but I bet you’re good. Because... you’re good at everything. You’re awesome. Be nicer to yourself.” Tahani 🤝 Jason 🤝 Jason

Falling in love anyone who is nice to you for more than a few minutes

“What do you think about writing a rap musical about Kierkegaard?” I want to read the songs that Chidi wrote LOL

“My name is Kierkegaard, and my writing is impeccable. Check out my teleological suspension of the ethical.” THANK YOU CHIDI FOR IMMMEDIATELY DELIVERING

You can tell this was filmed in 2017 because it is PEAK Hamilton era

“Plus they’re all French, so they’re going to the bad place automatically.” HGGHKGHGHKGH. Oh the French

“You’ve never dated anyone like Jason before.” Not Tahani getting love advice from Jason’s ex-wife

Take a shot everytime someone in this show says, “This is why everyone hates moral philosophy professors.”

Michael said: Chidi please adapt to my practical learning style

“But I tell her she’s pretty a hundred times a day, and she’s never said I’m pretty once.” Illegal. Tahani should be court-ordered to tell Jason he’s pretty

I believe in my whole heart that Janet lost a thumb because even as their couple’s therapist, she is still in love with Jason

“I’m your hottest friend. No, Tahani. I’m your nicest fr— no, Jason. I’m your friend!” LMAO at least Eleanor is self-aware

Fkfkjfhfjfh I guess technically Michael was doing his job by torturing Chidi

Also imagine the psychological trauma Chidi absorbs from having to decide to kill people so many times in the trolley problem. A reboot button would be helpful for him now 

“Aw, I’m happy for you guys.” [retches and vomits out a frog] JANETJASON ENDGAME

Michael’s little evil laugh also gets me every time. I love Ted Danson

“I call them ‘opposite tortures.’” “Do you mean, ‘presents?’” Hahahaha

Chidi’s a better or more morally stagnant inflexible than I am because I do think making people happy is a good thing even if the gifts are bribes in pursuit of forgiveness 

The way Janet malfunctions every time she supports Jason and Tahani. SHE’S IN LOOOOOVE

“Glitches may be a sign that your Janet is processing or disseminating information that is incompatible with objective truth.” Because she’s lying about her feeeelings

VINDICATIONNNNNNNNNNNN:

[Chanting] “Kill me, kill me, kill me, kill me.” Janet is perfect and also Jason was right she is Michael’s family LMAO

“The reason is friends!! You’re my friend, Janet, that’s why I can’t kill you.” MICHAEL SAID I AM A DEMON WHO CAN GROW

“This is my new rebound boyfriend Derek. I made him!” OH MY GOD

I guess Tahani and Jason have one thing in common aside from being hot: Their irreverant disregard for everything outside of themselves hahahaha

The cut between Tahani and Jason having a picnic and deciding to get married vs. Chidi, Eleanor and Michael having an ethical dilemma about whether to break them up the greater good of society (themselves)

“That [teacher-student relationship] used to happen a lot at Lynyrd Skynyrd High School, but this time you won’t be arrested.” 1) Someone please help the people at this high school and 2) We know that these are not the vows Jason is meant to have. Send Nude Pics of Your Heart to Me lives in my heart forever

Fjfkhfhfkj Poor Janet, she’s been through more human emotions in the past couple of weeks than in any iteration of herself before:

Eleanor ready to take the opportunity to forget she’s in love with Chidi jghkghg

“This isn’t about your wind-chime penis, in fact it’s not about you at all.” Underrated line from Janet LMAO

[Concerned] “Can you get pregnant from reabsorbing?” I would like to believe this is a lingering hint of jealousy from Jason

FKSJHSKJHS THE FACT EVERYONE LISTENS WHEN ELEANOR TELLS THEM NOT TO LOOK

This episode is emotionally a bummer for all involved couples 

“You really did just come here to chat. To shoot the shirt with your ole pal Eleanor.” “I guess so, why?” “It’s just a very human-y thing to do.” Michael and Eleanor are perhaps my favourite friendship

Eleanor said I’ve only had Michael as a friend for two weeks but if anything happened to him I’d stake the eternal souls of everyone in this room and then myself:

“What the here, dude?” Hahahahaha also a good line

“The other worst moment of Tahani’s life? Every other moment of her empty, pointless life.” This is like that scene in She-ra where they’re like ‘this feels way more personal compared to fire’ 

However, I do appreciate the dropping of hints that Michael is laying out: “Derek” Bortles - last song of a party -  the train/trolley

Janet’s version of magnet intoxication wanting to braid people’s hair is Peak Drunk Not-A-Girl in the Bathroom of a Nightclub Energy

[Sobbing] “You’re my friends and I wanted to save you.” I love one (1) Demon Buddy

Honestly props to Eleanor for figuring out Michael meant for them to stay because I personally would’ve interpreted the mention of Mindy St. Clair as enough reason to go 

“Here’s a willing sex robot and two duffel bags full of cocaine.” Mindy’s Medium Place is going to tip the scales in favour of the positive for her I guess lmao

“Maybe I should’ve realized this wasn’t the good place because of all the diarrhea.” “Maybe you shouldn’t be eating frozen yogurt right now.” Jason providing our Asian Lactose Intolerance Representation 😌💕

It actually does make sense that Eleanor loves Chidi when Chidi does not return those feelings because aside from the fact she has had that knowledge several weeks longer than Chidi, she is also a person who has consistently trusted her gut, and her gut tells her that she loves him, whereas Chidi needs time to think it out

“Once, you handed him a tissue right before he sneezed nd that simple act of anticipating his needs made him fall for you.” 1) Cute and 2) This isssss a love language

Ghkhgghkghg Michael coming into this with no plan and hoping to discover one along the way. Relatable demon 

The height difference with Tahani and everyone else is really apparent in this shot:

Chidi and Jason in particular doing the same dance move is so endearing. They all have something in common!! 

“All every wanted to was to know what it was like to be human. And now we’re going to do the most human thing of all. Attempt something futile with a ton of unearned confidence and fail spectacularly.”

Michael 🤝 Greed from FMA

Being primarily motivated by their love of their homies and general inclination towards more human emotion than any of their counterparts

“As long as I’m with you guys, I’m always in the Fake Good Place.” I want to give Michael a little kiss on the forehead

 “I just made an aphorism.” I just learned a new word

“Any time I had a problem and I threw a molotov cocktail, boom, right away, I had a different problem.” Jason does think outside the box

Tahani’s American accent is actually very good lmao 

“Principles aren’t principles when you pick and choose when you’re going to follow them.” I understand here Chidi means ‘principles’ to mean ‘fundamental truths’ and not ‘moral decisions’ but when it comes to an ethical principle, a person is always going to decide to follow it or not. That is the nature of being autonomous 

Unrelated to anything that’s going on in the Bad Place, the costume change really highlights that Manny Jacinto is so incredibly handsome, look at him, he’s like a painting:

Fully did not realize that Dax Shepard makes a guest appearance in the Bad Place. However. I believe it 

“Hang out with Johnny Depp enough, you become pretty good at lying.” This feels like a prophecy of some sort

“But then I remembered: I’m a naughty bitch.” The dialogue in this show has really transformed since they started being allowed to swear

“A moral particularist, like me—I’m one now, I just decided—would say there’s no absolute rule. You have to choose your actions based on the particular situation.” Turns out I am also somewhat of a moral particularist, Eleanor 

Honestly shocked and perplexed that it’s taken THIS long for anyone to catch Michael in a lie

Say what you will about Jason, he’s very good at molotov cocktails and knowing his own heart

“Goodbye Eleanor.” MICHAELLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL. He is the best demon buddy they could ever ask for:

I don’t know who I envisioned as the All-Knowing Judge of All Realms but I do feel like Maya Rudolph is a strong choice

“In the words of one of my actual friends: Ya basic.” I love Michael absorbing Eleanor’s vocabulary

Tahani’s soft gasp and “Oh no,” at what the spa employees and bikini waxers think of her kjgkhgjhg. Fair and relatable but you’d think it’d be the butlers and waiters, considering it’s a morality test

The gang wanting to all stay together in their failure or success 🥺 I love them

You know, I think Tahani letting go of what her parents think of her IS success, even if it’s not technically the exercise

GO JANETTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT

Eleanor choosing not to reveal that she is the only one who has gotten past her fatal flaw (selfishness, as opposed to Chidi, Jason and Tahani failing to get past their indecisiveness, impulsivity and care of how others think of her) is also her being selfless 

“Hey guys! How ya been?” THE GANG’S ALL BACK TOGETHER:

“If I’m right, the system by which we judge humans, the very method we use to deem them good or bad, is so fundamentally flawed that hundreds of millions of people have been wrongly condemned to an eternity of torture.” THAT’S WHAT I’VE BEEN SAYING, MICHAEL

“Whatever progress I have made, it’s because you and I have become friends.” I love Tahani and Eleanor’s friendship, they’re so sweet

“Jason, I love you.” “Oh, word?” “Word.” JASONJANET ENDGAME 💘

“I think I love you too girl.” YEAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH JASON!!! HE DOESN’T KNOW MUCH, BUT HE KNOWS HIS HEART

DOUBLE YEAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH, GO CHIDI, HE KNOWS HIS HEART TOO:

They all love each other so much they don’t want to be in separate Medium Places 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭 THEY ARE THE CUTEST FRIEND GROUP

Hahaha, I notice that her roommates call her Elea-NOR instead of Elea-NER like her friends do which feels like something intentional 

“Do you want to come to Lauren’s baby shower?” “Do you want to chew on my ASS-ortment of brownies that I will be bringing to Lauren’s baby shower?” [Eleanor Shellstrop voice] Pobody’s nerfect

“That took a lot of courage for you to admit that, and I admire your honesty. You stupid skank! How could you do that to me? I hate you!” Newly Not Dead Eleanor is about to learn about moral particularism 

“I still think he’s kind of hot.” “I guess, in like a sick Victorian boy kind of way.” “Oooh, yeah yeah yeah, I want to like, feed him soup.” Brittany is fun. Also I know they said Benedict Cumberbatch but this is exactly how people talk about Timothy Chalamet

Michael loves his friends so much he cannot help but nudge them along through Moral Interventions at the Sports Bar:

“I argue that we choose to be good because of our bonds with other people, and our innate desire to treat them with dignity. Simply put: We are not in this alone.” I LOVE this brand of moral philosophy

Also this last nudge to bringing them back together is a really great way to end this season. This show is SO GOOD 

[hellowblush]

dealing with heartbreaks: pick a picture

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if you're dealing with a heartbreak right now, angels have a message for you.

note: i'm also experiencing a heartbreak at the moment as i write this. sometimes a support message from the angels can help us a little bit. human life is tough especially when we face struggles and heartbreaks. may these messages serve you in a way.

disclaimer: please take the messages lighty. this p.a.c's main purpose is for entertainment. i want to remind you that this is also a general reading. if it won't resonate, please let if fly.

way of reading: mixture of intuitive reading and oracle card reading.

tip jar: paypal.me/doswonder (i'm saving up for college so if you called to tip me, it would be very appreciated. thank you)

⋇🎀⋇ pile one:

Pile one, you are the 'strongest one' in the eyes of the people you know. Probably, you make a supreme effort for you to appear like a 'very strong person' outside. You do not like when others spot your soft side. I am sensing that you were not like this. You were pushed to act like this. I am so sorry. The world was harsh to you. It seems like you have realized that some individuals take advantage of your "kind nature". This had hurt you in the past and made you protect yourself from these people. In the present moment, i think you are silently experiencing a heartbreak. Some of your connections (can be some relative or friends) may not be giving you grace. Some of them may be judging you because you are different. And you're here trying to collect yourself even though you cannot understand why are they treating you like that. The angels that are currently guiding you are deeply sorry. They hope they can hug you but of course with consent. They want to say that there is nothing wrong with being different. You are so strong that you can express your individuality. Not all people can do that and maybe that's why few people are projecting this to you. There are strongly saying that you must listen to the truth, not the gossip of others. Not the unsolicited advices people may bring to you. Do not accept these comments and let them define who you are. Remember, you have gone through a lot and you have build yourself from day one until now. I think you have started a significant journey before just by yourself. One angel is highliting that your foundation is so strong my dear, things that will ever try to break you will fail. You are as strong and nurturing as a tree. If you're dealing with a heartbreak of some connections of yours, they want you to consciously evaluate this connection/s again. Do not be afraid to end things and start something new. You got the wisdom already.

keywords: raining, orange umbrella, eyes closed, hair pin

tip jar: paypal.me/doswonder (i'm saving up for college so if you called to tip me, it would be very appreciated. thank you)

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⋇🎀⋇ pile two:

Pile number two, this is my dreamer pile. You hold a big bold vision for yourself. But you know when you're in a journey of pursuing your dreams, sometimes things don't go as planned. This may be causing your heartbreak. Maybe there's a conflict with a group or something that causes this journey of yours to slow down. Your angels are seeing that you are contemplating if you will still continue this dream of yours. "Should I continue with this or Should I settle for something different?" Pile 2, Let me ask your angels.

You got the oracle card "inner trust" and "in the world, not of the world"

They are asking you to trust yourself. It is very obvious based on the oracle cards that pop up that you clearly have to put faith in yourself. You may be tired and do not know what to do next. Based also on the symbols of the cards. There's a woman who is covered with a white clothing. I think this is a veil. I do not know how to translate it to english but i think it's called as a veil. I think the energy of this person in the card is tired of hiding already, the energy wants to reveal its self now. This is your energy currently.

Start by revealing your thoughts to others. Angels are assuring you that you can trust your own intuition this time. Your dreams may feel like they're slowing down but this does not mean that they are not going to work. You have trust yourself this time my dear.

Angels are telling you to expose yourself more now. Do not worry. With inner trust and this oracle card which I've mentioned above, this is a strong message for you to trust.

keywords: buzzling sound, octopus, chest pain

tip jar: paypal.me/doswonder (i'm saving up for college so if you called to tip me, it would be very appreciated. thank you)

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⋇🎀⋇ pile three:

i can hear a sound of a door opening. this may be significant for you currently. maybe you were given a new opportunity and it kind of scared you i sense. you know the growing pains, maybe you are dealing with that.

do you like hello kitty or maybe you are person who likes to watch animated films and movies? tell me if that resonates.

maybe when you feel rushed for a new opportunity, you like to remember your memories back then. some of you here pile four are afraid of growing up. that's alright, pile four. your angels are comforting you that it's alright to feel that.

I am intuively led by your angels to not give you many advice lol. I think they just want you to enjoy your present for now. Enjoy the book that you want to read. Get that coffee you're waiting to try. I do not know why but I think they already got you.

I shuffled for a one oracle card and tada the oracle card is "what is already with you" You really got a new opportunity right now based on the design of this card. It's an open hand and I immediately think it as a new journey for you.

This oracle card is just saying that you are prepared honey. I know beginnings are scary and sometimes it causes our hearts to feel the growing pains when faced by changes but you don't need anyone or anything for this new opportunity to start. You just need you. Start baby steps. You are the most important thing in your journey.

tip jar: paypal.me/doswonder (i'm saving up for college so if you called to tip me, it would be very appreciated. thank you)

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⋇🎀⋇ pile four:

you may be feeling anxious right now. if this does not resonate, you can leave and let this fly. you may be asking yourself if you are in the right path. i can sense that you may be scared of the outcome of your actions. it seems like the cause of your heartbreak is your own limitations. pile four, let's take a breather right now. do this with me. envision that you are with your guiding angels that have good intentions for you. .........inhale......exhale......

pile four, i can feel your heavy heart. your angels feel this as well. you can make wonderful changes for yourself. remember that. they're like grabbing you by the shoulders and shaking you and telling you strongly that "this is only a challenge, you'll overcome this." okay pile four, do not give up okay? your angels want you to continue even life seems shaky right now. you'll be amazed by how you will overcome this. they are telling you this. they are with you okay?

Your angels love how quirky you are. You stand out from the crowd. I think this is very similar with pile one too. They adore that you go against the grain. This "go against the grain" oracle card make me sure that you're here for a bigger purpose pile four. You are here to be a catalyst. Avoid thinking about the outcomes, your purpose is to align yourself to what is making your soul alive.

keywords: eye makeup, illusion, break dancing, doja cat, ocean, wings

tip jar: paypal.me/doswonder (i'm saving up for college so if you called to tip me, it would be very appreciated. thank you)

[ravenssunshine]

tw // abuse

i wanted to talk about the depiction of abuse in bungo stray dogs because it’s one of the most evoking aspects of the series for me.

disclaimer: i am by no means any kind of expert. all information comes from my own personal research as relevant to my own situations.

this thought first arose when i was reading atsushi learning about the orphanage director’s death. the orphanage director told atsushi “when it comes to it, hate me, never hate yourself” as an explanation of his abuse. this stood out to me because atsushi’s childhood certainly made him the person he was at the begging of the series. however, the director failed entirely. atsushi hates himself. atsushi’s character arc revolves around his desire to find a reason to live. despite the orphanage directors well guided but ultimately incorrect efforts to give atsushi an emotional out, atsushi never takes it. the orphanage director very pointedly never gets redemption in the canon timeline or beast, and atsushi breaks down upon his death in both timelines. i felt as though this storyline addressed the complicated feels held towards an abuser when that abuser is a parent (or a similar figure). it’s never black and white, no matter how much it should be.

the second arc that stands out to me is kouyou and kyouka. during the cannibalism arc, kouyou says she’ll do anything to protect mori because she fears the port mafia going back to how it was before him. this is relevant because kouyou does all that she does for kyouka out of a misguided urge to “protect” her. i found kouyou to be a good representation of a woman who found a young girl very similar to herself and made it her goal to turn her into what she wished she could’ve been, but the environment of the port mafia skewed the perspective of what an ideal life could be for kouyou. to me, this explains why kouyou let kyouka go and tracked down the file containing the truth about kyouka’s parents and her ability. kouyou initially failed as a guardian, but the exposure to the “light” and the ada was enough for her to finally let kyouka go.

the last instance is mori, dazai, and akutagawa. they create a fascinating picture of generational violence. we don’t know how young dazai was when he joined the port mafia, but we know he was younger than 15 when he witnessed mori killing the old boss, effectively binding him without refuge from mori’s agenda. dazai was probably always going to be an apathetic, suicidal person because those are traits of mental illness, but the way he treated akutagawa was certainly a product of his environment. as a symbolic device, in the port mafia, it’s customary for the person who brings someone into the mafia to give them something of theirs (as stated in dazai, chuuya, fifteen). dazai gave akutagawa his coat. mori gave dazai a coat as well. to me, it seems like this was the same coat between the three of them, however mori does ask dazai if he still has the coat he gave him and dazai says “i burned that long ago.” whether it’s the same piece of fabric or not, as an object, it’s something that binds the three of them. however, dazai is able to let go of his ties to the mafia in material form. this literal dismissal of mafia clothing and the ideals is what allows dazai to mentor atsushi so differently at the ada than how he mentored akutagawa in the port mafia. additionally, likely due to akutagawa’s isolated and struggling upbringing, akutagawa becomes entirely dependent on dazai’s approval. asagiri recently said something about akutagawa’s arc not being over. i truly do not think akutagawa will resolve as a character until he can let go of his dependency on dazai, which likely will not happen without an acknowledgment of shortcomings by dazai.

there’s a lot more to say about the cycles of abuse in the port mafia, but out of the main cast, this is what stands out to me

[yardsards]

if i have to see another fanfic where luz is referred to as "the latina" for no good reason i am gonna SCREAM

if it would sound yikesy to refer to gus as "the black boy" or clunky to call amity "the caucasian" in similar contexts, then you should probably not be calling luz "the latina". unless her ethnicity is relevant to the scene, it is just plain weird to bring it up

a bit of general writing advice: using epithets draws attention to whatever trait they're describing. like, if you call a character "the redhead" then the reader will, for a split second, think about the character's hair colour

this can be used well to your advantage. wanna emphasize a character's youth? call them "the child". wanna bring up two characters' height difference? "the taller girl". wanna draw focus to one character's relationship to another? use things like "their sister" or "his mentor" or "her girlfriend"

and if the story is told in 1st person, 3rd person limited, or 2nd person, then what epithets are used can be a good way to tell what the pov character notices about other people, what traits they find most relevant/notable. for example: if other characters are referred to solely by physical traits like hair colour, that might be used as an indicator that the pov character doesn't know them very well. or alternately, they're focussed on their physical appearance because they find the other character's appearance interesting or beautiful. or if a character is called something like "the musician", then the pov character might find it interesting that the other character plays an instrument

and then there are epithets used in situations where you just feel like you're using names too often (tho hint: your readers will probably not notice how often you are using a character's name, you just notice it cuz you're scrutinizing your writing really hard) but pronouns would be confusing

as stated earlier, what epithets you use shows what traits you think are important to bring up

with generic terms like "the man" "the teen" "the girl", these don't really add anything but don't distract either.

(and if you add adjectives to those generic terms, like "the older woman" or "the grouchy boy" or "the cheerful teen", then attention is drawn to said adjective, so choose one that feels relevant)

and then there are the epithets that draw attention to a characters' traits/titles/etc. which i kinda gave examples of earlier. when you choose these, you will either instinctively go for ones which are relevant for the situation at hand (which, like i said, are usually good choices) or you will go for ones that you think are basic or notable traits about the character- things that you would give as your first answers if someone forced you to describe that character with no time to brainstorm (which, these can make your writing have a difficult-to-pinpoint amateur quality to it if you overuse them, but aren't like, Objectively Bad)

for example, you would probably call king "the demon" (or, i guess now "the titan") because that's a very basic fact about him that you don't need to think about and is something semi notable that differentiates him from a lot of the other characters. but you probably would not call him "the author" even though he wrote a book, because that is far from the first thing you would think to describe him and it would feel kinda jarring to see that description unless his book was relevant to the scene

and so i think it's important to question why you decided that a character's ethnicity is one of the important traits to refer to them by

(disclaimer i am a white usamerican but i've seen plenty of fans of colour express discomfort with how common calling luz "the latina" is but i keep seeing ppl still using that description)

[dark-night-star-light]

Spirit Animals: The Wildcat's Claw (Reread pt. 15)

DISCLAIMER: WILL CONTAIN SPOILERS FOR THE ENTIRE SERIES EXCEPT THE BOOK OF SHANE.

Masterpost

Chapter 1

“There was bloodshed in every village” (2). So, same as the Second Devourer War, then?

“There was no village, no militia, and no army that could prevail against a legion of Greencloaks when they partnered with their spirit animals” (2). Okay, I sort of get the point against having a group be too powerful. But didn’t these people notice the spiral that was on the Greencloaks’ brows and understand what happened? Weren’t they told it wasn’t the fault of the Greencloaks?

“She released Myriam from passive state” (2). I am 99% sure that Myriam was spelled Miriam the last time. 

“ . . . they exuded a sense of accomplishment” (3). What does that even mean?

“It was the first food she’d seen in two days” (4). Why are they starving her? Don’t they want her alive?

“‘Go on, take a bite. Eat it all. Gorge yourself.’ . . . Lenori instead curled her hands into her lap” (4). Why didn’t she eat it? It’s not like the Oathbound were holding it away from her.

“Then the woman struck Lenori again, even harder” (5). Are they allowed to abuse prisoners before a trial has even taken place? How is that legal?

“Then slowly, she ground the food between her fingers, disintegrating it. Her faith may be tested, but she would not falter” (7). How is it a betrayal if you eat a small piece of cheese? Does she want to be constantly hungry?

Chapter 2

“It was an invisible burden he feared he would carry for the rest of his life” (8). Oh, thank goodness the narrative didn’t show him getting over the Wyrm thing immediately.

“‘I could show you guys a real Euran meal,’ he continued. ‘Shepherd's pie and all’” (9). This kind of parallels Hunted, when he went to Trunswick looking for his family.

“Hopefully he wouldn’t start shedding or hacking up hairballs” (10). That would be hilarious.

“Meilin leaned over and thumped Rollan’s ear” (11). I should start collecting Rollan-and-Meilin-act-like-a-married-couple moments. Although I don’t really approve of the physical abuse.

“‘The rumors were that the wildcat was as large as Tellun.’ ‘No, even larger’” (12). I think it’s stupid that they’re undermining the greatness of the Great Beasts. Like, yes, it’s probably just a legend, but still.

“Conor had remembered seeing the replica of this sword, but only once, when he was working as a servant to Worthy” (12). I think it would’ve been cool if they’d shown Conor walking past the replica during the very first chapter of Wild Born.

“Shane, the former leader of the Redcloaks, had died while fighting against the Wyrm. Abeke didn’t speak of him much, but she’d cared greatly for him, even if those feelings were complicated” (13). I think we should hear more of Abeke’s inner monologues about Shane. She surely has some thoughts on him.

“‘I just want the Redcloaks’ help temporarily. Erdas doesn’t need their protection full time. That’s why there are Greencloaks’” (15). He sort of kind of has a point? Kind of?

“Just running his hands through Briggan’s luxurious gray-white fur calmed him” (15). This author appears to favor a lot of descriptive writing.

“Worthy put on a good show, but Conor knew that the whispers and judging looks bothered him” (16). He can’t be a hero if everyone thinks he’s a monster.

“‘I . . . well . . . I kind of don’t know where the records are that will lead us to the Wildcat’s Claw.’ . . . ‘You see, there was a fire at the manor. It was the only way to protect Dawson.’ Worthy shook his head. ‘It’s hard to explain. I was having a really bad day’” (17). He keeps saying that. “Worthy, why did you do [thing]?” “Oh, I was having a bad day.” Also, Devin didn’t even start that fire??? The people did?

“‘The records are there somewhere. I’m sure’” (18). Okay, so Worthy’s logic is that he thinks the library is still intact? Wow, okay. That’s just such a stupid mistake to make. He’s leading them on, and while they have little time left, too. That’s just. Ridiculous.

Chapter 3

“‘I think we can spare a few minutes if you want to see her’” (20). I wonder if Anka truly cares for Meilin on some level.

“‘That is, unless Rollan shares his cloak with us.’ Rollan seemed to blush as he pulled the thick brown cloak tightly around him” (21). Why is he blushing? Also, this is the perfect cue for someone to say “I’m sure he wouldn’t mind sharing with Meilin.”

“‘And we were the heroes of the Second Devourer War. Every gate was already open to us’” (22). Wow, okay. Huh. There really weren’t security measures?

“She cast her eyes at Conor up ahead. ‘I know,’ . . . ‘I’m not accusing him’” (23). Abeke getting defensive about Conor, my beloved. 

“‘It’s important work. Maybe even more important than always looking for a fight’” (24). Meilin character development flexing go brrrrr.

“‘So what will you do next, once this is over?’ . . . ‘Retire your green cloak?’” (24). Convinced that Anka cares about Meilin and is trying to persuade her to join her side. Subtly.

“Both had died in silence, like true Zhongese warriors” (25). Today on I analyze random details too much: Meilin still has some respect for the Emperor. But Song confirmed that the Emperor liked to emulate true warriors even though he wasn’t one (the braid). We also know that the hyena ripped out the Emperor’s throat, so he logically wasn’t physically capable of making noise. So, this could be symbolism for how everyone sees the Emperor as this strong, warriorlike man, even though he’s a fake, I think. 

“Meilin hoped that her face didn’t reveal how shocked she was. She hadn’t told Anka who her father was” (26). You are literally famous. People will find out anyway.

“‘I took up the cloak a few months afterward’” (26). So Anka’s claim also states that she’s new to the Greencloaks. Did she actually join the Greencloaks? Or is she lying?

“‘You’re a hero in Zhong, just like General Teng’” (26). Yeah, exactly.

Chapter 4

“‘Worthy, heroes aren’t supposed to boast,’ Meilin said” (27). Worthy’s pretty much in it for the boasting.

“Worthy only took one bite before spitting out the tough, lean meat . . . which had just meant that there was more for Rollan to eat” (28). I imagined Conor looking all wounded at this, since he caught the snake.

“Her hair was a black as Meilin’s bangs . . . ” (29). Hold on, Meilin has bangs???

“Anka had offered to switch places with him, but he politely declined, turning bright red in the process” (30). Hmmmmm. Also, politely??? Out of character much?

“ . . . he often found himself thinking about things that he’d rather not. His mother. The Wyrm. Shane. Tarik” (31). Shane? Rollan thinks about Shane? This I need to hear . . . 

“It was her hand, sliding into his” (32). I forgot how ship-heavy this arc is.

“A warm loaf of bread would be nice, he thought to himself. He was sure that Essix would enjoy it as well” (32). Would she? She’s a carnivore . . . 

“‘But I don’t know if I’ll ever really trust a Redcloak’” (33). Rollan trust issues arc rolling around again? Also, thank god they’re talking about this. This is the conversation I’m here for.

“‘For all we know, they might be planning to stab us in the back and steal the gifts as soon as we collect them all’” (33). I mentioned in my Heart of the Land review that they never suspect the Redcloaks of setting up the attack on the Citadel. Guess I spoke too soon.

“‘ . . . that still doesn’t erase all the bad things he did when he was plain old Devin Trunswick. Don’t forget, he and I didn’t exactly hit it off the first time we met’” (34). This entire book sort of parallels Hunted, kind of like how The Return parallels Rise and Fall.

“ . . . as long as he got to hold Meilin’s hand for the rest of the walk. That would have made the extra distance worthwhile” (35). Ship fodder galore. They don’t hold back.

“If Rollan could find them again, he’d buy something for the kids when he reached the village” (37). Aw.

“Rollan wasn’t sure, but it looked like the woman had drawn blood” (37). Bruh.

“Rollan shook his fist at the animal. He still didn’t like horses. The feeling was seemingly mutual” (38). That horse literally laid eyes on him for two seconds.

“‘You’re such a softie,’ she said. ‘It’s one of my favorite things about you’” (39). Okay, I don’t know whether this is an unpopular opinion or not, but I don’t like how Rollan’s generosity was used as fodder for shipping culture. 

“Abeke had been collecting rocks to shape into arrowheads during their trek through Eura . . . ” (40). Competent! Abeke!

“Rollan realized that she might have been too good with the weapon” (42). Yeah, lol.

“She followed that up with three backflips. Rollan couldn’t believe it. She was actually dancing” (43). HA.

“‘Or do you not remember the quarterstaff that you swindled from that pirate on the boat?’ ‘I didn’t swindle him’” (44). Rollan berating Meilin for thievery and the sort is so ironic. And why were there pirates???

“‘I was just thinking - that was a really nice sword’” (47). It was indeed.

Chapter 5

“Abeke often found herself looking at Uraza’s hind right leg when she thought the animal was asleep” (49). Imagine Uraza wasn’t asleep and was straight up like, I know what you’re doing.

“‘You move like Uraza, you know. Delicately. Softly. All catlike.’ ‘So do you’” (50). No, he doesn’t??? He makes noise. That was canon. It was mentioned???

“Then she playfully tackled Abeke, nipping at her ears and fingers” (52). I like that this book seems way more of a character and relationship-building book than the other one.

“He performed a triple somersault before landing beside Abeke. She rolled her eyes, but still clapped for him” (53). The guy needs to be coddled. 

“‘Did Shane really talk about me?’” (53). Of course he did.

“‘Shane would let us joke around about the Greencloaks, even letting us say some not-so-nice things about Conor and Rollan. Especially Rollan. But you were always off-limits’” (54). But most of the Redcloaks wouldn’t have fought Conor or Rollan personally or even known much about them, right? How would they have anything to insult them over? Also, what about Meilin?

“There was so little that she knew about Shane once he’d become the leader of the Redcloaks” (54). Yeah, I wish The Book of Shane had gone more into his time as leader of the Redcloaks.

“But as Abeke spoke, she realized she didn’t know if Uraza had forgiven her for shooting her with an arrow” (55). I think Uraza probably feels guilty over this. Like Conor.

Worthy apologizing to Elda is peak redemption arc behavior.

“‘I’m excited about going home’” (57). I wonder if Worthy considered telling Abeke about the fire at this moment.

“He took a deep breath. ‘I don’t exactly know-’” (58). Oop, called it.

Chapter 6

“She closed her eyes and counted as others fired all around them” (61). How is she counting with her eyes closed? Maybe she’s analyzing the direction the arrows came from?

“Conor stopped talking, shifting his body so he was turned away from the others” (62). Wow, Conor’s so bad at lying, his solution is to just. Stop talking.

“They were funneling them a certain way. . . . ” (65). There we go. She got it.

“‘The mighty Briggan, caught in a net. Guess you aren’t such a Great Beast after all’” (67). I feel like the disrespect the Great Beasts get in this arc is just so weird. Briggan has been a legend for centuries. Sacred, especially to Eurans. How could that all have been undone over the Wyrm thing? It’s ridiculous and makes no sense. The trapper should have at least been a little in awe.

“‘But the Greencloaks were under the power of something called the Wyrm-’ ‘Just more Greencloak lies’” (69). I don’t get why the trappers didn’t somehow see the spiral. And some Eurans would’ve been infected, too. That means that they should’ve more intimately understood what happened, right?

“It was a signal. Meilin wasn’t sure, but she thought it meant that Rollan wanted her to play along” (71). Have they never been in such a situation before?

Can’t believe Rollan and Meilin form a plan that involves flirting in front of the trackers.

“It was the falchion, the very sword that Meilin had been drooling over at the trading post” (73). At least she won’t have to pay for it now.

“Meilin knew Jhi could hold her own against the men, but she still worried for her partner” (74). Jhi can hold her own against three men with sharp, pointy things?

“But Jhi and Essix didn’t have time to waste on those men . . . Uraza and Briggan joined the fray . . . ” (75). The Four Fallen fight together again. Iconic. 

Meilin straight up broke a cage with Jhi’s strength???

“Feeling Jhi’s power coursing through her body once again, she leaped into the air and landed a roundhouse kick squarely on one of the trapper’s jaws. Then she spun around, kicking two more to the ground” (77). Yeah, gettem.

“‘What were you saying about this sword?’ she asked, a large smile on her face” (78). This made me smile. Absolutely slaying.

Chapter 7

“‘Also, I just wanted to say, I'm sorry for your loss,’ he added quietly. ‘How many people survived?’” (81). Conor being soft . . . I’m weak. Also, if the trappers truly believe the Greencloaks were responsible for the plundering, then they would see this as a manipulation tactic, right?

“‘I hated disappointing anyone - even Worthy, when I was his servant . . . ’” (82). It doesn’t really seem that way. Like in Wild Born, the only thing that really appears to stop Conor from expressing his annoyance toward Devin was the fact that Devin was a noble.

“The fence he mended for the Widow Tomball for a few coins - which he promptly returned to her after feeling guilty for taking her money” (82). Didn’t he . . . need that money as well? It’s not like he was the epitome of wealth, either.

“Worthy pressed his hands together and fell to his knees” (83). Dramatic Worthy is the best kind of Worthy.

“He really was too nice sometimes” (83). Conor acknowledging his own being too kind???

“‘Everything’s just fine. Nothing strange happened. Nothing burned down or anything like that’” (84). Wow, Worthy might be an even worse liar than Conor. 

“Worthy jumped in the air, waving his fists. ‘Don’t worry guys. Your can depend on me!’” (84). This is almost cartoonish.

“‘Devin!’” (87). Dawson called him Devin?

“ . . . she sat down and began to eat Dawson’s spruce plant” (87). LOL.

“‘Kunaya!’ Abeke said. The cat . . . jumped into Abeke’s outstretched arms” (88). We finally got our iconic Abeke-Kunaya reunion after eleven books.

“‘Devin burned it down the last time he was here.’ . . . ‘ . . . I was having a bad day’” (88). Devin whenever someone asks him about that short story’s events: I was having a bad day, okay???

Also Devin did not burn the castle down??? That was the townspeople??? Karmo literally had to tell him that the manor was on fire.

“‘To be fair, I really did hate Greencloaks at the time. You guys were just so . . . smug. It wasn't fair” (90). Look who’s talking.

“ . . . the citizens chose me as the new Earl of Trunswick” (90). He’s like twelve, though??? There’s seriously nobody else who could’ve done it?

“Dawson was young, but of all the Trunswicks, he was the right person to lead the town” (91). Yes, of all the Trunswicks. Why does it have to be a Trunswick? The best candidate is literally twelve.

“‘With the way father disgraced our family and fled the town, why would they pick any Trunswick to serve as earl? I mean, I’m sure you’ll do the best you can, but you don’t know the first thing about running a city. You’re just a kid’” (91). Worthy hit the nail on the head (and literally in the next paragraph, too . . . ).

“‘You’re a kid, too. You all are. But that doesn’t stop you from doing your duty, does it?’ He relaxed a little as Rumfuss hoofed over to him. ‘And to be honest, I think it has more to do with Rumfuss than my amazing leadership skills. His name carries way more weight than ours right now’” (91). A kid should not be leading the town when there are better-equipped adult candidates around. Worthy became a Redcloak because it was his only choice. The four are on this mission because they were the only ones who escaped. There were no better options for them. There is for Dawson, regardless of his spirit animal. The town could at least have a fill-in until he’s old enough.

“Beside Dawson, the Great Boar snuffled proudly” (91). I feel like this is the ending of Rumfuss’s character arc, in a way. We’re told over the course of the series in so many ways that Rumfuss is often seen as the “least” of the Great Beasts, between Devin’s mockery in Tales of the Fallen Beasts and the Great Beast conference in Tales of the Great Beasts. But now, he finally has the respect he deserves.

“‘Do the townspeople know that I’m a Redcloak?’ There was an air of hope in his voice. ‘Do they know what I did to help save the world?’” (92). Why exactly does Devin want to be a hero so bad? Like, he had a shit ton of wealth and privilege anyway. Why does he feel the need to prove himself? Maybe it’s because the Earl was abusive or something?

“‘I’m not lying!’ Worthy yelled. ‘I really was trying to save a woman! She was in the stocks in the square’” (93). It’s like the boy who cried wolf. I bet Conor would know that story, lol.

“‘Conor, can you ever forgive me for deceiving you like that?’” (94). Dawson didn’t deceive Conor, though? He just . . . delivered a letter? And he was literally ten years old?

Chapter 8

“‘The woman in charge was offering a hefty reward,’ Dawson continued. ‘Enough to feed some families for half a year, if not longer’” (98). How much do we want to bet that Cordelia would not keep that promise.

“‘I mean, Greencloaks and Redcloaks’” (98). Still not over the fact that the Redcloaks literally copied the Greencloaks.

“Everyone knew he’d rather travel with Meilin” (99). Oof. Oooooooof.

“‘Yeah, and if he joins anything, it’ll be the Redcloaks!’ Worthy said” (100). I don’t know why, but Worthy is so comically cartoonish in this book. Also, this implies you can be a Redcloak even if you weren’t a former Bile-bonded Conqueror.

“She leaned over the edge, then curtsied for Abeke” (101). Iconic.

“‘They’d be fools to follow us up here.’ . . . ‘Um, now who exactly are the fools again?’ . . . ‘If it was a bad idea for us, then it’s a horrible idea for them’” (103). Obsessed with this interaction. 

“‘Of course, it was always frowned upon if a woman ever wanted to-’” (103). I like how this series doesn’t overdo it with the feminism. It’s just “oh, this is the way things are” and then they use the female characters to defy those stereotypes. It’s done so well.

“Abeke gasped. ‘Meilin!’ Meilin shrugged. ‘What? I didn’t say kill them. Just shoot them in the shoulder or leg or something so they’ll stop chasing us’” (105). I love how casually morally gray the characters are. Even Conor.

“‘Do you yield?’ Meilin asked. ‘Never,’ one of the men said. Then he passed out” (106). LMFAO.

“The other man had regained consciousness” (106). How??? That would mean he passed out for, like, ten seconds.

“‘Their leader, Cordelia the Kind, said she’d destroy the town if she discovered you were here’” (107). So she said she’d destroy it if they were there, but then offered a reward for their capture, as well?

Chapter 9

“ . . . Rollan knew he couldn’t continue traveling with the cloak and hiding it from his friends” (109). Wait, it was a secret??? What??? But they literally saw him fall off the cliff and saw the cloak save him in Heart of the Land, right? Or was it too dark?

“‘The wildcat’s name is Wilco’” (110). Hey, how come the gila monster didn’t get a name?

“‘They lived a long time ago, back before they were even Greencloaks’” (111). Which makes sense timeline-wise, gotta love that. (The four bond tokens and their owners live and eventually give their tokens to their lands → First Devourer War and creation of Greencloaks → The Greencloaks are given the bond tokens as thanks for ending the First Devourer War.)

It makes me wonder why Amaya is called the New Lands, then, because it’s clearly been around for a long time. 

It has to mean something that Gransfen’s story started because of the Crimson Raiders, who coincidentally share a color with the Redcloaks.

“‘If these gifts are so powerful, why didn’t the Greencloaks keep them and use them to defend Erdas? . . . ’” (113). Yeah. Exactly.

“‘It’s enchanted. Full of old magic. No one enters that place anymore, not even hunters’” (113). Magic??? Magic exists in this world??? Enchantments??? It’s probably just a legend, Worthy.

“‘But then my men found the strangest item in his bedroom, hidden underneath the floorboards’” (115). Why does the militia have a search warrant for the Earl of Trunswick’s house??? Like, he wasn’t even suspicious before then???

“Rollan didn’t miss a beat. ‘Dawson, you’re a Greencloak! You should have told us-’” (115). Exactly what was Rollan trying to achieve here? The militia already know they are Greencloaks. Was he trying to shift the blame onto Dawson and hope he could talk his way out of it??? It seems weird. 

“‘Are these the kids you saw running through the streets?’ ‘Yes, Captain,’ the oldest one said. ‘The two girls. The boy wasn’t with them’” (115). They betrayed them??? (Yes, betray is a strong word, but Meilin and Abeke helped them, and they returned the favor by turning them in.)

“‘Their leader, Cordelia the Kind, threatened to ransack only half the town if we turned you over upon their return’” (116). Bruh.

“‘I’m called Worthy,’ he said. He reached behind his head and unfastened his mask. ‘But before, I was known by another name’” (118). The way this almost perfectly parallels Shane’s reveal is so. I love it. Shane said “I’m called King”, then removed his mask, then revealed that he used to go by another name. Maybe Shane taught the Redcloaks how to dramatically reveal themselves.

“‘We marched to the castle after that and burned it down . . . ’” (118). Yeah, see. Devin didn’t burn it down.

“‘I’m sorry for bringing the cloak with me. I just couldn’t part with it yet’” (119). 

“Meilin raised an eyebrow. ‘About everything?’ Rollan could feel the heat rising to his neck” (119). Why’s he blushing??? What’s there to blush about?

Chapter 10

“”But Meilin reminded herself that the people of Trunswick had much to lose as well if the Greencloaks weren’t successful” (121). True . . . ish.

The iconic Rollan-horse rivalry strikes again.

“ . . . Meilin noticed that the flags flying above the city walls displayed the image of Rumfuss the Boar” (121). Not Briggan?

“”’But this isn’t really my home anymore” (122). Devin Trunswick changing his name to Worthy symbolism for him abandoning Trunswick?

“‘Dawson was right - the old Devin Trunswick was a real bully . . . ’” (122). I like that they don’t make his bad deeds seem lesser now that he’s good.

“Meilin blocked each strike, then leaped onto a tree branch, out of reach of Anka’s staff” (124). She just . . . jumped onto a tree???

“Smirking, she began to run in a circle, dragging her boots heels into the dry ground. She was creating a small dust storm” (125). This is almost the exact same tactic she uses when she fights Anka again later.

“‘I’m glad fate brought us together, Meilin. You’re almost like the sister I never had’” (125). I wonder if she said those exact words to Song.

“‘At least, that’s what my tutors used to tell me when I misbehaved’” (127). That reminds me, what happened to the iconic Rollan-Meilin tutor inside joke?

“‘Knowing the Greencloaks, they could have started the rumor about the forest being enchanted’” (127). Oh, thank goodness it isn’t actually enchanted. Thirteen books in is a little late to introduce new lore.

“‘My kids would love to hear more about your adventures’” (127). Worthy’s hero arc peaks.

“ . . . for the first time on their journey, he wasn’t wearing his mask” (127). Huh.

“Meilin didn’t want to agree with Rollan, but he was right” (128). Will Meilin’s first instinct always be to argue with Rollan?

“They kept moving, walking through lunchtime” (129). Worthy didn’t complain about being hungry: character development?

“Meilin shrugged. ‘We wait. And hope that the tree outlasts the bears’” (133). I’m obsessed with Meilin being the one to suggest waiting. Not that there’s a better option.

Chapter 11

“Worthy only tripped twice. Conor took this as a positive” (135). I love how Conor is haggling (in his head) about Worthy’s clumsiness.

“‘Some rumors say that the black wildcat breathed fire when she was really mad,’ Worthy said. ‘When she hissed and spat, she’d be liable start forest fires. Maybe some of that heat is still around.’ Meilin rolled her eyes. ‘Or more likely, we’re close to a geyser or fault line that keeps that area warm’” (137). The grammar is killing me. Also, gotta love how Worthy loves to exaggerate the wildcat tales. At the end of the day, she was just a normal spirit animal, she was just bonded to a hero.

“Meilin hesitated after removing her pack, almost as if she was going to pull something from it, but left it on the ground with the others” (138). Rollan’s cloak, right?

“With his red cloak billowing behind him, he almost looked like he was flying as he dove into the water” (140). WEEEEEEEEEEE.

“‘Worthy, that was amazing!’ Conor said, kneeling beside his friend. Worthy had a few scratches, but otherwise seemed okay. ‘I can’t believe you did that!’” (141). Awwwww. He called Worthy his friend.

“She pulled out his green cloak” (142). Ha, called it.

Chapter 12

“Worthy had no idea why he leaped off the cliff to save Rollan” (143). Uh, because it was the right thing to do? Because Rollan’s part of the group?

“Prior to joining the Redcloaks, he’d always had trouble making friends” (143). Because he was a bully???

“The gyrfalcon squawked a reply. Rollan nodded” (145). I guess spirit animals and humans don’t have to be able to “speak” to one another to communicate?

“Meilin was the finest warrior he’d ever met. How could someone so ferocious be afraid of spiders?” (146). PTSD. Also, Devin canonically used to be scared of spiders. 

“‘The closest I’ve come is: Each day must end, but the mighty shall rise again under a volcano’s roar.’” (148). Imagine if Worthy was wrong, though. Or only partially correct.

“‘And on the boat . . . Worthy said the wildcat’s roar was as loud as an erupting volcano.’ . . . ‘Volcanoes also spew lava when they erupt,’ Meilin said. ‘Fire. Heat.’” (150). Obsessed with the fact that Meilin figured this out pretty much on her own.

“Gransfen and Wilco had been the protectors of an entire land. He was just a kid in a white mask and red cloak trying to make up for his past mistakes” (152). His redemption arc is almost as good as Shane’s.

“Is this the Great Briggan? And Uraza and Jhi? He looked up at the nook in the ceiling where Essix rested. This is most unexpected” (154). Yeah, following the timeline, when Gransfen died, the Four Fallen would have still been literal Great Beasts. Also, at least this time, we’re getting a solid explanation for why Gransfen is willing to give them the bond token.

“He puffed his chest out and placed his hands on his hips” (154). Worthy trying to look heroic even as he talks to a hero is funny. 

“Bond tokens are powerful, but also deadly when placed into the wrong hands” (155). Okay, at least we get a solid explanation for why the Greencloaks hid them, then.

“There were men who used distrust and division to turn leaders into sheep . . . They would channel rage and anger into weapons of destruction and death” (155). This is shockingly similar to what Kikimi said. She also used “d-words” such as death and distrust.

“Instead, she instructed me to create one of my own. My bond token, like her crystal bear talisman, would amplify Wilco’s powers” (156). This makes me wonder whether bond tokens and talismans are the same thing. The only difference is that talismans can only be used by the Marked and bond tokens can be used by anybody, but what if the Great Beasts used to be bonded to humans even before the First Devourer War? What if that’s how they got talismans in the first place (bond tokens, actually) and then when their human partners died and they became Great Beasts again, they swore to look after their bond tokens for all eternity? This theory doesn’t make a whole lot of sense, but . . . 

“‘The Greencloaks have always been secretive about information they consider dangerous,’ Anka reminded them. ‘Like the source of the bonding Nectar and the location of Stetriol.’ She ran a small finger along her chameleon’s bumpy back. ‘Perhaps that’s why the nations lost their faith in them’” (158). Anka showing signs of being a traitor already. Not that these aren’t valid criticisms.

“‘Maybe that’s why the Great Beasts were so protective of their talismans,’ Rollan said. ‘I would be, too, if I knew someone could come along and smash it, wiping me from existence’” (159). We get a solid explanation for that, finally. Also, it kind of makes sense that the Great Beasts, in all their power, should have a weakness.

“‘But as long as there’s complete trust between you and the animal-’ ‘We should move out’ Meilin said, rising” (160). Meilin being the one to interrupt . . . hm.

Chapter 13

“‘Perhaps I should take the gifts,’ Anka whispered to Conor and Rollan” (162). Wow, I completely forgot about this. She really is suspicious.

“‘Meilin, honesty is a currency that doesn’t have to be spent all in one place,’ Rollan said” (162). Why is this such a Rollan thing to say. Like even without context, it just drips Rollan. I don’t know how to explain it.

“Spirit animals rushed in with them” (163). I feel like this arc completely undermines how rare spirit animals are supposed to be. An army of this size should not all have spirit animals. Besides the Greencloaks, of course. 

“‘No, more like I bit it,’ Worthy said, as he spat out a few yellow-green scales” (164). Worthy bit a snake. A snake. Which he refused to eat at the campsite. Hmmmmm . . . symbolism???

“A woman with a ruby-red sword rushed toward Anka. The woman’s brown braided hair flopped behind her as she ran” (165). Cordelia. Okay, so she’s not going to hurt Anka.

“‘Put down your weapons,’ the woman said, moving her blade closer to Anka’s throat. ‘This battle is over’” (166). Okay, so Anka must have been knocked down on purpose on her part so that Cordelia could fake-threaten her.

Chapter 14

“ . . . she thought she saw the glint of a silver bade right before the red cloak fell over it” (168). Indeed, she did.

“‘I could add you to my collection. Or perhaps I’ll make you my pet’” (168). Cordelia has a collection? Of what?

“‘ . . . I only burned the homes of half those trappers. I’d threatened to destroy all their belongings if they failed me. Again, my kindness has no bounds’” (169). She says, after literally describing a boundary of her kindness. At least she doesn’t actually appear to think she’s genuinely kind.

“It only lasted a moment, but Anka’s eyes flashed to the ground, toward Worthy’s feet” (170). She almost certainly did that on purpose.

“She stopped. Worthy’s red cloak was draped across his arm. He held the Wildcat’s Claw in his other hand” (172). That was actually a neat stunt.

“ . . . fire spewed from the jewel like a geyser turned on its side . . . ” (172). There’s no way the wildcat actually breathed fire. What???

“Abeke picked up Cordelia’s abandoned crossbow. Not as good as a bow, but it would do” (173). Abeke canonically thinks that crossbows are inferior to bows.

“‘I’ll hold them off for as long as I can. Try to buy you some time’” (175). And Worthy becomes a hero.

“This time the entire sword glowed. The steel blade had turned shiny blue. ‘Tell Dawson I was a hero!’” (176). Worthy finally getting his priorities in order. He only cares about what Dawson thinks now, instead of everybody. 

“‘Knowing Worthy, he’s probably already out, hiding in the trees. Just waiting for the perfect opportunity to reveal himself’” (180). She’s not wrong.

“Abeke couldn’t see Anka, but she was sure that she was crying, too” (180). I wouldn’t be so sure.

“‘Kovo, the Great Betrayer’” (181). Well, to be fair, he sort of did make up for that.

This book sort of parallels Hunted. In many ways, but in particular, in both books they don’t actually end up retrieving the item they came for (the Iron Boar, the Wildcat’s Claw). Very interesting.

Also, wow, does this author favor long chapters. The book is only fourteen chapters, but it's just as long as any other book in the series.

Final thoughts and rating:

I love this book. It’s definitely a character and relationship-developing book, as I mentioned, but it never feels like it slows the story down. Despite taking time to show characters’ thoughts on certain things (like Rollan’s thoughts on the Redcloaks and Abeke’s thoughts on Shane), it never sacrifices the plot for that. I like Worthy a lot in this book. His perspective is crucial to his arc and I love how it’s shown that despite his external arrogance and generally dramatic demeanor, he really does acknowledge his mistakes. Abeke’s thoughts on Shane and admitting to herself that it may do her good to talk about it was. I simply melted. When Worthy talked about how Shane taught the Redcloaks to be a team, it really brings Shane’s arc full circle, because it’s shown in many ways that when he was the Devourer, he did not care about his own soldiers at all. Rollan not trusting the Redcloaks works well with his background, and although it feels a bit like we’ve regressed in terms of his arc, it did feel realistic. Worthy sacrificing himself for the team made me soft, he truly became the hero he’d always wanted to be. The parallels to Hunted. I adore them. The way the entire book sort of mirrors Hunted, except now Conor and Worthy are on the same side? I love it. It’s another way Worthy is emphasized to have changed. I also love how Rollan used his wits to find a way to break out of the cage in the trappers scene. We need more of that. I also like how it’s implied that Anka genuinely cares about Meilin and she subtly tries to convince her that the Greencloaks are not good. It’s so genuinely chilling to reread that and see how manipulative what she says really is.

I wish Princess Song had a chapter in this book. I don’t even think she was mentioned. I wish this arc had kept up the trend of having a couple of chapters of Song’s perspective in every book, it would’ve simply been so good. We could’ve seen her spiral and lose her mind while keeping up this pristine image! We could’ve had little Easter eggs that make us feel something is off about her! It would’ve been such amazing foreshadowing! But we didn’t get it. While I like that Worthy sacrificed himself, I don’t like how he sacrificed himself. He chops off a chunk of stone, causing a collapse that falls on him as well as the Oathbound. But that’s so stupid! All he had to do was escape out of the cave and then cut through the walls on the cave to collapse it on just the Oathbound. Then he could’ve escaped through the waterfall with Abeke and the Wildcat’s Claw. Worthy’s sacrifice was necessary to the story, I agree, but holy shit, was the execution the dumbest thing ever. While I understand the parallels to Hunted and losing the bond token, I do wish the token had made it out. I wish the gang had learned to use it, especially Conor. It would’ve been so cool. Because the token is a flashy thing! It can set fire and slice through stone, both of which would leave visible marks that the Oathbound could use to track them! So the bond token would come with disadvantages that would balance the positives and I love that! It would’ve been so cool to explore. 

Rating: 9/10

[untossedchoclit]

I don't usually do formal reviews and I don't want to (I am under the impression that if you don't have your work out in the public, or experience in such fields, your opinion is unneeded), and this blog was never meant for that. Having said that...

Have you ever read a book and thought “oh, this isn’t too bad. And it’s the first of the series, maybe it gets better,” so you keep reading only to find that the potential for the world and its concept was wasted on a (MORE THAN) four book series that had no actual plot save for the illogical love triangle that was repeated from the main character to the side characters? If you haven’t, here’s my opinion of C.C. Hunter’s Shadow Falls series— or at least to the point where I decided that I simply could not go on (not even with the audio book provided by my library). Allow me to waste my time, so you don’t waste yours.

Before I start a little disclaimer: I read this book for free from my local library. This is purely out of a need to express my frustration with the Shadow Falls Series and should not be considered an academic review (as if it ever would, lmao). THIS REVIEW WILL CONTAIN SPOILERS.

Kylie our main character is a (high school aged) girl who doesn’t fit in at school despite her best friend's attempts to get them both to be popular. Her boyfriend recently broke up with her because he wouldn’t sleep with him, her newly sex-positive “bestie” is acting like a different person (what she was like before, we don’t know because apparently having sex before marriage is more important to lecture us about for twelve pages). And worse of all, her parents are going through a cold-war divorce. Kylie sides with her dad without knowing why they’re getting divorced because she likes him more than the “ice-queen” of a mother. To get rid of her judgment for the summer, Kylie’s mother sends her to a camp for troubled teens, full of gasp! “Goth” kids. If a probably god-fearing, middle aged white woman (read: Circle Queen, House) is going to write about angsty teens who wear black over coloured clothes in the 2000’s, there are more expressive words and subcultures to use other than Goth. Just saying. At this camp, Kylie finds out it’s for supernaturals (she sees a ghost of a dead soldier), she meets and (weirdly) befriends Holiday, one of the camp counsellors-

Let me just say, the relationship is weird. While it could work, in a whole-some cool aunt-figure kind of way, it borderlines on bad-touch with how often Kylie and Holiday hold relationship-inappropriate conversations; as far as I could tell, Holiday was somewhat of a guidance counsellor for the kids in tougher situations but there was never any evidence of her going the same distance for the other campers. Not only that, she and Holiday spend most of their time talking about love and sex, something she could go to her age-appropriate roommates about, rather than work on Kylie’s supernatural identity. I could go on a whole rant about the dynamic they have, and how much potential for the actual series was wasted by spending majority of the time with these two in Holiday’s office talking about their feelings, but that would probably end up longer than this piece.

The “love-triangle” that is apparently the main feature of this series has no chemistry. The first option is a boy who used to be her neighbour but disappeared one day (werewolf). The second, a boy who looks like the ex-boyfriend but is nice/respects her as a person (fae). The downside to the fae is that he can read/slightly manipulate her emotions (like her new bestie Holiday). The downside to the werewolf is that he might be a murderer in a gang who killed her new kitten as a kid. Oh also, a she-wolf who he slept with by accident(?) is his stalker who hates Kylie’s guts.

I’m all for bad-boy werewolf types, but really?

Kylie has insecurities around intimacy, we get it. We really do. Does it have to be limited to just sex though? Her parents are going through a divorce because one was unfaithful! She was lied to her entire life! Her friend was betrayed by someone she loved and is acting like a different person! All these things can change how she sees relationships, but the only thing she’s caught up on is sex!? For a series published in the States from 2011-2014, it’s weirdly hung up on the anti-sex message; what, was it some kind of personal response to Pretty Little Liars? 16 and Pregnant? The broadcasting company MTV itself? It did have some great scenes between Kylie and her roommates, Dela and Miranda, about feminism. Unfortunately… the rest of the series exists around it.

Either way the plot of the series began interesting; girl gets in trouble. Girl gets sent to a place for troubled teens. The troubled teens are less human that she thought, and by the way so is she. They don’t know what she is and its a problem. Strange things start to happen around camp, specifically around her.

Unfortunately, nothing is foreshadowed, and what little plot/adventure this supernatural drama series was chopped down to a total of six out of (around) thirty chapters. If the love triangle was feeling stale or they couldn't advance anything, whoohoo! there's a murderer, or a tiger, or some kind of unrelated trouble at camp that gets no attention elsewise despite being a far bigger issue!!

DO NOT even get me started about the pacing; I had the fortune to read this during the months I was taking a class for both copy and substantive editing— If I could (legally) rewrite this I would, in fact! After DNFing I was so mad that I re-outlined the first four chapters that not only establish foreshadowing for Kylie and her enigma of a problem, but also her intimacy (and general) issues, the camp organization and world, as well as ACTUAL CAMP THINGS. (If this is a summer camp, why does Kylie have access to her cellphone 24/7? Why do the cabins that hold 3 kids each have a full kitchen as well as a camp mess hall? Why do these cabins have separate rooms, a living room, and a desktop computer? What are the camp activities besides picking a name out of a hat and talking for an hour? we don’t see what the other kids do because Kylie’s heritage is unknown and that makes her an social outcast, but surely there are ways to include mention of them at least! I can count on a crippled hand how many camp-things that actually happen in the first three books alone! At least nine books! And yes. I know its government sponsored, I know they get special treatment and funding and blah blah blah, but Holiday’s main issue in the 2nd book is finding sponsors outside of the feds???? Whatever moving on.)

Whatever little plot there was, wasn’t built up enough. There was too much focus on nonsensical and unattractive relationships and not enough on the camp and Kylie’s exploration into being supernatural. The pacing is horrible; ending a chapter mid-scene for (non) dramatic effect, ending a scene/chapter and beginning it in the same place with the same characters only a few seconds later. Like I said before, the entirety of the books focus on build up for Kylie’s love (un)interest and not the plot it claims to have. Kylie’s heritage, revealed at the end of the third book and clarified in the first three lines of the fourth, could have saved us all the time and been introduced as early as the second book, leaving the others additions to show what her life becomes after that; I wonder why Hunter didn’t just write a regular romance novel? It comes off as a cash grab for the Twilight crowd when it could honestly be so much more.

Great potential. Bullshit execution.

My interest in this series started back when I was just starting to read eBooks, probably around the time this series started. I read the free sample on playbooks and noted it for later. Flash forward to 2024 and I find a physical copy of my book at the library, rent it and then return it in a week barely past the point the free sample left off. I picked it back up as an audio book about a week later, and that is probably the only reason I was able to get as far as I did. I skipped the third book by accident, and it was more frustrating to find out that the big reveal that was built up for the past two weeks of my life was something I guessed from the moment they mentioned Kylie’s trouble fitting in and her weird “brain pattern” (that is such an awkward name for it, brain pattern? Really?).

I did not purchase this or any of the books in this series; and I wouldn’t wish anyone waste their time or money on it if they do not have to. If you are curious and would like to further understand my frustration reading this novel, you’d probably find it in your local library or a backlog of old WATTPAD entries.

[procrastinating-falcon]

Seeing the usual “[famous person] interacted with [another famous person], who’s a homophobe/transphobe/islamophobe/etc., so You shouldn’t like them” and it’s… hmm.

[The post ended up being kinda long, tho not that much, so I’m breaking it up.]

I can see the problem from both sides (though honestly I’m biased towards one). Like, I can understand how someone would dislike to see a streamer they enjoy interact with someone that has said harmful things, especially if it’s a person from the community that has been harmed.

I saw someone who didn’t like Karl partly because he’d streamed with Lil Nas, who apparently is an islamophobe. And I get that. I do.

But also I don’t think it necessarily makes Karl a bad person? I mean, did he even know Lil Nas is islamophobic? I’ve listened to his music, and I certainly didn’t.

But even if he had, I’d still debate over it. I mean, partly because accepting that idea would mean I am a bad person too.

Why? Well, I’m bisexual, and I go to a very conservative university (the less conservative one was a worse option for me for unrelated reasons), so I have many Catholic classmates, one of whom is a very sweet girl who’s very smart and always sits at the front. I sit there too when I can, so we’ve spoken a lot. She’s very nice, always willing to help with the harder stuff. Kinda shy, too, she didn’t have many friends in school. She teaches math and chemistry to high school kids.

She’s also believes that marriage should be between man and woman. Yeah. And I know that and still talk to her. Does that mean I’m a bad person? Am I a bad person for also speaking to my homophobic, racist relatives? I don’t like that about them, and I argue when I can, but I also shut up a lot of the time.

Is my mom, who has a girlfriend, a bad person for being friends with her homophobic coworkers?

I don’t know, this is just a rant. Probably not making much sense and surely someone out there can put this into words better than I did but anyway, I needed to get it out of my system.

And also disclaimer: I know we shouldn’t forgive everything a cc does if they do shitty stuff, but I also see people taking it to an extreme. Things aren’t purely black or white. I could be wrong about this, and I’d love it if someone has anything to add, wether it be for or against my points.

[myqueeryear]

Everybody Else is Perfect by Gabrielle Korn

I found myself thinking of this book as a sandwich – two bland parts holding an incredible center. After reading the introduction I nearly decided to put it down, since I personally see fashion (press included) as one of world's most infamously brutal and misogynistic industries, and reading about someone who entered into it and found it misogynistic and brutal seemed like a "dog bites man" article. But I didn't want to wuss out on my first book of the year, plus I was curious. Nylon has no cultural pull for me so "editor in chief of Nylon" wasn't a draw it itself, but even I have noticed that over the last ~10 years the scope of who gets to be fashionable in the mainstream press has expanded tremendously, and I was curious to hear from someone who was part of making that happen.

This is more a personal essay collection than a memoir, and like all personal essay collections some are stronger than others. One that I derisively thought of as the sexual harassment/Obama to Trump transition/blue jeans chapter particularly devolved into platitudes and didn’t really tie everything together by the end. And I wasn’t able to put my skepticism about the fashion and beauty industry aside enough to stop wondering if she was sometimes using irregular verbs – I use my women’s studies and activist background to bring important representation to the fashion industry, you co-opt feminist and social justice rhetoric for clout.

I really enjoy anything set in a hyperspecific subculture with lots of detail, so I did actually like the fashion industry sections of the book – if anything, I would have liked more stories about what exactly she was doing all day. There's a publishing industry story in here as well, although it gets dialed down partway through. Still, having worked in periodicals at various times in my life I enjoyed hearing what it was like on the other end of the production chain. Korn frequently refers to what I presume are well-known figures obliquely, and a reader who's more in tune with the fashion industry than I am would probably have a lot of fun spotting the designers/bloggers/media people she's talking about. But my lack of knowledge also meant I held a seed of skepticism for many of her claims about the effect Nylon had on the industry, since I was very aware that if she was overstating her claims I would have no way of knowing. I also got tired of her stopping to make a disclaimer that of course, she is a white, thin, conventionally attractive woman — by the middle of the book, the reader knows that*. In general this book has a problem with repetition, something that can happen when an author is used to writing short, individual pieces (like personal essays, or online magazine articles) but should have been tightened up during editing.

But I do love to hear people’s stories, and fortunately Korn is strongest and most interesting in the middle chapters when she tells hers. Her experiences with being a lesbian in fashion, a world that is famously (straight) female and gay (male) were fascinating – the way that she could at various times be tokenized, fetishized, dismissed, and othered. Another interesting thing, from a queer perspective, was that she was in a legally-committed relationship (domestic partnership) during most of her 20s and ended up being single and dating when she was older, which is both a reversal of the expected script and a relatively new type of queer experience. And the heart of the book were the chapters where she talked about her experience with disordered eating. Pushing for body positivity and expanded beauty standards while ruthlessly punishing her own body for its perceived imperfections. Being convinced that she was only desirable with a low weight and hard body – while not being attracted to that body type in other women. And finally trying to get in recovery while working in an industry where everybody is controlling and judging their food intake and weight – while wrapping it in the language of empowerment and self-love. These were extremely rich – sharply observed, self-reflective, and not only helped me understand her experience with ED but also changed the way I think about it.

Verdict: Borrow it.

*I would also add that she is rather affluent, although this is mentioned leas frequently.

[stabbedinthenameofscience]

The Radical History of Black Panther(s)

"Black Panther's" United States setting isn't Oakland just by chance.  Setting the rise of the miliant Black Panther in this city is deliberate and historically significant.  Though many people (read, many white people) don't even acknowledge this history, sigificant strides in black liberation were made in the city in the 1960s.

In 1966, Huey Newton and Bobby Seale founded the Black Panther Party for Self Defense.  The purpose of this organization wasn't the pacifist aim as Dr King, in fact, it ran counter to it.  The party formed after assassinations- one of Malcolm X, a pioneer black leader who demanded equality "by any means necessary" and the execution of an unarmed black teen, Matthew Johnson (and I say execution because these police murders are executions, no matter how you shake it- #BlackLivesMatter).  By 1968, the Black Panthers would have 2,000  members across the United States.

For those entirely unfamiliar with the philosophy of the Black Panthers, I refer you to their Ten-Point Program, a manifesto of their beliefs and goals.  

In response, the Black Panthers decided to take up arms and patrolled their community streets, guns in hand, to confront officers who would abuse their power and gun down their fellows (copwatching).  They had enough and they were determined to, like Malcolm X, stop the violence with countermeasures if necessary.  To this end, they protested the Mulford Act in 1967 that was specifically aimed to criminalize carrying loaded weapons openly in public and was a response to their community patrols.  This act was supported by Ronald Reagan, who stated he could see no reason why a rational citizen would carry loaded weapons in public.

Though we don't know his age at the time of "Black Panther," I'm going to hazard a guess that N'Jadaka (Killmonger) is likely in his 30s.  Given that it is set in the general present, his birth would have been in the 80s.  His father, N'Jobu, was in Oakland long enough to say leadership in the black community had been assassinated, though we don't know when he arrived.  It is entirely possible he has been in Oakland for a decade or more, though this is not necessary for the assassinations of Dr King and Malcolm X to be still reverberating through that community.  It is also entirely possible he's speaking of the murder of Huey Newton in 1989, killed as a part of a gang initiation in order to try to gain control of a crack ring.

N'Jadaka is born into this environment and into this philosophy- "by any means necessary."  He makes sense, a product of his environment, but also as one of the philosophies of the Black Panthers themselves.  He becomes the embodiment of this one specific aspect.  And yes, the Black Panthers did have a history of violence, both towards outsiders who threatened their community and within the organization.  They were not perfect.  But yet again, they were standing up at a time when Black Power was fighting back against a system of Jim Crow, Redlining, Segregation, and the legacy of slavery that kept black people still in economic chains.  Their actions were not occurring in a vacuum.

Black nationalism was not merely a small part of this movement.  Many within the Black Power movement as a whole believed that the black community had been so wronged and so dehumanized by the dominant white culture that they had to isolate and take care of themselves first and foremost- create black businesses, support black families, create their own economic centers and community programs.  This is what Wakanda itself does.  It isolates, it helps itself, and it is representative of an uncolonized centre of black power.  Wakanda is what the Black Power movement often sought, the society that doesn't rely on the colonizers/oppressors for their support and protection.  Shuri herself calls Ross "colonizer" when she first meets him and he has to learn to sit down and listen, to be an ally, not a leader, in a community that isn't his to dominate.

But T'Challa adheres to another value system, one that also was represented within Black Power and within the Black Panthers themselves.  They did not only respond to the colonized United States with violence, but also with social programs- with free clinics, with educational opportunities, with free programs to feed the children within their community.  They had a vision of a world where they could depend on one another in solidarity, black communities united to decolonize the minds of those around them, to uplift their fellows, and to see hope in a world that sought to destroy them and strip them of their heritage and blackness.  Black Power led to the resurgence of traditional African fasion within the United States and a movement towards natural hair and "black is beautiful," movements that still exist today (and I will say sadly so, because our culture still doesn't believe in the value of blackness).  

The Black Panther Party fell when outside influences, as well as infighting, brought them to a halt.  No small contribution was made by the FBI, J Edgar Hoover calling them, “one of the greatest threats to the nation’s internal security.”  The FBI sought to undermine the social programs in addition to contributing significantly to a Chicago Police raid, the result of such being two party members shot dead in their apartment, asleep.  The police would later describe the resulting firefight as one in which hundreds of bullets were flying, but forensics would later determine only one bullet came from the Black Panthers.  Is it any wonder, with this history reflected in the title of the Wakandan king, that they do not want outside influence?  This is the story of black communities in the United States- one of violence and of a dominant culture seeking extermination of nationalist and self-determinist movements.

T'Challa approaches the world as the other end of the philosophy of the Black Panther Party- he does exactly what they did in the end of the film.  He creates a social welfare program to better the lives of Oakland residents exactly like those children fed in the 1960s by the Black Panthers to strengthen community and bring pride in their heritage.  Wakanda reaches out to prove what a black nation can be, what one is when it hasn't been colonized and stripped of its identity, its resources, its people.  

N'Jadaka isn't entirely wrong.  This is the beauty of how this film frames his death.  While his violence seems senseless, to him, it isn't.  It is a reaction and a reclamation of his right as a prince, a king, a man looking out for oppressed people everywhere by pulling down his oppressors to make them take him and his fellows seriously.  I can't find fault in this in principle.  He has been hurt, he has seen his community in poverty, violence, addiction, and going nowhere, and he is determined to fix it by putting his force where he finds blame.  In his mind, this is how to fight the powers that have destroyed the black community worldwide.  

T'Challa takes a different approach, but he respects his opponent.  As N'Jakada is dying, he still seeks to show him the beauty his father saw in Wakanda, in the land of his birth, a place where he was free and thriving.  There is a peace in N'Jakada's death that seems unique in this genre of film, as there is a depth of history and philosophy here that I really find inspirational and refreshing.  It isn't just two men fighting for the sake of fighting or power.  They are there with purpose, two counterpoint histories that can understand one another, even if they don't agree at all in their approaches.  They both, however, share one thing- they know they can't stay isolated while they watch their people die of starvation, execution, economic strangulation.  

I didn't think I would ever see a superhero movie that was this well made, this well cared for, and this well written.  It is clear that the writers, actors, directors, and designers put their souls into this film, making something truly special that was inspiring to all people and also incredibly moving to those who knew this history.  To me, it is utterly profound and stunning that a big studio actually allowed this to be produced.  Black history is largely ignored unless it is Dr King or the occassional black entertainer like Aretha Franklin, or a writer such as Toni Morrison or Maya Angelou, especially that history that cannot be sanitized to be nonthreatening to white audiences.  I left the theatre in awe of the boldness of this story, the history embedded in it, and the strength that was gifted to both the hero and the antihero (I won't call N'Jakada a villain- he does some dark and despicable things, but he deserves better than such a dismissal of his motives and perspective).

References: https://www.history.com/topics/black-panthers https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mulford_Act https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Huey_P._Newton http://www.sacbee.com/news/local/history/article148667224.html