#i still hope they'll be happy

[lacunasbalustrade]

"i never knew just how much i liked being needed. just how much, you understand? i knew i wanted it but not how much. until two years later i went back anonymously to visit and watched how the trains had stopped running and the ground had stopped shaking under the tremors of music and i saw. how everything was splitting apart at the seams without me. and i smiled hopelessly. finally i found permanence in how no one will ever forget my name, the one they cursed and gossiped and talked about when i was too exhausted to let go. well, now i have. and if you don't, well, I like that."

[bizarrelittlemew]

calling it right now that season 3 starts like this

[decarbry]

Watching them leave from the door felt strange. Wrong. Like it shouldn't be happening like this. As soon as the handle latched, he moved to the third story, climbing the stairs fast enough to catch the tail end of the little troupe disappearing around the street corner. He could hear Toga's laughter even from this distance.

Yabureme didn't budge from that spot, even as the evening drew to night. Spinner had said they'd be back before midnight, and though Yabureme had nothing to check it against, his internal clock said that it would be a few hours yet until that hour passed and he should start to worry.

He'd started to worry the second he lost sight of Tomura beyond that door.

He was meant to use this time to sleep. With no one to guard, it would be the perfect time to catch up, maybe eliminate some of the waver in his limbs. But the worry was a plague. He hadn't even tried to sleep, only listened and watched that little square of sidewalk they'd vanished from.

Kurogiri entered the room, but Yabureme ignored him for the moment, instincts dividing his attention in case an order was given. Even then he could feel a pinprick of pressure in the back of his head as the man stared him down.

Without seeing it, Yabureme sensed that it was the same look Kurogiri gave when he caught him nearly falling off of his feet in his vigils. Narrow-eyed and pointed, communicating his sins without actually saying anything. Kurogiri was the only one who really noticed on any consistent basis, but his concern was sharper and less warm than Spinner's could be.

He and Kurogiri both shared an innate purpose, after all: to protect. And they both knew that if he kept on like this, when the moment came, his body may just fail in its duty.

Perhaps that was why he'd been given the role of babysitter for the night.

[dazais-guardian-angel]

Chapter 110 is 13 pages long welcome to hell!!! so in a lot of ways this is just more fuel for a theory that I've had for a few weeks now, that's only gotten stronger with each recent season 5 episode, which is that the last episode of the season is gonna end on 110, and that Asagiri/Harukawa and Bones have been collaborating to make this happen, specifically because it's a major turning point that would be the only good place to end the season on.

When we started getting especially long chapters again (like from 25-35ish pages, with the exception of 107.5, the last two being some of the longest we've ever had), at first I just assumed that Asagiri/Harukawa got freed up from some other obligations they'd been having to cause the extremely short/half chapters, like promotional stuff for the anime/Beast movie, or working on light novels. But then 109 happened, with the "supposed" death of Dazai, and heavy emphasis at the end on how literally everyone is at their lowest point right now, and I got to thinking. 11 episodes is a strangely specific number for an anime season -- why not 12, or 13, or even 10, like you'd usually see? Why have we gotten suddenly gotten two 35 page chapters out of nowhere, that's almost unheard of at this point? They're both beautiful chapters, don't get me wrong (as always), and maybe A/H simply just didn't want to cut them in halves because they felt like the full emotional impact wouldn't hit/that there were no good cutoff points in them, but you can't deny that it's surprising, after all the shorter chapters we've been getting. Why has the anime been going at such insanely breakneck pacing for the most part ever since around the Sunday Tragedy chapters, even more so than it has in the past? So much so that it feels dangerously close to overtaking the manga?

Well, maybe, just maybe, it's because..... Asagiri decided a long time ago that whatever happens in 110 is the only point that feels "season finale"-worthy enough, in an arc that still isn't anywhere close to being completely wrapped up, and so both the manga and the anime have been specifically coordinated to reach that part within 2 and a half weeks of each other?

I've seen a lot of people now think season 5 will end with 109, and as much as my sadistic side would find that hilarious, I honestly don't think they'd do that and realistically don't want it to happen; it'd be so cruel to cliffhanger the anime for years like that, and just doesn't feel like a season cliffhanger BSD would do, a series that is ultimately hopeful and uplifting. Seasons 2 and 3 had a positive, conclusive ending; the only reasons seasons 1 and 4 didn't was because they're technically not really full seasons of their own, and are more like the first cour of another "season" that also came out that same year (seasons 1 and 2 both aired in 2016, so they're more like one big season, and seasons 4 and 5 have both aired this year, so they're also more like one big season, again taking into account how episodes 12 and 50 are not satisfying finales like episodes 24, 37, and hypothetically, 61, are). I really can't see season 5 ending with Dazai and Fukuzawa's supposed deaths, Sigma being unconscious and maybe close to death, Atsushi being vulnerable and limbless again, everyone we love still vampires, and the entire world being basically doomed; that's just too depressing and not like BSD at all. However, having said that, if it doesn't end there, there really isn't any good place to end the season before that, either, that feels in any way satisfying or like a finale at all. And so, to me, that only leaves after 109: chapter 110.

I think things are really gonna turn around next chapter. Like I said, everyone is at their lowest point right now, it cannot possibly get any worse, the framing of Dazai, Fukuzawa, and sskk at the end of 109 is telling us that; this is the time for the heroes to finally start winning again, with Aya being so close to pulling out the sword, and for all the thematic reasons other people have talked about to death that I don't need to go into here again. This upcoming chapter being so short again makes a part of me wary of 110 being "the one", so to speak, I won't lie, but at the same time, it's very possible that it needs to be that short because that's all the final episode of the season will be able to reasonably fit in, since it's already gonna be VERY close if they do make it all the way to 109. And at the end of the day, I don't doubt at all that Asagiri and Harukawa can make these the most monumental and game-changing mere 13 pages ever if they wanted to; a chapter does not at all need to be extremely long in order to be an important and impactful one, even if short ones we've gotten in the past haven't felt the most important.

An additional thought I've had, though this is much more crack territory than all this already is, is that since we know from Anime Expo that a Stormbringer movie at some point is highly likely (judging from Asagiri's reaction when someone brought it up), it's possible that chapter 110 and thus the final episode will involve the long-anticipated return of Verlaine and/or Adam, or at least some other major reference to Stormbringer, that would naturally and smoothly lead into a Stormbringer movie to explain things to people who haven't read the novel. It would make a lot of sense, especially since the s4 OP has the Old World sign behind Chuuya, which might be a hint that this has been in the works ever since seasons 4/5 were first in planning with Asagiri. We also know that Dazai and Chuuya's voice actors apparently struggled to record their lines together this season, which probably relates to 101 and possibly 109, but it could be 110 too.... I could be very wrong, as I'm no expert on this kind of thing, but I kinda doubt they would bring Chuuya's actor in for just the vampire growls, and Asagiri placing heavy emphasis on Chuuya's importance this season in that one interview gives me the impression that he's talking about much more than just 101/109. But that's the least solid evidence I have, that's just mostly based on vibes I get.

So basically, I think a lot of factors -- the unusual episode count, how close the anime is to catching up to the manga with three whole episodes left, the seemingly arbitrary recent chapter lengths, and the climactic events of 109 -- can tell us that 110 might be a very, VERY big deal. Again, there's of course no way this arc is anywhere near close to being finished, with so much left to address and resolve, but since it is currently incomplete in the manga, unlike the previously adapted arcs, if the anime was going to adapt it at all, they'd have to find a place that feels satisfying enough to end this season, knowing there won't be more anime for a long time after this, and so I think they specifically planned for that, from both Bones' and A/H's sides. 10 episodes might not have been enough to reach that point, but 12 or 13 might have been too many it wouldn't have been if Bones actually decided to slow down and let the story breathe the way it needs to, but this post isn't meant to criticize the anime, so maybe 11 was just right. And maybe Asagiri and Harukawa specifically pushed to make recent chapters longer than usual, in order to make sure that the manga reached the story content in 110 the monthly release right before season 5 was to end.

Is this just copium? Absolutely. Am I going to look like an absolute clown in two days when this post ages like milk? Probably. But the evidence is There, so let me just enjoy my delusions until Sunday, okay 🥂🫡

[musicalchaos07]

Hello my fellow Jonathan enjoyers I am once again coming to you with a possibly controversial opinion. After look at that blurry ass photo all day I genuinely think his hair is going to be closer to this:

Which imo tracks bc what we've seen so far from s5 is that they're playing up the s1 nostalgia HEAVILY. Like with the exception of Dustin (and maybe el) everyone else that we've seen so far is very s1 (Joyce is wearing the same jacket, Steve's wearing the same shoes also like Mike wheeler) HOWEVER, I am also ok with him having the kitchen scissor monstrosity of s3 bc he looks so pookie.

🕯️🙏 Manifesting less blurry pics of blorbo asap (also giving him a flamethrower)🙏🕯️

[1-tiger-every-day]

while i'm updating this blog i just wanted to say again how much i loved doing this project and all the lovely asks and positivity and encouragement that strangers offered along the way. Horanghae etc etc <3

[saibowtie]

I think one of the reasons why this whole Ted ending doesn't really work for me (apart from the straight up way of how depressed and ooc he looks the entire episode) is that Ted never clearly says why he needs to go back to Kansas.. Like we know it's because of missing Henry and his mom guilt tripping asking him to think of his son, but Rebecca literally gave him a satisfactory solution for this? What the hell else was the whole "bring Henry here, Michelle can go teach, etc" speech for?? She literally spelled out every single Ted fic ending the fandom has written in the past couple of years, and TED HAD NO RESPONSE!!!! Someone tell me why they said this ON SCREEN and didn't give a valid counterargument. She said London is HOME for him and he didn't deny it.

I just don't get it. If this is truly the last episode ever, then all of the above just doesn't make sense and that's why it feels so wrong and unfinished to me.

[autistickaitovocaloid]

Meiko pin.

[dribs-and-drabbles]

No one:

Absolutely no one:

Pran in Our Skyy 2:

Me:

[still-got-no-idea]

since you said you're comfortable about us asking questions about your oc, I have a few 👀

1-Why was their wing clipped? 2-How do they feel now about the person who clipped their wings? 3-what's their personality like? 4-What is their music taste? 5-What is their moral allignment? I shall invade your ask box with more once i awaken >:)

1- it was done by someone to show that they had some sort of control over them, more or less

2- they don't really... resent or hate the person. They more blame themself for ignoring all the signs that they never cared in the first place . They do hate how the person made them feel, but they don't completely wish ill on them. Sometimes they imagine how different things could've been if something had changed

3- well, they're very silly, and they try to help people as best as they can. They're loyal to the point it hurts them more than most other things. They also have ADHD, cuz I don't know where else to put that

4- their taste is best described as "anything they like" because they like a lot of things. Like- you'll hear the most upbeat and silly song one moment, and then the next it's something like momento mori

5- it goes from true neutral to chaotic neutral

[ssaalexblake]

You know, as somebody who has nominally enjoyed watching the Raffi and Worf plot I still have to say, it's a tragedy that it didn't need to be Raffi.

It should be important for it to be her in this plot, and it's not.

There is no connection to her plot last season, you could say there is some from her S1 plot but I'd say that technically it's more like they ripped the Raffi that probably existed some time between Picard quitting and leaving her high and dry and her getting the boot. They removed her romantic relationship as dead weight, apparently, which is more insulting in the context of her 'sacrificing' for this job because if it didn't Need to be her, it's just. Insulting to the ones who valued that relationship a Lot for what it represented. Her relationship with Elnor has ceased to exist, which it would, because Elnor has ceased to exist entirely. None of the things that tied her to this narrative in the show have been allowed to stay, nor are they in any way important to telling the story they're trying to this season.

And it just makes her strangely adrift. They could, genuinely, have just invented a new character and had them play this role and you'd not need to change much more than an awkward scene with Seven that wouldn't be awkward anymore.

I mean, sure, it's Raffi... Well the footnotes anyway. But it didn't need to be, and that's an issue for me. Make it important for her to be there as Her? I'm just tired.

[sarahplantarthe1st]

*Today* actually!

Only 17 more hours to go...

[nozomikei]

Maybe I'm evil blah blah blah, but y'know what I love in a Hythlodaeus/Hades fic?

When Hyth's opinion of himself is completely in the shitter and it's explored and intensified.

I'm talking eating disorders, suicidal ideation, self-harm (of all types, not just the obvious), breaking up with Hades to 'help' him find somebody better. Gimme it all!

This brilliant man thinks his greatest contribution during the final days is as just another sacrifice, energy to charge the summoning of Zodiark. In Ultima Thule he addresses his contributions as "a bit part" (Wrong!!! He is so essential to our success at every stage! He is so, so loved and precious!!!)

I love seeing the belief that he's untalented and replaceable behind the endless patience and sweet smiles. The optimism about those he cares for that hides the fear that that is all he brings to the table, so he should never seem unhappy or others might realize they don't need him around.

He was scouted for the Convocation! He was the head of the Bureau of the Architect! He has perhaps the strongest ability to see souls of anyone!

But he talks down his abilities as a bard, as a user of creation magics.

I love fics where Hades, or others dear to Hythlodaeus, finally catch a glimpse behind the gentle smile to the pain, and struggle with low self-esteem, and start working to show him how wrong he is. Show him that he has and deserves their love and care. That they won't leave him if he is less than perfectly amiable and cheerful.

[cobaltfluff]

damn

fujieda true end was really good

I'm actually crying huh

[cheekblush]

this week has been absolutely awful and it's only thursday 🥲

[ihamtmus]

i will miss him :((((((