#id love to understand more

[wasp-coffee]

Probably Incoherent Shadow and Bone rant

right off the bat, I haven't read the books - this is going entirely off the TV show

I think something that's really bothered me about Shadow and Bone through the first season and into the second and that has become clear as I've finished it is the idea that darkness is final.

Maybe I've been brainwashed by pop culture into hoping for redemption for villains, but I thought the way Aleksander was treated in the series was generally horrific. I mean from the get-go I knew he was going to be the "bad guy" (hello black colour scheme) but the thing is that I still don't think his motivations were bad. I understand why he did what he did, why he'd become what he had, and what he did was (imo) very similar to what Sarah Alder did in Motherland: Fort Salem (this is me telling you to go watch it btw).

I think something quite harmful which is mentioned in the series is the idea that darkness is corrupting and there is no coming back from it. Also the idea that you cannot change who you are - that everything you are comes from your birth. Any child no matter how good born with power over shadows would have been demonised and because of it no one ever gave him the chance to prove anyone otherwise. (See: Jonathan Morgenstern) Because really Aleksander never stood a chance, no matter how good he could have been. He was always going to become something awful because of the power he had no choice over and the way people treated him because of it. There was no chance for a dark magic user to be a good guy.

But the series focuses heavily on his choices. His decisions. Because he, as a hunted minority with a gift that people feared, wanted to protect himself. The idea that evil is intrinsic, that it can't be prevented and is inevitable in some people but not in others... The black and white view of "good" and "evil" really started to annoy me in the second season. Despite everything he'd done I still saw a posibility for Aleksander to do good because the change he wanted was for the good of his people and their safety. He was always treated as evil, as irredeemable, by his mother and everyone else around him so that's what he became but... it's all his fault, right? Nature not nurture?

When Alina 'goes dark' its okay because she's good actually and she can be pulled away from it no no don't touch that its bad. She has to fix it because she's good. That's all she can be - good. No wiggle room. She's born good, and even after everything remains recognised as such. But Aleksander was right good cannot exist without evil and I think the reverse is true. The idea that he has nothing left - that he's only fighting for himself, for power, I never thought held any water because... the whole reason he built the little palace and everything else was to keep his people safe. His motivations cannot be selfish because the whole reason he did everything he did was because he wanted to save his people.

When Alina wants to save her people it it's good and right but when he does it it's wrong and evil?

I think the reason why the ending felt very unsatisfying for me was because none of the reasons why Aleksander did what he did are ever really addressed - everything just trots along normally. Like Grisha aren't going to be killed for who they are... like they aren't hunted and in danger and reliant on leniency and goodwill to keep them alive.

I think Aleksander could have been a really compelling character if he was allowed develop further - he was starting to feel very one dimensional evil during the end there. I think his end was... unreasonably cruel (even though I knew he was going to die from day one) and his final moments only confirmed the capacity for goodness that I saw throught the series.

I don't know... I just can't help but thinking that he never stood a chance.

(Please be kind in the notes, I've only just finished the series and am in no way claiming to be an expert or writing the definitive bible this is just some thoughts.)

(I wouldn't mind hearing what you have to say though please tell me if i've forgotten something or got something wrong)

[greenieflor]

Hey maybe a group of creatives deciding that they want control over their content and don't want to waste time and resources begging for ad revenue is like. A good thing

[ruporas]

asking and receiving (bonus below readmore)

[ID: A black and white, digital Trigun comic of Vash and Wolfwood. In the first panel is a close up of Wolfwood's mouth as he says, "Vash". Accompanying it is a close up shot of Vash's eye, widen and cheeks flushed. Wolfwood presses a knee against the open space between Vash's legs and says, "Tell me everything you want from me." Wolfwood's face is equally as flushed. He continues to say, "I'll give it to you. Everything." As he talks, a wide shot shows the both of them in white space. Vash is sitting, leaning a little back with both hands pressed against the surface he's sitting on. Wolfwood is in his white dress shirt, stripped of the blazer. He's still leaning in with one knee in between Vash's spread legs, his right hand touching Vash's lips and his left hand behind his back.

The shot closes in on Vash's mouth and Wolfwood's hand against it, pressing down on the lower lip as he says, "You have to ask though. Go on." His hand moves down to Vash's chin, gently holding it. With a shy and uncertain expression, Vash hesitantly asks, "Um... K... Kiss... Please?" Wolfwood, without wasting a second, leans in and kisses him and indulges by pressing deeper, eliciting a small noise of surprise from Vash.

Wolfwood moves away from Vash first and with a smile, asks, "What else?" Vash tugs on Wolfwood's left sleeve, wordlessly budging Wolfwood to give him his hand that was still behind his back. In the next panel, Vash utters, "Hold me..?" He's holding Wolfwood's left hand with his own while his right hand is reaching for his waist. Wolfwood complies, moving his left hand to Vash's shoulder and his right hand continues to touch Vash's cheek. Wolfwood asks again, "What else?"

More comfortable now, Vash leans in to kiss Wolfwood. Wolfwood catches him immediately, pressing his thumb against Vash's lips to stop him before demanding, "Hey. Ask." Vash looks back in surprise and Wolfwood meets his eye with a quiet, insistent look. They're quiet for a moment before Vash leans in again and curtly requests, "Kiss. Me." Wolfwood says "Good", smiling as he lifts his hand away, and meets Vash's lips. In the next shot, Wolfwood had adjusted his position, sitting on Vash's thigh. The hand that was once on Vash's cheek has moved its way to Vash's nape, pushing away the collar of his jacket with his pinky. His other hand continues to grip on Vash's shoulder. Still kissing, Wolfwood asks again, "What else?"

In the next shot, Vash is starting to turn, moving Wolfwood with him. Vash asks, "Let me on top of you?" Wolfwood says, "Mhm" before asking again, "What else?" The next panel shows a close look of Vash's face. He's looking down, flushed and shy just as he had been at the beginning, but now, more decisive. Vash asks, "Wolfwood... Let me have you..?" A panel of Wolfwood taking Vash's hand into his, pulling it towards his chest. The next panel shows Wolfwood lying down where Vash had laid him. Vash's hand is on Wolfwood's chest, covering the cross of his rosary while Wolfwood's hand lingers against his, loosely pressing Vash's hand in place. He looks up at Vash with a shy smile of his own, flushed cheeks. He says, "All yours."

A panel shows a close up of Vash's tender gaze before he leans down to be closer to Wolfwood. The final shot is a front view of their positions, Vash's face turned away from the viewer; Vash is leaning over Wolfwood who's lying down with his right leg draped over Vash's legs. Wolfwood's left hand holds onto Vash's left arm. With finality, Vash says, "...Mine." End ID]

[ID: A follow up bonus comic in a looser, sketchier style. They're laying comfortably in bed when Vash asks, "What was that earlier?" referecing to the start of the previous comic. Wolfwood glances away and says, "To get you used to it. Asking. And getting what you ask for. Since you're alwasy hesitant about it." Vash's eyes widen, tight lipped. Wolfwood continues, "Knowing you, it'll be a tough habit to break..." When he says this, Vash can't help but laugh, unable to deny it. Wolfwood slowly brings a hand to Vash's cheek and continues to say, "So I'll keep trying -- whatever ways I can... to get it through your thick skull." Vash takes Wolfwood's hand with his, kissing the the palm gently. Wolfwood's eyes soften and holding onto Vash's cheek, he leans in to try for a kiss. Vash says, "Hey..." before stopping Wolfwood's lips with the back of his hand, a smug look on his face, "Ask." Wolfwood's embarrassed and with little irritation, asks, "Really?" Vash smiles, saying, "You're in need of practice too." They pause for a moment, Wolfwood looking contemplatively, before he's leaning in again, asking, "May I please kiss you?" Vash looks him in the eyes and says, "Yes." The comic ends with a "chu", indicating an off-panel kiss. End ID]

[nordidia]

having a very rough night so raph doodles needed to be made

when in need, mash two interests together

[emarli-the-doodler]

Smth from twitter whoopie

[im-still-watching-anime]

naruto: to be fair i get obsessed with all the sad people i meet

sasuke: oh so you’re like this with everyone then?

naruto: oh god no i’m the most obsessed with you by FAR i was just trying to make you feel a little less weird about it

[thermodynamic-comedian]

ultrakill lore enthusiasts (me) when the small machine destroys the very big machine

[thefabledpheasant]

(Ex: coffee shop, no powers, coworkers, college, etc)

[goobygnarp]

.

[lizandreil]

andrew and neil love each other so beautifully, never facing away from each other and their demons, learning to trust when it’s probably one of the hardest thing for both of them.

the way neil trusts andrew to hold all of his secrets secure and not shy away from every ugly truth neil has to reveal. the way andrew trust neil to stop when he needs him to, to shield andrew from the rest of the world when it gets too much. the way andrew trusts neil to watch over his family. the way they are both broken by so many things but so whole for each other. the way they are learning to be tender with each other when they never knew tenderness in their lives. the way neil’s first intention was to let andrew protect him and fight for him and in the end it’s neil who would give up anything to make sure andrew is safe. the way andrew pretends so hard he doesn’t care about anything but he cares for neil so deeply and so intensely it makes him angry with neil because he’s breaking andrews walls. the way everyone called andrew an uncontrollable monster but it was neil who told andrew “i want to see you lose control” perfectly knowing how composed andrew actually is and how much he holds back. the way neil was trying so hard to stay unnoticed and forgotten but was the center of andrews attention since the very beginning. they way neither of them thought they’d have this and get to love and be loved. i just. i just love them so much.

[hopelesslyromanticshark]

guys…we’re 10 followers away…from 1k

wtfwtfwtfwtfwtfwtfwtfwtfwtfwtfwtfwtfwtfwtfwtfw-

[shkika]

The tragic part of moon I think is her incredible patience probably being something she learned by enduring the constant awfulness of the ancients, since she couldn't really speak out in any way, since she was in a completely imbalanced power dynamic with her creators.

Maybe that unwillingness or fear to retaliate or advocate for herself is what led to her not doing anything to stop pebbles until it was way too late even though some in game dialogue says she could have used admin privelage to stop him by force.

That makes her story even more heartbreaking...

Poor moonie, she deserved so much better from everyone. And the most kindness she was ever shown was from the little animals her creators made as tools and objects, I suppose there may be a kinship between them there.

I love moon so much. She deserves all the hugs.

I think her patience came in multiple ways!

If I had to ramble in detail on how I write Moon I'd be here typing all day..

Lttm has a lot of experience and has talked to many iterators, younger and older and has went through many generations in her colony.

But the way I see it is that Moon became a person who is just very.. mm tired I suppose. The unfairness and lack of regard for her feelings she received from the ancients was a constant she grew to passively hate, but accept. So she's patient with them yeah. Moon is patient and calm with anything that life throws her way, because she's had to deal with a lot. She's quick to accept defeat and see when something is unreachable. The opposite of Pebbles yet again, who tried everything to go against the very way he was built. He's willing to fight and take action much more than she does. Moonie ultimately, in her last moments with Spearmaster, accepts her demise. Nothing can be done and.. as scary as it is that's okay. She's happy others cared for her and still do.

I don't think she's afraid to stand up or herself! Moon isn't a pushover, at least to me! Nothing can ever be done about how ancients see her or her group so tolerating them is just.. easier! Otherwise she demands respect and to be heard and listened to on a basic level even from a slugcat and she thanks you greatly for it. Or else. You don't get anything out of her. Even in a vulnerable dying state she can put her foot down and refuse to speak to you.

The situation with Pebbles is different.

I don't think she was scared to talk to him. I think Moon wanted to trust that her brother wouldn't do something like this. Because she wasn't just his admin to take control of him whenever. She was his sister.

Unlike their parents he'd take her well-being into consideration, surely. He wouldn't risk her safety like they did.

But oh well.

It's how it is.

[turtletoria]

i feel like an incredible hater for this but i feel as i get older the more my tolerance for shipping decreases. like i went from an avid enjoyer to just tolerating ship art to now getting outright upset and fighting the urge to curse every time i see shipping content (this doesnt apply to my mutuals and friends who ship things because they can do no wrong ever)

[sergeifyodorov]

anon who just asked me about What Narratives Should I Get Into if you have the patience I will prepare for you approximately 10 thousand words arranged by team, conference, and/or player. Get in the car we're going hockeyloreposting

[dimeadozencows]

Krispee cream

[uncaught-coolfish]

a medal for every time I win in this bitch