#idk i think its also interesting with that contrast between them

[throughdarkeningskies]

when I was a teen and I read everything I could get my hands on, I had this rule in my head to seperate 'literary' fic from 'chick-lit'. and the rule was this: if they have sex and its bad its literary. if they have sex and they enjoy it its chick-lit.

alternate variations:

- if there are dark serious themes explored and everyone is dark and serious about it it's literary. if dark serious themes are explored but the characters crack jokes about it its chick-lit

- if a man writes it its literary and if a woman writes it its chick-lit

- if its written with the most dry boring-ass prose possible it's literary. if its written the way an actual person would talk its chick-lit

[always-tired-lilbitch]

Do you wanna explore your characters in depth???? Do you want your readers to really enjoy learning about them instead of having them just... infodump about themselves via description??? Okay so here's what we're gonna do:

1: Create foils for them! What is a character foil? Just another character who will contrast with the one you want to explore. Let's say you have a dark and twisted guy, a real evil little fuck, grab it and give it a lighthearted foil, someone who maybe shares their goals but swings the other way alignment-wise, and make them interact A LOT and maybe fall in love and kiss? Idk, you do you, but really, using other characters to reflect what your character is not is super important.

There are different character foils tho, and even though they basically boil down to "complement my character", each one has its own unique strengths. You can have the classic mentor-apprentice in which the foil is an older or younger version of the character (figuratively), or the rivals, who just are... the contrary but not? idk, you get it, or even the comedic relief character, don't you waste a character ever! Use them to explore what another character lacks or needs :)

2: TRIOS!!!! Comedy works in threes and so do characters. Grab the character you want the readers to know about, put them in a group of three, and let them interact! The group can diverge from its normal surrounding cast and that's even better! Let the readers see them interact with people who are fundamentally different from what they're used to. You don't interact the same way with everyone and your character won't either, and that's super important cause it allows you to show traits that haven't been as explored!!!

Get your class clown and put them in a reunion with a parent and a teacher, or your rugged warrior and put them in a hospital with a dying old person and a doctor who can't save them, or... or...... Idk, you catch my drift! Just get them out of their comfort zone and let shit happen to them.

This technique is quite useful cause you don't have to have your character interact a lot! Maybe you just want the audience to see their reaction, so the other two characters can interact between them without output from the third, who will just think or move around in the background!!!

3: Bridge traits! I'm fairly new to these cause I literally learnt about them yesterday but it's quite an interesting concept. A bridge trait let's you trick the audience into judging a character because of the first traits they show and then pull the rug from under them when you add a new trait that totally challenges the view you have of them. These are quite useful when you want a bit of subversion, cause you can get an audience to think about someone a certain way through superficial prejudices and then BOOM, they have a depth they didn't expect and also which challenges beliefs about certain traits.

Okay, but I haven't told you what bridge traits are yet, so let me get to that. Basically, we're going to want to get a list of really shallow ideas about your character. Let's say we have a grumpy guy, a really rain-on-your-parade type of gremlin, and you want to make the audience discover that, in reality, they are mourning. Okay, so first we're going to build up the "they're just assholes" idea, make them look bad through misleading portrayal. Then, as you do this, add a moment in which the character acts a specific way which can be attributed to both a grumpy fuck and someone who's really going through it; that's the bridge trait, cause when the reveal is made and the perception changes, the fact that this trait existed before will ease your readers into believing your character's actions.

Idk if I've explained myself well enough, but if there are any questions I'll be sure to try and answer them the best I can<3

tl;dr: Explore characters in depth by giving them foils, putting them in trios, and using bridge traits.

[beachf4gz]

I recently was able to restart my adhd meds after a few months of them being out of stock so I have been reading wayyy more DE fanfic again, and something I find kind of interesting is how prominant certain in-game choices are in regards to Harry's fanon characterisation. I understand why the communist route and sorry-cop copotype are by far the most common ways ppl write Harry- I think most people playing the game end up identifying with those dialogue options and therefor end up following those routes (and its a fairly big time commitment to replay with the intention of seeing all the different route you could take)- but I do sometimes really wish there was more writing for the different copotypes and political orientations because the ways Harry's internal processes and position in the world are affected are REALLY interesting to me. I completely understand being uncomfortable (or just uninterested) by the idea of exploring an ultraliberal, moralist or facist character- I think fanfiction as a medium is compelling in part because you are conveying your own relationship to a piece of work, including your own moral reactions and beliefs applied upon the work's characters- but I think DE includes the option to *play as* a character occupying these roles (rather than just presenting them through npcs) in order to invite players to experience and examine the act of being these things both internally and within social contexts.

I think Harry can be fascinating and heartbreaking as a character study in any of these routes, and the gameplay can feel radically different between them even following the same plot. For example, I found the moralist route deeply evocative. It has an uneasy, desperate feeling to it as someone struggles to occupy the in-group, to live in normalcy and civility in the face of their own world ending. It creates an odd position for Harry as accutely disabled and vulnerable- contrasting percieved social acceptance and safety with the tearing of reality "as it should be" at the failure of the social mechanisms he believes in to meet their promise of happiness or safety. The gameover at the statue left me genuinely stunned when I first got it, its sort of horrifying in it's bluntness, and I found it really upsetting in this specific raw way. Its an excellent way of demonstrating, emotionally, the failure and cruelty of liberalism upon those who believe in it- but also its devastating for Harry's character as he is presented through the moralist dialogue. I also found it rlly compelling how the honor cop dialogue options explore Harry as a person seeking dignity in the face of their social ostracisation, and how apocalypse-cop explores the social modes of someone who has fallen out of the "normal reality space", how impaired his ability to live is in response to a full awareness of overwhelming, total threat. I'm not good at writing essays and stuff, idk if I'm explaining this well, but all of the routes are written with such an intimate and personal examination of how it *feels* to occupy different modes of being- of the way the world will treat you if you interact with it in certains ways, or the person you will be and the emotional shape your life will form depending on your framework. I think its kind of abstract and difficult to write properly, but I think its something you can reaaaallly sink yourself into if you find Harry a compelling character- I personally do (lmao) and its something I love seeing whenever I get the chance. I get the appeal of Harry as an exccentric mentally ill communist whose political beliefs are, in social contexts, extentions of his rejection of social norms and position as othered under liberal belief- I do also just enjoy the fact that this version of Harry is only one mode of being he could occupy, and the varying ways in which he is socially, emotionally or cognitively enabled/disabled by other modes of being, and the position the game takes in exploring them all as choices or as routes and reactions by the same person- as someone afloat and disempowered in the world attempting to find "how to live".

[sapphicscholar]

Thank you for answering my question, i love reading your thoughts and i agree with everything. Now on a more general note, if there was to be a clear romantic path with them, who do you think would make the first move, Ava or Deborah?

Thank you! And ooh interesting! I tend to think of their coming together in less romantic terms when I write fic mostly bc even though romance is 100% there (from their big gestures to the quiet moments, altho I think Deb especially would be more likely to call it care or even love than romance), I have a hard time wrapping my head around a romantic arc that blossoms outward and grows into a sexual relationship instead of holding steady on its own terms. (Obviously there’s value in both, but for me, the show is already giving me much of what I want of the latter but will not do the same for the former. So fic!) In my mind, I find that getting to the physical consummation between Ava and Deb in a way I find personally persuasive requires a kind of erotic/sexual tension that masks the romance lurking beneath it or a level of joking irreverence where the coupling proceeds as a “commit to the bit” sorta thang (a la @catelyngrant’s wonderful sugar we’re going down fic). Having it occur on romantic terms is lovely and I know many fic authors do it beautifully, but it’s a mode that to me shifts these two women into a slightly different tone (register? Genre?) than how I personally see them.

BUT! Pushing myself outside of my comfort zone … I feel like just realistically speaking it would have to be Ava because I don’t think Deborah would let herself risk being another older comic with more wealth and power potentially taking advantage of a younger woman. Even as she calls Ava a partner, not an employee, I think that nagging anxiety would linger. Also, I think she’s internalized enough mainstream heteronormative misogynistic bullshit to have a really hard time envisioning why Ava would want a relationship with her (maybe she could see the one night stand of it all after her s2 Memphis hook up, but she was still thinking of that encounter as a fetish fulfillment and therefore niche, not something she associates with romance or expects of everyone). And, practically speaking, I think Deborah gets off on the attention of her own pursuit in the realm of the romantic and the sexual (in deep contrast to the way she gets off on/at least finds deep gratification and meaning in being the pursuer of her own ambitions, whose too-easy coming to fruition actually, imo, frustrates the pleasures they might otherwise provide).

Anyway idk if any of that gets at your question, but it was fun to think with!

[yamujiburo]

POKEMON SERIES RANKED (IMO)

I get this question a lot and haven't made an updated list with Journeys

Original Series (S1-S5)

Sun & Moon (S20-S22)

Chronicles (S0)

Diamond and Pearl (S10-S13)

Advanced (S6-S9)

Journeys (S23-S25)

Black & White (S14-S16)

XY (S17-S19)

Original Series (S1-S5)

OS had that first season charm. Very unpolished, still finding its footing but super enjoyable for those reasons

Probably the strongest series comedy-wise

That GORGEOUS 90s anime style

Main character dynamics were REALLY strong

Ash's personality felt much more like a shitty little 10 year old which was entertaining

Dub writing was also the best hands down

Sun & Moon (S20-S22)

Honestly tied for first with OS for me

REALLY fun ensemble cast! They do a fantastic job giving each character enough time for you to get to know and care about

Excellent modern anime style that perfectly fit the vibe of the season and allowed for some of the best character animation of the show's run

Finally figured out how to write Ash like a 10 year old again (but in a kind/sweet 10 year old way as opposed to OS)

Very different from previous series in terms of the formula they'd follow. Doing a school series instead of another "8 badges to championship" plot felt new and fresh!

This series genuinely made me cry the most (MEMORIES IN THE MIST!!!!! LIKE ARE YOU KIDDING ME)

Chronicles (S0)

Fun concept! It was really nice to see more of the side characters without Ash there. We get to see more of Misty, Tracey, Daisy, Brock, Ritchie, Oak, Delia, Butch, Cassidy, Jessie, James and Meowth!

Stylistically really nice. Just solid drawings all around and it retained the 90s anime style in digital form more successfully than other digitally done series imo

BUTCH AND CASSIDY!!! Team Rocket centric episodes!!! Training Daze!!!!!!!

Idk how possible it would have been (seems like a TON of work) but it made me want one of these in between each season, where we'd follow the characters that Ash had just said goodbye to for the next region.

Diamond and Pearl (S10-S13)

Series I grew up with! Honestly I was kinda a hater as a kid but having watched it back, I love the series

Love that Ash and Dawn were bros. They had a really fun dynamic.

Debatably peak Team Rocket. They had some of the best Team Rocket centric episodes this series.

Contests were really fun and a bit more figured out compared to the Advanced series

Fun, memorable rivals for Ash (Paul and Barry) as well as Dawn (Zoey, Kenny and Jessilina sometimes)

This is unfortunately where I stopped caring about Ash as much. He feels kinda watered down for the next couple series.

Advanced (S6-S9)

Pretty tied up with DP for me

Really fun series! Still had some of that early Pokémon charm

I appreciated that they put Ash in more of a mentor role for May (but he still had a lot to learn himself).

Ash and May constantly butting heads was really fun

May was a very compelling character to me, being very clumsy, kinda lazy, directionless, not really into Pokémon, etc. But then over time, she comes around and finds something she's interested in!

Journeys (S23-S25)

I love the episodic take as well as the way they let the characters jump around from region to region at random

Goh was a GREAT travel companion to Ash. They contrast each other nicely, have moments where they get on each others' nerves but still get along and have a mutual admiration for one another.

It was fun that they made Goh's thing catching every Pokémon (the motto of the entire series) so they could focus on Ash just training and prepping for Worlds.

Amaaaazing style. Took the great parts of classic Pokémon, roundness of SM and blended em together for a really fun look.

Black & White (S14-S16)

I don't think it's that controversial to have BW this low haha

I did enjoy Iris and Cilan but it felt like the writers didn't reaaally know what to do with them? Also this was their first time in a while not having Brock and it shows. I feel like Brock was successful because he was grounded and lower energy compared to the rest of the kids. Having 3 pretty eccentric characters is kind of a lot. No hate to the characters in the slightest, there was just not as much balance.

I think maybe they leaned on Cilan and Iris for more comedic relief because they killed the comedic relief that was Team Rocket this series. I appreciate them trying something new with Jessie, James and Meowth but I don't think it worked very well lol

XY (S17-S19)

I've ranted about this series a lot LOL. I get the appeal of it, but it just wasn't for me. I felt like it was the weakest comedy-wise and took itself a bit too seriously for my taste

My main gripe is that Serena, Clemont and Bonnie all like,,, worship Ash. By doing so, Ash begins to feel like a side character because we're constantly looking at Ash through their eyes. There's so little conflict within the group so their dynamics feel really flat. I think this dynamic could have worked if they leaned waaay more into Ash being a mentor and maybe feeling the pressure of having to be a role model for the people around him.

Team Rocket very much feels like an afterthought in this series. They did in Journeys as well, but at least in Journeys they were doing something silly and also had a handful of episodes dedicated to em.

Outside of that, the episodes weren't super memorable for me

I think it's just frustrating because there was sooooo much potential character-wise

[moutones]

(yet another) new traffic series idea!

disclaimer: non-explicit nsfw references below

i realised that my griscott idea follows the same theme/premise as my limlife gritho from the other week, aka sex with feelings (about other people currently not in the bed) and now i'm thinking hey… maybe i'll turn this into a one-shot series?!

so! one fic for each life season starting with third life, focusing on the progression of desertduo's relationship. they'll each be written through the perspective of the person that's not-grian, so we get the outsiders' lens (though for third life i think i’ll write scar pov).

more under the cut!

initially, i thought it would be fun for them each to be smut-shots. one of my favourite things to read is smut doubling as character study (or the reverse, if you will), and i wanna try my hand at it. buttt i think some actually work better in my head as not-smut which is just as fun!!

these are my plans so far:

3rd life

scar pov

probably no explicit smut but some seemingly mundane but melancholic and sentimental scene?

you know, the whole complicated shebang of how desertduo came to be and manipulations and playing alongs but through it all, a genuine bond only deepening

this is all about showing how deeply the seeds for their Thing are sown

last life

smut - mumbo pov

i like the idea that there are romantic feelings between grumbo here, also because i am really loving mumscarian by extension

so grian has a crisis sometime early in because well, the end of 3rd life is hard to process when it involves killing one of the men you love and then you're thrown into another death game

grian teaming up with mumbo is very much a thing of comfort for him (in the beginning), so he spills his heart out one night and they basically have sad comfort sex

important: grian cries while they have sex

but it's ok! mumbo is here! and hes a little terrified because he doesn't fully grasp grian's feelings for scar's (no one does) but he talks grian through some things and then takes care of him

note: mumbo fully accepts grian’s whatever situation; he and grian have a stable relationship so there are no dramas with jealousy etc. especially as mumbo is also familiar with scar

oh boy this ended up being more elaborate than i planned

double life

smut - scott pov

as summarised in prev. linked post

re: no romantic or even sentimental feelings, just fwb - they’re both using each other to release general and sexual frustration

it could be fun if scar and pearl decide to stand in powder snow happen while this is happening - adding to the dissonant mix of emotions

undecided whether the sexual arousal will also be shared between soulmates here…

limited life

smut - etho pov

as summarised in prev. linked post

i think this one will have some important contrasts to the scott fic - while that one occurs towards the beginning of its respective season, this one is near the end. while griscott chat during sex, gritho are mostly silent

i want to highlight how grim everything kind of feels; the desperation of holding onto someone when you know the end is coming soon

secret life

now i'm not so sure about this one... it could be interesting to make it a solo grian pov? as he was alone for most of this season and i don't feel like writing him with etho again or cleo, maybe this could be a masturbation fic. idk!

or you know, it could be really interesting to write him with joel... there's that episode where they essentially become soul bound. i think their bond through the seasons is also very interesting. my brain is whirring

but i DO at least know that there will be reflections and thinkings of the good and bad times with scar. not so much crushing yearning or desperation or mourning like the previous fics, but something like the way to healing...

wild life

the healing arc be upon us!! i did write my first scarian fic RIGHT before the episode of them teaming up released so that was a wild (haha) day for scarian nation

will of course explore how exactly it progresses to them being (more) okay again, through wild life and also prev seasons (closure and all that)

maybe a grian pov?? TBC but that could be a meaningful full circle moment if we start off with scar’s pov in 3L

paralleling the third life fic, i think i’ll have this one be non-sexual intimacy. yay!

you know, now i'm thinking that i might even write it as a chapter fic instead of a multi-fic series. baby's first chapter fic would be an interesting challenge for my very messy writing process!! but i’ll keep thinking on it.

anyway, thanks for reading if you did all that. please let me know of any thoughts you have! would love to hear and discuss any input x

[fall0utmind]

Hello again! I'm the same anon that sent the ask about the various forms of guilt present in the a/b/o sick fic.

The anons have been absolutely brilliant with the fic ideas recently!! 

Combining the idea of Marc needing to get a hysterectomy and Vale getting his alpha vocal cords removed altered my brain chemistry a little ngl!! (Medical horror my beloved 🥰) Both of them physically loosing something that is a pretty large part of their secondary gender. Their contrasting reactions to it.

Marc as you've mentioned, adding it to his long list of things that make him The Worst Omega to ever exist (a list that doesn't include a single thing that actually makes him a bad omega, but yknow hes not gonna take a moment and reflect on that, an endless spiral of self hatred and repression is much more safe).

To contrast Vale, who I think at that point would actually agree to the procedure pretty quickly and honestly, if he really didn't realise that he'd used his alpha voice, would probably be relieved, because if that were me I'd probably spend the rest of my life terrified that I'd do it again, or that i had done it other times before.. (the betrayal of your own body/subconscious is such a good trope if done right) Not that he'd admit all that, because Marc has obviously suffered more and Vale is terrified of making this about himself, but at the same time overthinking every time he told someone in his packs to do something.. did they do it because they wanted to or because they had no choice? The pressure just building and building until eventually the dam breaks and he asks during one of the academy pack nesting/sleepover nights, (without Marc present) if he ever used his voice on any of them too? They'd tell him if he did, right? Does the alpha voice even work on other alphas, or just omegas and betas? Or maybe there's a difference between a regular alpha, an alpha to their mate and the pack alpha using their voice? That would probably make the most sense from a world building standpoint, with like disobeying a regular alpha command being a mild discomfort at most, while the other two actually cause pain. Vale (and maybe Marc too, at first, the realization creeping in slowly over the course of several months) assuming it was the former instead of a mix of the latter two?

Hi!!! Getting through my asks so! Sorry its been so long waiting for a reply anon, I appreciate you coming to talk to me x

You keep coming back so now I wanna give you an emoji hmmm - how about 🐺 cause you're always commenting on my a/b/o and it's fitting 👀👀

Oh I love some medical horror. Don't we all? Loads of angst with it too is *chefs kiss*

Marc and his endless fight trying to be good enough when he's actually already fantastic, the best, borderline perfect *sobs* 🫠

I love the idea that Marc is mourning bits of his omega, that he is so at odds with it. It's very dysphoric in a way, right? Which is so interesting to explore. The whole *gender* of it.

The betrayal of Valentino's body omg yes!!!Gahhhh valentino!! Yes, yes, yes. So like he's definitely devastated that all of this happened, and he wasn't in control . that's awful for him, that he caused such pain without realising it, and it 100% keeps him up at night. I do think there's a small part of him that also hates losing part of his alpha, part of him that sees it as losing control/ power/ status. But Valentino has character growth!!! So he learns to let that go!

Oh god, the idea of valentino wondering if other members of his pack (mainly Bez) have been forced to do something... (they haven't- just marc). As far as I'm aware, alpha voice only works on omegas. Betas are kinda immune, a bit like how they're neutral on scenting, etc. Idk if that's right, but that's how I view it!!

I strongly agree that an alpha you have a bond with/pack alpha would have more power in their alpha voice. I think i spoke about this before because it would make more sense, so yes, disobeying your pack alpha is almost impossible if they use alpha voice// can be very painful!

They were both so in denail when this happened because they didn't want to be that for each other. Marc didn't want to be controlled. Didn't want an alpha. Especially not valentino but then it all goes to shit so quickly and he's like well fuck. Actually, I love(d) Valentino, and he was grounding for me (marc latched onto Vale and kinda treated him as his alpha, etc.

Valentino is just always in denial - because in hus mind Marc is evil and blah blah blah

So there's no way either of them realised that a bond has been formed.

Phewwww, that was lots of thinking and world building. Thank you, Anon ❤️

[freyafrida]

sometimes entertain an AU wherein mrs. alec davis does in fact adopt una and she's raised away from the other blythes and merediths...but idk, i feel like it changes too much about what i like about walter/una, which is their actual proximity and orbiting around each other mixed with walter's total obliviousness. i've also always liked the idea that una brings a sort of worldliness to their relationship that comes from her being familiar with tragedy and neglect from a young age, rather than being particularly sophisticated or educated, unlike walter's formally educated but somewhat sheltered background -- that contrast between them appeals to me and would be taken away by una having a different upbringing. but idk it's still interesting to think about.

(i also can't imagine the meredith siblings just being cool with their sister being adopted and living a separate life within reach of them, although that would probably be a wacky adventure AU on its own)

[pinazee]

Black and Tan: A Crime of Fashion

The MELANIE LYNSKY episode! (Or at least thats what i call it. upon seeing her on screen for 0.2 seconds i knew she was going to get pretty big. She’s such a phenomenal actress.) I honestly lowkey shipped her with shawn. She was so sweet and i feel like it brought out some of the sweet in shawn too. Shes also a character i wish would come back one day, like they do a murder mystery movie and they’re on her yacht or something idk shes really good friends with them all still, they could make it happen :)

Lassie has given up. He has resigned himself to his fate that Shawn will always be up in his shit for the rest of eternity.

LOOK HOW MUCH FUN DULÉ IS HAVING HERE! OHMYGOD HE FUCKING KILLED ME IN THIS EP!

why am i surprised he knows the name of the model in downtown Santa Barbara and is a huge fan? Im starting to see why Gus is single. He gets way too obsessed, but also, Shawn wasn’t kidding when he told that one chick he was willing to change everything about himself. This also adds a nice layer to Gus’s character because we see part of him wants that exclusivity and prestige. He wants to feel like someone others admire, which is brilliantly contrasted with Shawns more down to earth not really caring what others think vibes.

And speaking of contrasts, i love this bit; not only because its funny, but because it feels like a great metaphor for how shawn and gus approach life. Gus is trying so hard to win and Shawn doesn’t care and the outcome is the same.

And i think its so funny whenever Gus gets so obsessed with whatever world their exploring hes pretty much useless and Shawn has to be the rational one.

Every once in a while psych will do this POV shot in shawns perspective thats not being used to point out a clue and i think its really cool. I wish they would have done some more like it because its such a great way to show how shawns constantly aware of his surroundings even when he’s not on a case.

And this was brilliant! It has to be one of the best psych-outs in all of of Psych! Fucking legendary!

And this was brilliant too!

I felt so bad for shawn, playing middle man between henry and karen (which is the most unprofessional thing shes done haha), but it gave henry and shawn one of their best scenes at the end when henry is practically begging shawn to understand, like you can almost sense that he wants to confess right there that it was maddie who abandoned the family not him (or maybe im seeing that because i know its the truth. 🤷‍♀️) and shawn just doesn’t want to deal with it. Its interesting that henry was dragging shawn into it though, like he was using it as a way to see if shawn was okay with it now, cause otherwise he could have asked his friends right? It didn’t have to be shawn.

Honestly it shouldn’t have been. He knew it made him uncomfortable and he kept telling him to stop asking, but like always henry pushed it.

(Oh and also this kind of adds to the mystery of how well karen and henry know each other because she seems keenly invested in it, plus, when her friend told her he left a message she said that sounded like henry. So she must know him well enough that she can say this casually. Sidenote: that moment karen opens the door and Shawn looks horrified was priceless!)

Lastly, its interesting that shawn is proud to have never been in therapy when his mom is a psychologist. I feel like she would have instilled in him a better understanding of what therapy does and that its not something to be ashamed of. Likely the writers just hadn’t figured out maddies profession yet, but still.

P.S Everyone look at his jaw!

[witchinatree]

making a list of my favorite quote/ones that stuck with me from each season 1 episode because i feel like it

(i'm starting this after episode 4 but it will be a WHILE before i post it)

episode 1: "bones are a lie peddled by Big Milk" - alice

i love this one because it's a great introduction to alice i think. also it radiates spiral so i hope we get avatar alice not dead alice (isnt there a podcast called alice isnt dead?)

episode 2: "If I wanted to clear the canvas, I would have used turpentine." - statement

this one was just fucking powerful and caught me so off guard like 😶

episode 3: "What would I do without her?" - statement

the norris statement <3 it feels like martin asking what he would do without jon which makes mag200 a lot sadder and i love them

episode 4: "Perhaps you shall prove a stronger will than I, and will yet find it within yourself to destroy this hungry thing of wood and cat-gut." - statement

augustus sighting #1 and we immediately get jonah magnus expressing that it may be possible for gwen bouchard unknown family member to overcome the eye's hunger spooky violin

episode 5: "Voyeur needs to be seen to be believed." - statement

i feel like this one is pretty reflective of how the seasons gonna go? like if you explain the events of tma (mag200 specifically) no one's gonna believe you, it must be seen to be believed!! and also seen!! like the eye!!!

episode 6: "Not sca- This isn’t some poxy blood test, some little pinprick, this is hundreds, thousands of razor sharp points pushing into your flesh." - needles

i love needles so much and i thought this was really funny because it was like "you dont find me scary!! what the fuck!!!" just kind of toddler michael energy

episode 7: "It’s not like we’re wrestling with tape recorders and manila folders." - celia

STOP IT. celia you can't say that you just cannot!!!!!! you Know™ too much maam i cant with you

episode 8: "Pleasure to meet you both. I’m Gerry!"

RAGHHHHH OH MY GOD GERRY!!!! i love him so much and idk how to handle him being alive in the tmagp universe!! gertrude too but idk we got so much of her in tma and not nearly enough of gerry

episode 9: "And honestly, it’s kind of compelling by this point." - sam

they got him 😔😔 the horrors got sam 😔😔 also i found this to be an interesting contrast to jon's heavy resistance in season 1 like he was being compelled but he wasn't going to let anyone know that vs sam "its kinda compelling to trauma dump on this paperwork :]" how is he somehow even more victim material

episode 10: "Gosh you’re sexy, here’s a twenty for your trouble.” - alice

does this count as a quote if shes also quoting what she thinks sam should say? idk anyway i love her i would say that to her if given the chance and it was very silly. i will not be addressing bonzo i am scared.

episode 11: "...Thank you, Alice" - gwen

dyhard dyhard dyhard dyhard dyhard. okay also, the way she CRUMBLED at the idea of anyone doing anything nice for her please someone give her a hug and let it be ME. this series is tossing me back and forth between sam & alice (what is their ship name) and dyhard but this put me back to dyhard

episode 12: "You know it's rude to have absolutely no game?" - alice

she's so fucking funny i need her to be okay so badly!!!! i don't think even tim made me laugh as much as she makes me chuckle and this one really got me. it's hard to write such a comedic character in a podcast since you only have the voice but they really nailed it i adore her

episode 13: "Is it my fault?" - gwen

each of these episodes just reveal a little bit more about how loving and soft gwen is and idk i love her so unbelievably much so seeing that she felt guilt about the bonzo stuff just made her so much more real :(

episode 14: "Christ, they’re in the walls…" - statement

theyre in the walls!!! theyre in the goddamn walls!!!!! anyway that got me because i realized the hole before the statement said it. made more sad than scared tbh

episode 15: "Babies are cool!" - alice this entire interaction between her and sam & celia was so awkward, she is so obvious and i love her anyway

episode 16: "It’s not like I was holding doors open for Mr Bonzo or anything." - gwen my wife is so so so stupid but i adore her AND this gives room for character development. i wish she did not do that though. i love when characters are flawed and have depth but i struggled to get past THIS flaw of hers

episode 17: "Thanks, I guess. Not exactly the same, though, is it?" - celia shes talking TO JON IN THE COMPUTER. SHE KNOWS. i lost my damn mind i love her i love her. get the gay people out of the puter please queen

episode 18: "Why would I need to talk to you? Your work is satisfactory. Unless you have a work-related issue I could assist you with?" - lena solidified my opinion that lena is the best boss to ever have, i adore her and i would want to work for her if she wasn't the boss of Creepy Establishment #1

episode 19: "You’re going to throw it in the fishtank, aren’t you?" - alice colin's behavior is like really worrying BUT i'm glad he's back. i was not convinced he was still alive

episode 20: "I suppose it’s too late for remorse, isn’t it? And why should I be sorry? This is what I deserve!" - ink5oul/statement they reminded me of jon a lot, like especially his season 3/4 transformation when he doesn't quite know everything but he knows he isn't who he was in season 1 anymore, i hope we see more of their life and they can be helped :(

episode 21: [Tape Recorder Bites Ink5oul] - audio description i know it's not technically a quote but this is just so fucking funny. why does it have teeth. what does this mean for the lore. holy shit.

episode 22: "Jonathan Sims and Martin Blackwood" - celia. knawing at the walls of my enclosure i am so not okay. i'm not okay. wtf. wtf. wtf. they're real. wtf.

episode 23: "I had a favorite mug. It said “love you, bitch” and had a picture of a drunk dog on it." - alice. okay i just love this entire interaction because gwen got to open up a little bit and my dyhard heart is so full

episode 24: "I am told that children like me, and I’ve always held the opinion that the world would be a better place if everyone just thought more." - basira. once again this whole interaction was so fun but like idk i loved hearing basira somewhat happy and in a safe place :] my wife <3

episode 25: " I am trying to help, to save us from this goddamned fucking nightmare machine!" - colin. MAN I REALLY WAS ROOTING FOR YOU!!! I WAS SO CONFIDENT YOU WEREN'T GONNA DIE!!!! it's over

episode 26: "I was worrying for a moment that you were Magnussing." - alice. MAGNUSSING BEING CANON MADE ME SAY IT EVEN MORE I'VE SAID IT LIKE TWICE ALREADY

episode 27: "You didn’t tell me the room was labelled, “Archivist.”" - celia. oooooh somebody's got TRAUMAAAAA LMAO

episode 28: "So you’re telling me you know nothing about an OIAR external contract being found with the bodies of two tattooed thugs who met rather grisly ends?" - TREVOR HERBERT???? anyway. ink5oul mention!!!!! i hope they stop killing people it's really rude

episode 29: "Alice, er… we’ve got to talk. It’s important." - teddy. i knew it was over for him but i didn't think it was gonna be THIS bad??? bye babe i guess??? 😭

episode 30: how do i even pick. the whole fucking episode. i can't. i am in a state of shock. i need to lay down for 30 years.

[katzkinder]

I love how Strike also does that when someone asks about Belkia name as a human, even if it's in a "They don't want to share" way

NO SAME also like i really loved the phrasing used there specifically which gave the impression Belkia himself was in Strike’s ear complaining about it lol.

“He doesn’t want to say” is such a cute way to put it because yeah sometimes your characters do just be refusing to tell you things and you gotta shrug your shoulders and go “idk man they’re not answering”

For Belkia in particular, though, i think I’m going to interpret that as Bel himself loving the name Tsubaki gave him so much he absolutely refuses to even consider anything else. That’s his dead name now, and he’s gonna make sure it STAYS dead. Like… It’s so. Sweet, I guess? How much effort he puts into killing the person he was before he met Tsubaki. He changed the way he talks, the way he looks, the way he approaches the world, everything about him is different now, and I love that. I love him.

I also love that Tsubaki’s OWN manner of speech shifted so drastically only in the last decade, because he met Belkia, and Bel had such an influence on him Tsubaki can’t help but learn to be a little more cheerful, too, a little more silly, and a lot less sullen.

Team M mean so much to me. Also god bless Tsubaki giving Shamrock a new name bc what do you MEAN he’s named GREGOR I’m in tears. For context, Gregor is the name of Kafka’s novel “the metamorphosis,” whose original German title is “Die Verwandlung” and isn’t just a character motif for Shamrock, but also the name of his specialty attack (vol 11, chapter 62, “I Will Strike Them from You”). Its subchant is The Nighthawk Star, but that isn’t really relevant right now.

Come to think of it, I never really delved into how The Metamorphosis is used for Shamrock’s character, and I think the difference in messages between The Metamorphosis and The Nighthawk Star are interesting enough in their differences it would be worth comparing and contrasting them in the context of both each other and his character. Taking notes taking notes…

This got off track as usual but. Yeah. Names are… Really important in Servamp, and you can figure out a lot about the characters not just from their names, but how the narrative treats their names, how they treat the names of other characters, but also how they themselves interact with their names. It’s a really interesting method of character exploration imo

Like, for instance, majority of the Servamps and Eves have names that complement each other, right? They match in some shape or form. The two that always stood out to me were Envy pair and Pride pair, though, for the seeming lack of connection between them, but now we know WHY that is.

For Mikuni, it’s because the name he gave Jeje was never really meant as a sign of them being partners, but intended as a punishment towards him. A reminder of his sin. Of failing to protect Kiriko. Of being a monster who drives others to insanity. But it also served to throw his own faith back into his face since the origin of it, JJ, comes from “Jesu, Joy of man’s desiring” a lively chorale you’ll often hear around Christmas time which, in the original German, expresses a very close and familiar relationship with Jesus. It’s also the song that would play from the music box Kiriko gifted Mikuni for Christmas, and collecting them was her hobby. The name isn’t about Mikuni, but Kiriko.

For Hugh and Tetsu, it’s because Hugh was never the name Tetsu gave his Servamp, but a name belonging to someone else. The name Tetsu gives Hugh, however, appends the word for silver onto the end of it (Hugh the Dark Algernon III [Gin]) which serves to make them match. Silver and Iron. It’s sooo cute. Add Tetsu’s golden bleached hair and you’ve got the whole trifecta for the fable of The Honest Woodcutter (also unrelated but I thought it was funny)

[loopscereal]

closeups and details below the cut

was thinking od these drawings of school uniforms eddo made, broke down the colors she used an then triend making school merch like jackets, hoodies, shorts, skirts, shoes, shirts, yeah. + idol duo in ther calder outfit bc i want to . this started out as me just wantinf to draw idol duo an dget ther lil shapes down but iii snowballed lol anyway close ups

idol duoooo yippieee Loon/JJ's pants can be blue tone or red tone then her belt and shoes can also switch between being red or blue depending on the tone of the pants bc i like switching it up!! uhhh i gave malva grey in her regular outfit's socks to bring down the grey of her council vest, then made her shoes grey in the other one to do the same thing but whitened her socks for contrast between the dark skirt and dark shoes and to bring down some more white. i made jjs socks brown to brign down th ebrown of her hair, idk i just like trying ot balance their colors around and have them repeat somewhere else at least once... the two of them have matching red earrings, matching planet pins, and their hairstles srt of have a matching flow to them, (what are you talking about loops) mattching stripe things at the socks / cuffed bit of the pants bc i ii wanted then to have a mayching band thing??? i want them to have a million matching things they are BEST FRIENDSSSS. uh friendship braceltes as always... fun fact jj gets cold easily and malva doesnt, shes quite comfortable in the cold lol the planet pins based are off their planets in loons "planet loop" cover

yeah. i feel like every time we post our usagi (we call her malva) she looks different, nut i swear we arent just redesigning her over and over again, we just turned her redesign that happens in the series into a plotpoint for her ToT she has to get a haircut and then it grows back in darker and curly cause the weight of thigh-length hair was keeping it straight but now that its lighter it matches bons curly texture. (we made bon and usagi/malva siblings. twins) she however did not always have that white eyebrow that is relatively new lmao

animatronics with school merch uh i noticed the univorms have both horizontal and verdical stripes, vertical lines going up the arms and side of the leg, adn then horizontals typcally going across the chest, and just did my best to make it look similar to the uniforms and add little things or make it look interesting idk tell me if it looks good ig? i feel like i may have just copy pasted the sports uniform stuff onto different types of clothes lol

uhhh also golden has more birthmark stuff going down their whole arm, i dont think ive shown that off beforeeee. chica also has freckles down her entire body but its msot abundant at the bottol of her legs, arms, and shoulders cause thats where the sun hits the most. she also did some red make up eyeshadow thing on her eys to match the school colorsss i just got the idea to make a school scarf. damn. uh. if you guys have any ideas for school merchandise i should do feel free to suggest some in the tags ! i found this very fun to do

loops from 2 hours after posting this: im gonna re-do eaks versity jacket yes yes…. that would be cool……

[heartscrypt]

For the miraculous au

would it not be silly and goofy if when not as superheros and in their like school. normal teenage life. like. yaknow. in canon. jamil has a big (in denial) crush. bc hes ladybug. idk where im going with this

i love your miraculous jamiazu au i think thats the main idea from this ask

using this ask as an excuse to pull out the love square map (i'm actually fucking crazy)

OK SOOOO. so. i was not kidding when i said the love square was different from the show. ive kind of swapped around the dynamics from the original to fit the characters better

everything under a read more so as to not intimidate anyone with how severely ill i am about them

jamil -> azul: in contrast to the mlb canon jamil will NOT have a big ginormous stalker crush on azul. in fact he does not like azul and will often clam up / go quiet around him. will excuse himself from interactions with the other and generally avoid the hell out of him because he thinks the other is so clearly hiding something and he does NOT want to get wrapped up in it

azul -> jamil: think pre-book 4 incident where azul's had an eye on jamil for a very long time. if anything he has the big ginormous stalker crush. but honestly its not full on crush territory (yet) because jamil refuses to talk to him and he hasn't interacted extensively with the other. however does think there is something going on with jamil avoiding him and relentlessly pursues him in response

scarab -> léopard: scarab just instinctively works better with léopard by his side. there's sort of an implicit trust between the both of them that the other is fully capable of whatever they set out to do which is. really nice. and they rely on each other in the heat of battle which is strange because scarab's ego means he often takes a lot of shit on himself under the idea that he's the only one who can do it. but also léopard is just an enigma to him because they'll work so well in battle but out of battle léopard's constant flirting gives scarab a headache... but it's also kind of flattering. in a way. because léopard is constantly Looking for him and shows a lot of interest in who he is as a person which doesn't happen a lot for scarab in his civilian form

léopard -> scarab: léopard is a mercenary which means that he's not partners with scarab. he just happens to "run into" the other "by coincidence" (not coincidence) and you know. he's so benevolent. why not help scarab out with the akuma. he is charmed by how much scarab is NOT like a hero. scarab thinks like a villain and is unafraid to use and manipulate others in order to accomplish his goals. but the end result is perceived as heroic of him. léopard wants him so bad for this it is fucking CRAZY he thinks scarab's capabilities and range are so attractive and will constantly make passes at him whenever they cross paths

jamil -> léopard: from jamil's experiences with léopard as scarab, jamil finds that léopard may actually be tolerable when he's not flirting constantly. jamil's still not keen on letting this guy save him from akumas (because jamil is scarab and by god if léopard ever finds out he saved scarab in civilian form he's going to be so full of himself) but he trusts léopard and is willing to let his snarkier side show, more than he usually does when he's jamil

léopard -> jamil: léopard is ecstatic at the fact that jamil is actually talking to him. yes it might take a whole other secret identity and a leather bodysuit to do so but. you know. a win is a win. uses his position as léopard to pry for more info from jamil, but it's always a push/pull back and forth where jamil seems to tolerate and even occasionally be amused by hus presence but will shut him down once he gets too close. his infatuation with the other in civilian form is fed by these small interactions he has with the other that shows there's more to jamil that meets the eye

azul -> scarab: azul is scarab's biggest supporter. naturally. praises the superhero's diligence and duty to the city loudly and vocally to anybody who will listen, and wants to get scarab involved in his future business ventures. may intentionally put himself in situations where the other will come save him so he can entrap the other into talking with him in civilian form to see if he can get any more clues into scarab's identity. also desperately tries to impress scarab when unable to transform with the skills he learned from being léopard.

scarab -> azul: scarab, drawing off his experiences as jamil, finds azul's persistence a little daunting and definitely a danger to his secret identity. however it's also odd to see a second side to azul pop out when he's trying to impress scarab. almost cute. if he didn't fail so much at it. gets scarab reconsidering his civilian form's thoughts on azul because azul somehow seems Less fake or. worse at being fake whenever jamil is scarab.

[pochapal]

Hello hi this is not a question but I would just like to say that I have become hopelessly infatuated with the omelette and pickle routes. The way you weave meta narratives actually made me understand a bit of what was going on in the epilogues and beyond cannon. Also 6 vi of pickle is amazing and the way you narrate the flashes of the battle remind me of the illumine series and Aiden’s narration if you’re familiar. The conversations at the end of omelette with June and the author and in pickle between tav and Jake are so cathartic. I could say more but I feel I’ve polished your bone bulge enough so I’ll just end my ramblings and say that I hope you get better from your body having an Extremely Normal One and I can’t wait to see what happens next.

aaaah this is very kind!!! it makes me really happy that omelette route and its associates landed so well with you!! <3

i've never heard of illumine before but i can speak a little on the process of SIX! the battle sections are very specifically stylistically modeled in pace, tone, and vibe, to mimic the experience of reading a [S] page. frantic jumps between action moving at a lightning pace bouncing all over the show in sharp contrast to the lengthier more meditative parts of pickle route. specifically idk what exactly to call it but each scene in those parts are very much built with a kind of enjambment to it, where each scene ends with a "setup" and the following one answers it in a "punchline" in a surprising way.

an example off the top of my head is the part where a desperate harry ends his scene begging "please let all this end" and then the following section immediately begins with "the skirmish ends quickly after that" except the skirmish in question is not harry's, and also things Very Much do not end. there's tons of that in these rapidfire scenes which i think Works because it bakes a bunch of symmetry into the story in a way that compliments hs proper's tendency to be rife with clever and stupid callbacks to itself remixed over and over both as jokes and in full seriousness. it's actually something i started doing with the novel i'm writing for my phd since it's an incredibly useful tool for telling a fast paced horror story with a load of interweaving characters, and omelette route is nothing if not a testing ground for a bunch of stylistic experiments.

the catharsis stuff is i think more obvious in what i'm doing lmao. that said the june/author stuff in omelette route was entirely emergent throughout the storytelling and not actually a thing planned out until it became inevitable (omelette route itself addresses my rational here in a bunch of ways both truthful and narratively exciting lol). gonna toot my own horn for a second and say there's been a few times people have read scenes in these stories and said they've affected them, but for me a lot of the intense emotional strength catharsis stuff that slams my readers in the feelings doesn't really affect me like that! so with omelette route i really did challenge myself as a writer to make something that would actually move me personally. and it worked! i also think that it was categorically absolutely insane that i Did That with omelette route given actually what it is, but i'm also glad that i transformed what would otherwise be a mundane moment of identity questioning into this elevated performance? i think especially because, like, my own gender situation resolved itself in a kind of less interesting way lol so i'm glad that that moment is preserved like that! it's something i literally could categorically never replicate because you can't *un*pass that threshold.

meanwhile tav is like my absolute fave surprise standout character from pickle route and i make no secret of it. at the start of pickle route i was dead set on this being Vrissy's Moment and so much of the story up to TWO was steering in that direction. tav's original arc would have seen him kind of being ironically the kid who gets Least Traumatized by the events of pickle route, mostly based on early now abandoned plans for the upcoming sburb session arc, but then THREE happened. and then the gamzee thing hit me like divine inspiration and i realized there was this whole genuinely amazing path for tav laid out right there and i would have been an idiot not to take it on. and!!! would you believe it that this kid keeps surprising me even now? literally right when i sat down to start 7-3 the plan was that tav would tentatively reconcile with jake and they'd decide for him to take on the surname "english" together as a nice moment, but then it was like tav himself took me down the path it went in real time, and it was the right thing to do! because his emancipation progression is so good start to finish. he just keeps throwing curveballs in the story and blowing up intended plans and every single time it just Works. i love that kid. i am so excited to see what he does in act 3.

for the rest of pickle route, we've got the second half of SEVEN to get through which contains some of my absolute favorite scenes i've had planned since 2020 (including the omelette route parallel everybody has been waiting for). after that is (seven) which forms the 3x climax combob to kanira's sc's and cara's stories in a way that will definitely not make everybody scream.

and then chapter 8. :)

there are two final chapters to come after that which i can't speak on in any way, other to say that they very nicely tie back into omelette route again and create a perfect setup for act 3. it is my dearest hope that 2025 is the year pickle route Finally Ends, but we'll see how it goes!

ty for giving me the opportunity to ramble about my work i love my story and i love never shutting up <3

[horsetailcurlers2]

hi hello! sorry this is extremely random but you literally have the best analysis! a friend and i were talking about derek shepherd and the way his trauma affected him throughout his life. something along the lines of how his trauma compares to amelia. he tries to save everyone (falling in love with broken women) and how amelia destroys herself. and i was wondering if you had any thoughts about that? :)

hi! and omg thank you that’s very nice considering i feel like most of my analyses are just me word vomiting incoherently in an empty room and scratching at the walls lmao.

okay i will try to do my best here but i don’t know how much sense this will make or if i have anything new or interesting to say. i don’t really consider myself a derek expert (NOT that i consider myself an addison expert or anything but i do spend considerably more time thinking about her than i do about him). but YES you’re so right

something that i think is interesting is that we get a lot more direct focus on amelia’s trauma than we do derek’s. maybe that’s just the byproduct of her struggle with addiction or maybe it’s because private practice was often a lot more character focused than grey’s. i also think, at the risk of sounding uncharitable towards meredith (whom i adore with all my heart) that a lot of times on the show, his issues take a backseat to hers- although that may also just be a deliberate choice on his part or because its her fucking show lol. but  i find it interesting that he is vulnerable about her but rarely ever vulnerable with her.

i find the shepherd family dynamic endlessly fascinating and i especially think a lot about the idea of derek and amelia being the two out of the flock that were so directly impacted by their father's death. the math on grey’s is sloppy at best but it’s stated a few times that amelia was five years old. i think derek may have said he was eleven but that gets contradicted so i always just placed him between eleven and thirteen.

before i get into derek specifically i want to talk about amelia bc i love your point about the comparison/contrast of them in the wake of that shared trauma. i think that honestly the driving factor for her addiction wasn’t necessary the shooting itself, but the aftermath. amelia shepherd really pokes at my Little Sister Syndrome and i think her conversation with carolyn after the fake husband dinner was especially telling. amelia frequently describes her mom as “the best/great” (addison describes carolyn as a great mom too iirc) but after christopher’s death, carolyn was not as attentive to amelia as she was to her other children. that combined with amelia being the youngest with such a large age gap makes me think she had a pretty isolated childhood. there was a sort of disconnect from her siblings who were much older, her mother was changed by grief, and her father was gone. for a huge chunk of her adolescence, most of amelia’s family was already moved out of the house. not that i don't think the shooting itself or the trauma of losing her father had a big impact on her but i think a lot of her issues stem from feeling abandoned by the rest of her family. i think her addiction resurfaces when she feels most alone/abandoned. i think that a part of her is trying to avoid feeling the depth of her loneliness and a part of her is trying to be loud and take up space a) so that the people in her life will notice her b) like she couldn’t that day in the store with derek’s hand over her mouth. 

derek on the other hand, was old enough to be cognizant and understanding of what was happening that day in the store. he 100% felt a responsibility to protect his little sister and i also think he felt extremely powerless that he couldn’t save his father. obviously derek has a bit of a god complex but he also does have a savior complex. 

he protected amelia by keeping her quiet. i think that’s actually a big part of it (for both of them). also idk how to articulate this well and i’m no psychologist but derek only likes his women broken to a certain extent. i think he likes to be needed but he doesn't want them to be needy. he doesn't like when it’s not something he can fix with some immediacy (the powerlessness again) and his discomfort with being unable to fix it makes him lash out and withdraw. he liked saving meredith, until her trauma deeply affected how she behaved in the relationship. he liked (and this part is 80% assumption and conjecture from my addek brain) being able to soothe the wounds from addison’s childhood (her loneliness and feelings of inadequacy) until her “neediness” started to feel cloying and almost accusatory. 

so imo derek likes to save people, until they are too difficult to save. it's established that he is VERY black and white, which is why he thrives in brain surgery which has finite rules and steps he can follow in order to save people’s lives and bring relief to their families. he's good at surgery. its where he turns when he's feeling lost in his personal life. the guy clearly has some control issues. conversely, when things are going poorly at work (i.e jen harmon), he doubts EVERYTHING about himself and his choices bc the one thing he can always control is destabilized. 

i think that derek gets angry when he feels guilty which ties back to him lashing out and withdrawing when he can't fix something/someone. I think this is a huge component of his tension with amelia. he is extremely judgmental of her struggles with addiction, and he (like their other siblings) has trouble separating Adult Amelia from Teen Amelia. maybe a part of him has always felt like her addiction was his fault. like, if he had shielded her better, she would have less pain (which isn't true). so while on the surface, it seems like maybe he is just harsh on her because he is tired of her shit and still angry about the chaos she caused before she went to rehab the first time, a lot of it i think is actually resentment/anger because he feels guilty (and again, anger/moodiness is how derek reacts to guilt).

its an oversimplification, but i think what a lot of it boils down to is little preteen derek with his arms wrapped around his baby sister, holding his breath and needing to use both his hands to keep her still and quiet, and it has to do with her watching her father’s blood on the floor and being unable to scream. of course there's also the aftermath (amelia’s loneliness and how much grief she had to fit in such a small body, derek’s guilt, anger, and the horrible feeling that he's somehow now “the man of the house”)

idk this isn't well organized and certainly not as articulate as it could’ve been but god i do love thinking about the derek and amelia of it all. tysm for the ask. srry for the long-winded answer :)

[ddlcbrainrot]

I have thought about this topic extensively before and I've concluded that the normal contest relies heavily on whether its act 1, act 2, or the side stories.

I think most people agree Sayori and Yuri are not winning at all lol. Being the ones with the most explicit mental disorders across all timelines disqualifies them in most people's eyes, and I don't have much reason to go against it. Yuri probably wins most weird because of her interests, general demeanor, and the fact she gets to exist in act 2, but we shouldn't discount Sayori for getting second place she is not any more put together than Yuri is and still did that stuff in act 4.

I want to give them some credit though because both are still capable of being the voice of reason in certain situations, especially in the side stories with Yuri being the mature reliable one in a lot of scenes and Sayori being the only emotionally intelligent person in the room.

Honestly mc could win most normal for the main game simply because he's supposed to play the role of generic-white-bread-self-insert guy with average interests, normal backstory, and a total of 0 mental disorders. he just hangs out for fun. Other than Sayori saying he'd become a neet without the club he's just a normal guy you'd see in high school.

The problem comes in act 2 where he stops being a person because of Monika shenanigans. If we're going from a meta level, mc would also technically be the most weird due the circumstances of the game's creation since he's the only one without a character file and not considered a person. this is furthered by act 2 making him act more blank-slate-y to the point where he has no emotional reaction to a dead body. With that in mind idk if he could keep the most normal award if we consider act 2, especially when he has no side stories to back him up

Natsuki in base game is certified straight man (the trope) amidst all the meta horror when compared to the rest of the girls, which I think is kinda funny considering how in the side stories she is very much not that. like i'd argue she's the least normal there. Natsuki's interesting between the four as her lack of "explicit" mental health issues in the mental health issues game is balanced out by being the only character with a pretty important non-generic backstory. While there's different interpretations for her home life the one constant is that she has literally never had a healthy relationship in her life and has the club as her only safe space. These facts clearly affect her and her behavior, making it a big driving force in the side stories especially. All her self esteem and relationships issues lead to pretty not normal behavior and notably several breakdowns. like I'm pretty sure it's more than the rest of the club. With everyone else having grounded personal problems that anyone can have within side stories and act 1, Natsuki's whole life situation makes her stand out a lot more.

Yet somehow all that seems extremely tame by act 2. Even with Monika's making her dad go from normal bad to active threat on her life. Somehow she wins out by being the only person to notice all the weird stuff going on and also being the only person not on active suicide risk. By act 2, Yuri is insane, Monika is Monika, Sayori doesn't exist, and mc is halfway there. With Natsuki being canonically the least changed, she plays the pretty notable role as the voice of reason in a world that's clearly falling apart. She realizes when Yuri is acting strange, she calls out Monika for her own weirdness, she writes about all of this in a secret note even when Monika is desperately trying to get her to ignore it. She acts in defiance to Monika's attempts to dehumanize them. In contrast to mc's dehumanization or Yuri and Sayori succumbing to Monika's control, Natsuki's final moments has her retaining her independence and humanity (by puking on the floor (the expected response to a rotting corpse)). With all the stuff she goes through to avoid being messed up, she at least deserves something.

and then there was Monika.

do i even need to say it.

To summarize every Monika essay ever, she is a very normal person turned into the actual weirdest person ever due circumstances outside her control as well as the horrors. If a group of high schoolers has one person with powers over reality and knowledge of the great beyond I think that person would be the weirdest by default. The funny thing is that side stories Monika is actually the most normal out of all of them. While we can't get a look into her head and psychoanalyze her like base game Monika in act 3, she's notable for being a popular girl at school whos responsible, well put together, and no major issues compared to the rest of the club. She has her struggles, but they're like normal struggles the average teenager gifted kid has in like a high school movie. Compared to the other's struggles who could either get a trigger warning on a game website or an armchair diagnosis by the internet, Monika is easily the most normal.

That is until she gets epiphany beamed and destroys the polycule over it. I'm sorry but you kinda lose your normal card once you start trying to justify dehumanizing your friends with the code magic you were born with to the point of insanity for a guy you know parasocially. Like we all understand her circumstances and empathize with how she got there but that was still a weird decision on her part, existential crisis or not. We should also mention that unlike side story Monika, the epiphany very much did make her apathetic to her world and depressed to the point of actual suicidal ideation. Not that it changes the scales of most weird person ever but it that alone would have put her on the same as the rest of her awesome normal club. On a meta level she's also constantly singled out as the odd one out, having the only non-Japanese name, having different shoes and tights, not having a romance option, always having a front facing portrait, etc

(now that i think about it Monika still has her admin powers in the side stories she just doesn't know it. how does this affect the ranking)

OK somehow I never actually got too into their individual personalities but this is already kinda long and we already know they're all weird dorky anime tropes with big personalities so its not a big deal when the in game events are more interesting to debate with (my opinion is that by going off personality alone Yuri wins most weird and mc gets normal)

After all this it's kinda hard to judge who wins anything definitively since what defines weird and normal is subjective and dictated by ~society~, and when multiple timelines are at play you just kinda have to pick and chose what's more canon for your argument. Mc is close to most normal person ever, but his existence meta-wise as a whole is probably not????? A real world au maybe????????? Natsuki narrative-wise has her written as the token normal one in base game, but in the side stories the opposite is true. Monika is the the inverse narrative-wise, as base game has her written to be the odd one between the club as well as the antagonist due to the horrors, while the side stories makes her the definitive normal one. This isn't even getting to Sayori and Yuri, who are still very weird but are also vital voices of reason in the club. What I'm getting at is that none of the club members can be bound by a simple most or least weird without getting specific on what that means. After reading a whole tumblr essay only to have no definitive answer you may be wondering what the point in it all was, and to that I say what is the point in anything. Why are any of us still here if not to create meaning within the meaningless. also brainrot. its in the name.

tldr; mc is the most normal in act 1, natsuki wins act 2, monika wins in the side stories, but actually everyone in this club is simultaneously the most normal and the most insane person in the world. thank you for coming to my ted talk

i made the polls bc i couldnt figure out the "normal to weird" scale on my own and after reading your ask i think i know why it was difficult for me. bc i kept thinking of the characters as a whole, instead of dividing them into act 1, act 2, and the side stories like you. the difference between act 1 and act 2 are obvious, but act 1 is also basically the girls without their side stories character development (plus some minor differences in their personalities as a whole like that email says)

anyway, i agree with your conclusion