#is actually an issue that he needs to address

[pokemonshelterstories]

Hi! Long time viewer, first time question. My Houndour recently evolved, and while I was prepared for peoples stimgas. I'm actually looking for any advice in regards to the horns?

He's already gotten them stuck on a couple of blankets and stabbed a hole in the couch when he was rolling around. I know some people put pool noodles on their Gogoats but would that work for him or is it just a matter of getting used to them?

he's just going to need some time to adjust! this is normal with pokemon that grow extra bits and bobs as they evolve. his horns will also start to curve down towards his back as he gets older, which will help reduce how often he gets caught on things. try to avoid giving him any blankets or beds that have loose-knit fabric, as those are easier to get caught on. as with getting any other pokemon that has horns, you're also just going to have to be okay with having holes here and there! if you don't want something to get poked, you'll need to keep your houndoom away from it. even when he does get more used to his horns, horn raking is a natural territory-marking behavior in houndoom. providing him with appropriate areas to rake will help reduce incidents of inappropriate marking, but ultimately it's just part of having a houndoom.

as for the pool noodles, i don't recommend them in any pokemon for several reasons. the first is that they just don't stay on for very long. they're not particularly durable, and the pokemon can usually tell there's something on their horns, so they'll go rubbing their heads on things to get rid of it (which actually just encourages horn usage). in a houndoom's case, once the noodle is off it could either set fire to it or chew it up and ingest pieces. having the noodles on can be uncomfortable and annoying. in the case of gogoat, their horns are actually very sensitive, and having something stuck on them can cause them to get overstimulated and aggressive! covering the horns also doesn't address the root cause of horn-based behavioral issues, which is often a lack of proper training. pool noodles don't actually fix problems and can actually create new ones, so the only time i find them appropriate to use is in high-stress situations with full supervision, such as a vet visit.

good luck with your houndoom! they can be lovely pokemon, but they're definitely a handful and take some getting used to.

[draconym]

I mostly follow you on you point of view about helping people that needs help.

But at some point, you don't owe them more than the minimum, if they actively disrespect you.

Driving your mean ex to the ER was the best decision. Staying with him the next 3 days, I'm not sure.

If you keep going the extra mile for people who won't for you...

You waste a lot of time and energy for something that will make you ultimately feel sad and disappointed because they won't miraculously guess what you expect from them, and might not be willing to give it to you. Some probably don't even expect you to do so much, and will feel burdened rather than grateful. (It sucks, I know, I've been there, but sometimes people don't appreciate help and you have to learn to care less about them, that's also part of respecting their boundaries)

But ultimately, for the first issue you addressed, you need to learn to ask for help and be explicit. It's also unreasonable to expect people to guess what you want if you don't state it explicitly. I know it's hard because you might be met with refusal, and it hurts. And that's quite scary. But you've been there before, and survived. And remember, this is the worst thing that happened. Besides, the fear of being hurt is usually way worse than the actual hurt. The most likely result will be acceptance. It's easier to start with small stuff. That way, the day you really need help, you'll know who's reliable and for what

Point well taken, which is why I'm trying to work on asking for help. In my experience, being rejected by someone you love when you already need help is genuinely pretty terrible, and it's happened to me more times than I can recall. But, as you pointed out, asking for help before it's an emergency is kind of a key step, even when it's hard.

As for my ex, the doctors told me he was dying, and seeing as how we had been together for several years and he had only left me a few days prior to being hospitalized, I was still very much in love with him and wouldn't have wanted him to die alone. He lived, though! So there's some mildly fucked up Draconym lore for you.

[aureatescars]

He lets out a pained grunt as Leon hoists him up, his back and legs protesting against the sudden movement, strength completely drained from every part of him. Even his mind feels hazy, still racing with images he isn't entirely sure were conjured up by his own thoughts. He's fighting nausea when he is lowered to the bed, his own face just as pale as Leon's. For a moment, he even fights against Leon pulling away from him, the need to keep as much of his skin against his own outweighing any rational thought. It's fortunate that Leon keeps a hold of his hand after they manage to prop Sasha up on the bed, otherwise he isn't sure what he'd done to rectify it.

His chest heaves with a panic that feels not entirely his own, shallow bursts of air escape him as he tries to calm himself down. He clutches Leon's hand tightly as he grits his teeth through waves of self inflicted pain. It was foolish to drag himself here, he should have known better. But God, if there isn't also a small part of him that's ecstatic about having done so. If only because he proved to himself that he somehow still could. A breathless, pained exhale somewhere between a hysterical laugh and a disbelieving gasp makes it past his lips. He really did it, but shit, does it hurt now.

"I just need— a moment." Another pained rasp and then Sasha can finally feel the muscles in his back unwind, his legs tremble from exertion, but for once he can actually feel them, although he struggles to move them even so much as an inch now. The whole situation is utterly confusing, even unsettling, and it's only made worse by the fact he can't concentrate on anything other than pain for a long moment.

The only thing soothing the throbbing pain is Leon's hand in his own, his eyes finding his, gaze full of concern. Sasha's grip turns to something softer when the worst of the dull ache slowly begins to fade and he feels in control of his own body again. He realizes with mounting concern that Leon is trembling, too, worse than he is even. Sasha searches his face, then notices the goosebumps painting his skin. It is chilly in here, but the fact that Leon is also damningly pale speaks volumes about the true cause of the state he is in.

"I'm going to be fine, Leon." He whispers, addressing his friend's worry first. But he can see the furrow of disbelief between Leon's brows more clearly now, as well as the doubt in his blue eyes. Sasha gently tugs at Leon to hold their joined hands up to his chest, surprised when Leon's hand immediately turns in his grasp to lay flat against his sternum. Sasha's hand remains resting atop of it for a moment, but he can still feel the cold of Leon's fingers beneath his own, swears he can feel it bleed through the fabric covering his chest.

"How about you?" He asks then, voice still a bit strained, but oh so gentle as he props himself up a bit more to really look at Leon. The half shadows cast across his face paired with his bangs falling into it, too make it hard to gauge his expression fully.

Sasha reaches up with his free hand without thinking, brushing the soft strands of hair away to reveal more of Leon's face. "You're cold." He says, his words barely above a whisper as his fingertips brush against Leon's forehead. His hand moves along the side of his face then, cupping his cheek. Sasha's lips part to ask Leon to lay down, or to assure him again that Sasha would be fine, he doesn't need to worry. He looks up from where his eyes followed the motion of his hand, and finds Leon's gaze wavering when their eyes meet. It's then that Sasha really sees the repercussions of whatever dream had Leon in such distress, and frankly, the stunt Sasha pulled and waking him up so harshly must have only added to the shock, despite his best intentions. He hides it well, but Sasha can basically see Leon's pulse jump erratically as his body works to calm itself down, can just about feel the echo of his distress in the back of his own mind.

... However, that's an issue to be addressed when neither of them is on the brink of a panic attack.

"It's okay." He whispers when Leon's fingers curl into his shirt. Sasha feels the tremble more clearly as he holds Leon's hand in his own. He watches as Leon tips his head forward, his bangs falling back into his face and Sasha doesn't fight them back this time, no matter how much he feels he wants to. Instead, he withdraws his hand from Leon's face to shift it down to his shoulder, finding the skin there equally chilled. It's an easy decision then, to let go of Leon's hand and struggle himself back into a sitting position, pain be damned, so he can move his arms around Leon instead.

"I'm here."

Leon's touch on his arm has Sasha's gaze stray there to watch as his fingers curl gently around his wrist. Without thinking, he turns his hand over as Leon pulls away, causing their palms and fingertips to align for the briefest of moments. He thinks he feels Leon linger there, feels his own fingers curl to prolong the contact, but at this point, he doesn't trust his own senses anymore and whether or not his imagination is running away from him. He isn't sure why he would imagine such a thing in the first place, but then again, there isn't much that he is sure of anymore.

"I'll believe it when I see it." He teases, his eyes a little brighter when he looks back up. "But yes, it's time you get to enjoy that vacation of yours." Sasha sees Leon is smiling, too, although it doesn't quite reach his eyes right now. His expression shutters and Sasha parts his lips to say something, to go back and ask him to stay after all, but Leon steps away from the bed and towards the door before he can, and somehow it doesn't feel right to stop him now.

They've been together the entire day with little space for themselves, and while Sasha doesn't mind it at all, he keeps having to remind himself that Leon is different, or so it seems at least. He doesn't even fully turn back around to bid Sasha good night before he slips into the hallway. Just one last glance and a few words that settle heavy in his mind and then he's gone. Sasha just manages to nod at the offer, and soon after the door shuts behind Leon with an unsettling sense of finality and without Sasha having said another word.

Sasha looks at the closed door for a good while before he settles deeper into the sheets. He looks up at the ceiling and it takes him some time to shake the feeling that he has done something wrong, or that he has somehow missed something important. A hand comes up to scratch absentmindedly at the scar beneath his sternum and his mind wanders back to the moment in the bathroom, with Leon on his knees infront of him, lips parted and eyes so blue he felt like he could drown in them—

Sasha pulls himself away from that thought, throwing an arm over his eyes in embarrassment when his mind starts going places it absolutely shouldn't. He's altogether too worn out to make sense of the fact that what he's feeling is unnervingly close to attraction, but he doesn't have the strength to pretend that it isn't there either. It's too much. He can't can't handle yet another revelation about himself, can't handle adjusting to that as well on top of everything else. So, he does his best to ignore the flutter in his chest and the prickle of what can only be called arousal shivering down his spine.

It's not like it would go anywhere anyway. Confusion aside, even if anyone were interested in him, he doesn't even know if he could still— The hand resting against his scar twitches, then slowly moves down his abdomen, fingers brushing over the fabric of his shirt before they catch on the hemline of his boxers. Sasha tenses and draws his hand away again, immediately turning onto his side, hands now tucking beneath his pillow. He scowls at the light on the nightstand when he finally manages to settle comfortably again, his legs heavy and numb, shame coloring his cheeks, eyes stinging with regret.

He reaches for the lamp to turn it off and scrunches his eyes shut, determined to go to sleep and not spend another moment thinking. Unsurprisingly, sleep doesn't find him easily, no matter how weary he is. He tosses and turns best he can for a while, before he eventually slips under and is embraced by a mercifully dreamless sleep. Although, it might just be that he wasn't asleep long enough to dream.

He startles awake a few hours later, disoriented and tense. He can't pinpoint what it was that woke him up, but his heart is pounding, his breathing comes in short bursts. A sense of foreboding overcomes him, worry settles deep inside him, protectiveness he can't explain flares within.

Leon.

Leon needs him.

Sasha doesn't know how he knows this, nor has he time to consider that there is nothing he can do to help if there really was something wrong. He pulls himself up before he can think about it. The sense of urgency within him causing him to completely disregard the fact his back immediately begins to throb with pain. In fact, he only realizes what he's doing when he has already taken a few unsteady steps, legs trembling and weak the moment his feet hit the ground. He can't even see much in the dark, can barely make out the edges of the furniture around him by the sliver of moonlight falling in from the window.

Sasha stumbles and blindly reaches for something to keep him upright. He just happens to grasp tightly onto wooden footboard of the bed, fingers digging into the grained surface. His body fights to keep himself upright. His ears start ringing and his brows furrow against the pain as he grits his teeth. It's almost familiar, the sharp noise in his ears, the sharp trill of power in the back of his mind. The room brightens up before his eyes, although the edges of his vision seem tinted red. It's almost as if—

The sense of distress sharpens and Sasha can pinpoint it's origins like a bloodhound catching a scent. His muscles tense as he breathes through the sharp pain that spreads into every inch of his body as he forces himself to walk from the bed to the nearest wall, keeping himself on his feet by sheer stubbornness as his legs threaten to give out. He can't feel anything beyond the overwhelming ache of his muscles as he drags himself to the door. He grasps the doorhandle, uncoordinated, unable to make sense of the fact that he is walking. He snarls in frustration at his body's weakness, but his only priority is getting to Leon, even if he has to crawl there.

Leon's door is across the hall, close enough Sasha barely has to take four steps to open it. The door swings open with a push of his hand against it after pressing the handle and it's then that Sasha's strength threatens to leave him. He holds himself up by the doorframe, fingers holding on to the wood tightly enough it makes his knuckles go white. Cold sweat clings to his forehead, runs down his back. The room is dark, but even so he can hear the strained noises from Leon's sleeping form, can barely make him out in the dark. He's having a nightmare.

"Leon? Leon!"

The other's name is barely more than a breathless rasp at first, his voice strained from exertion and rough from sleep, but growing stronger with the next attempt. He sees— he feels Leon startle. But only when light suddenly floods the room and he's met with bright blue does the ringing in Sasha's ears fade. His eyes must be playing tricks on him, though, or maybe the lighting is what causes it, but he could swear that Leon's eyes flickered red for a moment as Sasha's gaze meets his.

But before long, the edges of his vision ease back from a red haze to normal, the bedside table lamp hurting his eyes for a moment ere they adjust. He swallows thickly. He's still half asleep, he's just seeing things that aren't there. "You—" He breathes heavily as he takes in Leon's wideyed expression. "I thought—" More harsh gasps. Sasha scrunches up his face. "It felt— It felt like you needed me."

But now the foolishness of his endeavor overcomes him, his legs finally decide to give out on him for good, and Sasha feels himself slip down the doorframe he's still clinging to with both hands to keep himself upright, muscles tense and aching. "Shit..."

[captainjonnitkessler]

literally. as a poc this is why so much leftism feels so alienating. there is this clear effort to remove race from the conversation in a way that is not at all reflective of peoples' priorities in reality. there is a large number of white people in the us who will vote against their personal, economical, and social interests, just because they don't want black people to also benefit. i have never seen white leftists provide effective responses to that point, they just handwave it away and pretend everyone is a secret socialist brainwashed by propaganda. and tbh, i'd argue it's mostly because talking about race requires them to confront their own potential biases, their capacity for harm as white people, and they would rather imagine a country we have never lived in than contend with the reality that they are not inherently Good And Superior.

(not to say poc don't do this or poc are immune to being racist or right wing, we saw in november that's clearly not the case, this is just an observation and frustration i have with so much leftist rhetoric)

Yeah I don't blame you. "It's time for a labor party that actually cares about workers instead of all this culture war bullshit!" is a common refrain on union subreddits and it's like, okay - so does this labor party address the plight of black workers, or trans workers, or female workers, or immigrant workers? Because what you're calling "culture war bullshit" is actually real people's lives and rights and the only people turning it into a war is Republicans.

The idea that The People are some homogenous group that are going to rise up and demand justice is a nonsense fiction. Republicans have been offered the choice again and again and again between "workers rights" and "being racist and transphobic" and guess what: it's not even a hard choice for 90% of them. If your political ideology isn't accounting for that then it's absolutely useless.

It also accounts for the other thing I think should net you an electric shock for typing, which is "Bernie would have won" or "dems just need to run on this wildly popular issue and they would win, are they stupid?"

Bernie polled well against Trump when he was a relative unknown who wasn't seriously considered a contender. If he'd won the primary, Fox News would have started 24/7 coverage about how communist Bernie was going to take your tax dollars and use it to give sex changes to illegal immigrants and all those Republicans who "totally would have voted for Bernie" would have fallen right into line. I'm not saying he couldn't have won - but he wasn't gonna do it by swaying Republicans like people like to pretend.

The same will hold true for any broadly popular issue - as soon as Democrats start championing it, Republicans will start opposing it. For example: the ACA starting as a Republican plan and ending as "Obama's death panels". By and large people do not choose a politician based on their views, they chose their views based on their politician.

So yeah. I think the Democrat party has repeatedly made a huge mistake in trying to move right to court Republicans who would never vote for them, but I think a lot of leftists are laboring under the same delusion that Republicans can be appealed to if only we find the right way of framing things. They can't. They value racism and transphobia over everything else.

[lyngracetalksnwritesnstuff]

Jiang Family Analysis

Ok, so, I've wanted to make this post for a while because I've always had some distinct opinions about the Jiang Family, though not all of them are bad, per se.

Just a few disclaimers before I get started:

THE FOLLOWING IS MY PERSONAL OPINION AND MY OPINION ONLY. I HAVE (WHAT I THINK IS) SOUND REASONING FOR IT, BUT IF YOU DON'T LIKE IT OR AGREE WITH IT, YOU DO NOT HAVE TO READ THIS. I AM NOT TRYING TO PRESSURE MY VIEWS OF THESE CHARACTERS ON OTHERS. THIS IS SIMPLY HOW I SEE THEM. THIS IS ALSO NOT VERY JIANG PARENT FRIENDLY, SO BE WARNED. IF I AM FACTUALLY INCORRECT, YOU ARE WELCOME TO CORRECT ME IN THE COMMENTS.

Ok, here we go!

Jiang Fengmian:

I honestly have no respect for this man. Like, zero. I am glad he took in Wei Ying and gave him a home, but in doing so, he also destroyed his own home. Obviously, Madam Yu's abuse is not his fault; he didn't force her to abuse Wei Ying, but on that subject, he completely lacks backbone here, as well as pretty much everywhere we see him. The first and main reason I don't like him is the fact that Jiang Cheng's hurt and confusion on why Jiang Fengmian chooses Wei Ying over him is obvious. It's so incredibly clear. Madam Yu straight up tells him he's favoring Wei Ying over Jiang Cheng, and he does nothing to fix it. Over and over again, he's faced with problems he could so easily solve if he were to speak clearly and truthfully for one—because we know that he does love Jiang Cheng—and he chooses not to. Another example of this is the rumours that Wei Ying is Jiang Fengmian's son. I can't quite remember if it is stated directly in the novel, but we do know it was a prevalent rumour that would've certainly made it to Jiang Fengmian's ears. I am certain he knew Madam Yu may have thought Wei Ying was his son, or at least knew many people did, and yet again, he does nothing to address this issue. Another issue we see him use the "if I don't say anything, it can't get worse" approach, is with Wei Ying's abuse. He knew Madan Yu regularly abused Wei Ying, which, yes, while sort of period-appropriate, the level of abuse he received was not the norm, and the time it occurred at never excuses child abuse. Yes, Madam Yu usually did it when Jiang Fengmian wasn't home, but he was well aware of it. He could've put his foot down at any point—he was the godamn sect leader—but he chose not to. While I don't know if this was a sick way to attempt to appease Madam Yu, or just pure cowardice, I do know that no man with enough conviction to bring in an orphan, but without the backbone needed to protect them from abuse, should ever raise a child. We also see this failure to address issues with the general deterioration of his family and how he never seems fully present with them.

My take on this is that it's a sort of defense mechanism he developed from when he was first married to Yu Ziyuan, which was arranged, and I assume neither of them was happy with. Her verbal abuse (educated guess, we don't actually know anything about the state of their marriage pre-Wei Ying, but with Madam Yu's anger issues during the timeline, I kinda doubt they would've been a recent development, especially since anger seems to be how she expresses unhappiness) would've made it hard for him to stand up for himself, and he chose the route of "well, if I don't say anything, it can't possibly get worse" as a way of defending himself and helping himself cope with the unhappy situation. I feel like most of his issues are rooted in a fear of being wrong. Think about it, if he doesn't take a side, he can't get yelled at for choosing the wrong one, and if he never addresses a problem, it can't get worse—at least, so he thinks. Inaction is still abuse and neglect, intentional or not.

Madam Yu:

Again, I have very little respect for her. I enjoy her character base—a strong warrior woman forced into an arranged marriage with a complete pushover, and going mad falling for rumours and whispers about him being unfaithful, but as a person, she disgusts me. First and foremost, her behavior towards Wei Ying. This is the main issue I have with her, though I have bones to pick with her about her treatment of her bio children. Being angry at your husband because people are saying he cheated and then had a child, which he proceeded to bring back to your home to raise, is one thing; that's mostly valid. But taking that anger out on said child and systematically abusing them is completely and totally inexcusable and an abhorrent thing to do. Wei Ying did nothing wrong, a fact that he never seems to grasp, even near the end of the story, where he starts to heal and grow as a person. Madam Yu did such irreparable damage to him that he automatically assumed everything was his fault, even and especially when it was not. And all of that was for no reason other than petty bitterness, anger at his skills, and disdain for his mother. I also believe her behavior towards Jiang Cheng is mostly to blame for his later issues in life. She was the only parental figure who showed him even a shred of attention and investment in his progress, so as any child would do, he tried to model himself after her. This also does kinda loop back around to Jiang Fengmian, as if he'd showed even a little bit more affecttion towards Jiang Cheng, he might've turned out with healthier ways of expressing emotion. Madam Yu showed him that the only way he'd ever be important or worthy to anyone was if he was better than Wei Ying, better than someone—anyone else. This obviously left him with deep-seated self-worth issues and unhealthy ways of coping with grief, guilt, and uselessness. Lastly, her treatment of Jiang Yanli. This isn't something I've seen talked about a lot, but it's definitely there. I feel like Jiang Yanli is Madam Yu's Child She Doen't Pay Attention To like Jiang Cheng is Jiang Fengmian's. But instead of being bitter about it, Jiang Yanli focuses on being a positive parental figure to Jiang Cheng and Wei Wuxian and keeping their broken family together.

I really think Madam Yu's incessant anger is a product of feeling trapped in her environment, with a husband and children she never wanted, in a place she never learned to call home. This obviously doesn't excuse her abuse towards literally everyone in that household. It also doesn't excuse how she constantly would drive a wedge between Wei Ying and Jiang Cheng, isolating Jiang Cheng from his peers and driving home the thinking that if he was better than them, he shouldn't associate with them, and if they were better than him, they were rivals.

In summary, for both Madam Yu and Jiang Fengmian, I truly believe that had they been in a happy relationship, or not been in a relationship at all, their children's lives would've been so much better. You can blame Wei Ying and Jiang Cheng, and Jiang Yanli, all you want, but at the end of the day, it was their parents who taught them how to act, and they were terrible role models. This obviously doesn't excuse any bad decisions they made, but it does explain them.

Wei Ying:

Wei Wuxian is a tragedy. Abandoned as a young child (though not willingly) and taken into an abusive home where he was taught that he could never leave because of the debt he owed them and that everything bad that happened was his fault. Then, as an adult, he was shamed for doing whatever he could to survive and protect his loved ones, even by his own family. He tried everything he could to save everyone and be the good guy because that was his job, in his mind. He had to save everyone and be righteous, but he also wants to, which is what makes him such a fundamentally good person. Then, when he does an objectively good thing and saves innocent people—which is what he's been taught to do his whole life, by the whole cultivation world—he's condemned for it, society telling him, "No, not those innocent people. You can only save the innocents we tell you to; otherwise, you're a villain." He tries everything to be good, to take care of those he cares about, does everything he's told, and fails.

Because he was doing the very thing cultivators prided themselves on, he was pushed off the edge. Even after he comes back and his name is cleared, it's never quite the same, because everyone still associates him with the "Evil" Yilling Laozu who haunted their cautionary tales. Because the cultivation world deemed him unclean and evil, Wei Ying—barely an adult at the time—was pushed to death because he tried to save innocents who deserved to live.

The saddest thing of all is that he never defends himself. He'd defend the Wen Remnants and keep the Yin Tiger Tally out of the hands that would abuse it, but he never once tried to defend his own actions regarding demonic cultivation and why he uses it. He lets people assume the worst of him because he thinks he deserves it.

Jiang Cheng:

Okay, here's a complicated one! I'd like to start this with a message to all the Jiang Cheng haters and stans who claim that Jiang Cheng is purely good/bad and that the other is selectively reading the text: Congratulations, you're both reading the text selectively. Jiang Cheng is a complex characters who makes bad decisions and good decisions and has reasons for most of his actions, just like any well-developed character.

Jiang Cheng is perhaps the most tragic of all the characters. He was happy until Wei Ying came into the picture, and he had to adjust to another sibling in the house. Then his mother started to push him to be better than Wei Ying when he really doesn't want to, but he has to want it, because he can't afford to lose the love his mother gives him when his father ignores his existence exept for an occasional dissapointed glance. He has to show him as well, then he'll love both of them the same. His mother starts to double down on both Wei Ying and him, alienating them further, leaving Jiang Cheng isolated from most of his peers. He only had Wei Ying and Jiang Yanli, and maybe Nie Huaisang. That, along with the poor emotional processing he copied from his mother, causes him to drift further away from others his age and become more attached to Wei Ying, as he's his only friend at this point. He never learned how to properly socialize as a child, and doesn't see the point now, because Wei Ying promised to never leave. Another tragic part of Jiang Cheng is that I don't think he realized how he was trying to chain Wei Ying to him and Lotus Pier. I truly think that he was just desperate and lonely and didn't think about how their promise would affect Wei Ying's life.

When Wei Ying leaves with the Wen Remnants, Jiang Cheng was angry, confused, and terrified of losing Wei Ying, so much so that he was ready to take him back by force. I think that if circumstances had allowed it, he would've taken the Wen Remnants to Yunmeng just to get Wei Ying back because he's his only friend, the only one he has left after Yanli marries out.

I think a lot of Jiang Cheng's character is created from his crippling fear of being alone because he's never had to be before and it terrifies him. Madam Yu, as I explained earlier, was not a good emotional role model and only taught him to mask all of his other emotions and express everything through anger, which makes him come across as rude and asshole-y to others. Often, I see "Jiang Cheng character development" portrayed as Wei Ying learning to read into his anger, but that is NOT character development. Character development is having that man learn to express emotions other than rage and hate. Let him learn to show sadness, happiness, love, fear, all the things! Wei Ying shouldn't have to learn how to read his shouting, and Jiang Cheng should learn how to Emotion properly. This obviously wouldn't be an easy process, but it is something he could do if he pushed himself to, with the help of his family and friends.

Jiang Yanli:

Okay, so first of all, Jiang Yanli is our queen here, okay? I've seen people portray her as more on Wei Ying's side, or more on Jiang Cheng's side, or absent like Jiang Fengmian, and (in my opinion) that is Incorrect. Jiang Yanli is the glue that holds her family together. There is a reason they stayed together for so long, and it was Yanli. I see her as the eldest daughter who sees all the cracks in her family and tries desperately to fix them and put the pieces back together. Siblings suffering from a lack of a positive parental figure? Okay, she'll be the parental figure. An arranged marriage that will help her sect and make her mother happy with her (for once)? Alright, sure. A nephew or niece will surely bring her brothers together. She is also such a tragedy because she never once complains about having to do so much work to keep her family together. She just smiles and makes more soup and tries her best to mediate her brothers' latest argument. She's constantly fixing, mending, mediating, giving advice, and making her brothers smile, and it never shows. She had to give up her childhood to parent her brothers, and she never even mentions it. She gives her brothers both unconditional love and support and hopes it's enough. She may not understand everything they do, but she loves them and will never let them forget it. She tried so hard to keep her family together, and it wasn't enough. It might've been, if she had survived, but even then, Jiang Cheng and Wei Ying were already pretty at odds. Honestly, the most impressive thing about her is how she managed to be the perfect, loving, caring shijie to Jiang Cheng and Wei Ying without much parental guidance herself. Madam Yu was never happy with her and ignored her most of the time, and I assume Jiang Fengmian was her main parent until Wei Ying came into their lives and he diverted all his attention to him, which she never held against Wei Ying. She is one of the kindest, gentlest characters in mdzs, yet also one of the strongest.

So, that's my take on the Jiang Family! Remember this is just my opinion and take on these characters, and some of this is pure inference and educated guess, as we don't have a lot of canon evidence for what Jiang Fengmian and Yu Ziyuan's marriage pre-Wei Ying, and we also don't have a lot of info on the Jiang Family from pre Wei Ying and from when they were children, so I tried my best to fill in the gaps.

Hope you liked this! It's like 2 am where I am rn and I'm exhausted, so sorry if this doesn't make sense lol! I promise I'm still working on Chapter Four of my Yilling Wei Sect AU, I just took a break to write this cause I needed to get it out of my brain. I may do the other main sect families later this week too!

[ferryfoam]

Would you guys burn me at the stake if I say that I think Chrysalis is actually a really important insight into Julian's character and his view on his own life and the people around him at the time it takes place. It's an episode that doesn't hold up today cause of the very ableist writing and kind of shitty moral but I think it's necessary that it's there and also occurs at the time it does in the show

I'll have a more insightful analysis on it one day cause I really want to talk about it (I want to make better researched ds9 analyses with actual clips from the show and whatnot instead of just vaguely referencing events from memory that could be completely wrong but unfortunately I do not have the time to be doing all of that. I would really like to in the future though)

[ketchup-chup]

What if I made a post about how Reborn is actually super observant and a really great communicator? What if I made a post about how Reborn's closed off nature and attitude is a deliberate choice on his part and not because he's emotionally stunted or unable to communicate his feelings? What if I said he's incredible at reading people, and providing guidance to his students and to the others outside of his "spartan training" or being a strict tutor? What if I said he's very capable of being a comforting and kind person (look at how he treats Yuni at anytime or the girls, especially during the future arc), and if he doesn't act this way it's for a reason (either because he doesn't want to comfort them (lambo) or it wouldn't be beneficial to their growth to coddle them (Tsuna)) What if I made a post about how Reborn isn't as simpleminded or one note as people write him?

[makorragal-312]

I'm glad that Eddie and Chris are finally taking the first step to reconnect.

But I just hope they can finally address the ele-Kim in the room. Y'know, since that was the catalyst of their whole separation in the first place.

[xxplastic-cubexx]

Charles representation enjoyed here again! I’ve not read much of the comics bc I can’t afford them but I just rewatched FC and I was wondering if Charles being paralyzed is the same in the comics (Erik doing it)? Do they often include that part of his story?

hello my inquisitive friend :] !!!! im more than happy to give some more info bout the origins charles' disability in the comics- to the best of my abilities that is !

while they don't include an origin for his paralysis in EVERY story/run, as far as i know there are three major ways charles loses his mobility (though like yourself, i havent read many of the comics so far, so i could be missing a few. this is the part where i invite readers to submit additional info if im leaving any out)

the very first manner of charles losing his legs was relayed to us in the original X-Men run of the 60's in issue #20

(X-Men #20: "I, Lucifer!")

before magneto was regarded as charles' main adversary there was the extraterrestrial lucifer (who sported the same color scheme, ironically. it wasnt as though lucifer came before magneto so it was definitely A Choice..) who charles would have a semi-reoccurring feud with for a bit early on in the series. during their first encounter, charles would corner lucifer in his lair only to have a stone slab dropped on him, disabling his legs indefinitely

the second manner in which charles loses his mobility- and the time where erik is the most involved and is most deliberate- comes from. Our Favorite Universe in 2001: The Ultimate Universe

(Ultimate X-Men #1: "The Tomorrow People")

as is typically how charles x magneto team-up arcs go, while charles and erik worked together for some time it wasn't very long before erik wanted to pursue more Dramatic Measures for mutantkind. and As This Story Goes, amidst trying to escape the savage lands sanctuary he and erik built, erik drove a metal spike through charles' spine, leading to his disability in this verse

lastly, we have the House of M- or more specifically its prequel miniseries, Civil War: House of M- verse in 2008:

(Civil War: House of M #2: "Revolution")

(Civil War: House of M #3: "Reign")

similar to Ultimate and the movies, this is another timeline where charles and erik team up. this time however, charles is more willing to follow erik's ideas after seeing the horrors of genosha upon reading the mind of a mutant who escaped the island, and the two seek to liberate the other mutants left behind. unfortunately, during their mission, a sentinel collapses the building charles and co. are infiltrating, leading to the loss of his legs

hope you had fun reading- i had fun typing up everything and looking back at these issues :] !

[cluescorner]

I cannot imagine being a Damian stan right now. You've got both Zdarsky's bullshit (where he clearly doesn't give a shit about your boy) and The Boy Wonder (where Juni Ba clearly gives so many shits about your boy) coming out on the same day. The whiplash must be insane. I hope y'all get some nice warm soup for your efforts jfc

[codenamesazanka]

Shigaraki/Tenko wanting to destroy the false sense of peace All Might and Heroes created

.⬇️.

Shigaraki/Tenko wanting to destroy everything that lead to the existence of that house, which he conceptualizes as the embodiment of rejection and injustice in the world. Be a Hero for the Villains.

.⬇️.

AFO basically literally created that house

.⬇️.

Shigaraki/Tenko helps defeat AFO

.⬇️.

Deku telling him 'you already destroyed it' is... apparently Shigaraki/Tenko having finally gotten rid of the true cause of (his) rejection and injustice? main antagonist's big problem that represents an overarching major issue of the story/in-universe society... solved? (main antagonist's big problem that represents an overarching major issue of the story/in-universe society not actually being the problem he thought it was but now also solved?)

.⬇️.

No longer a need for there to be a Hero for the Villains, Shigaraki/Tenko dies.

.⬇️.

Heroes not to be blamed in the first place. also fuck everyone else and all other 'actual' outcasts I guess.

[ardri-na-bpiteog]

It's so funny when people say things like "yeah well tenants don't have to deal with fixing maintenance issues themselves, being a homeowner is tough because you have to arrange for maintenance people to come and pay for it yourself"

Like where are these mythical landlords that promptly and efficiently address maintenance issues lmao. Yeah you have to coordinate it all and "pay for it yourself" as a homeowner, but I'd rather that and know I'm getting it taken care of than have to go back and forth with a landlord to get them to fix literally anything. Also, as a renter you ARE paying for it, with the rent. You think landlords are allowing themselves to lose money on maintenance issues lol?

It's like these people think you just call up your landlord and say something is broken and they go "ok I'll send someone over right away!" And the problem is fixed.

[dennisboobs]

plain and simple i am not going to be able to remain in this fandom long-term if i have to keep putting disclaimers on every single one of my posts that say i don't condone dennis' bad, bad actions and that i am in fact aware he's got a history of sexual assault and dubious/nonconsent. the entire gang has done heinous shit. why is dennis the only one who needs to be treated like this? if some rando wants to post about how dennis is pookie pie that doesn't automatically mean they're blind to his crimes. every single member of the gang is a piece of shit. that's kind of the point.

draw dennis with cat ears who give a shit

[tkbrokkoli]

nnnnggghh are these ppl fuckling stupid wtffffff

[yourqueenb]

Ok I know we’re focusing on Mal rn, and I’m happy about that. But this right here would’ve been a great moment to give MC a chance to speak on how holding the team together affects her since he just commented on how hard it is. Like now you have a bit of an idea of how she feels, but you still don’t know the half of it because she had to come back, pick up the pieces, and rally everyone together again AFTER being kidnapped and held captive.

And I get that MC being gone was hard for Mal, especially since he’s my LI. But he still ultimately got to move on and pursue something he’s always wanted to do. Meanwhile MC went from saving her brother to saving the world to saving herself to being thrust right back into saving the world and her friends again!

[scientologyblows]

after watching ryans apology, all i can say is i really wish ryan had a exit strategy. i wish he would’ve actually started streaming or something so he doesn’t feel like he has to leave the internet or anything and leave his online presence. i think if anyone could get better in this situation, its him, but he would need guidance outside of matt to do so.