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#it had to be the gays and it had to be the most layered characters to every layer
hearteyedfeelings · 1 month
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That CON VER SA TION WOWEEEE. So so needed and for so so long. Just gonna type my inital thoughts cause I want to and why not.
Laudna. Dear Laudna, oh you poor loveable naive dummy. (Said with so much love). She grew up alone. Yes she had her parents and maybe the odd friend here or there but she grew up alone. And then she died in the most horrific way, alone. She woke up alone. She then spent 30 years of her life alone- but this time even more so with her own killer in her head feeding her.
And then she met Imogen, beautiful capable Imogen. A light in her lonely life, the first real light. Now she’s seen Imogen grow in power, in confidence. And she feels like her loneliness, her insecurity, her own head is bringing the love of her life down. She thinks she’s keeping her from flying but she doesn’t realize she’s keeping her from flying too high.
Imogen has been on step away from falling in with Predathos since she first felt the pull. The only thing, just like the words out of Imogen’s lips, the only thing that’s keeping her grounded is Laudna. Imogen’s heart is out walking around as a dead but not so dead woman with a rat bird as a familiar. Without her she’s, well we saw, she’s desperate. Willing to bargain with the her love’s killer to get her back. She’s sleeping with her dead body and ready to fight the Lord and Lady of Whitestone, the city of Whitestone. She tore down a city block, she exhalted, she crawled into hell after her. Laudna is Imogen’s tether, her red thread wrapped around her wrist, without her there isn’t.
Without Imogen- Laudna doesn’t have her light, her anchor keeping her from falling back into the dark.
Without Laudna Imogen flies too high never to be seen again.
They’re co-dependent. They’re ready to destroy the world to get the other back. They never want to leave one another. They want to protect each other above all else- the gods, Predathos, Exandria be damned.
They’re also scared.
Laudna is scared she’s holding Imogen down.
Imogen is scared Laudna will leave her and fall away.
They’re ride or die in the worst and best ways. I’m so curious to see how their story goes. I’d like to believe they have a happy ending though. Maybe. Probably not, but hey it’s good to have some hope and crazier things have happened eh? It’s D&D after all.
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mishkakagehishka · 2 months
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I just . Repeating "characters are tools" you end up erasing so much about arashi's character and motivations and interactions with other characters if you avoid using her pronouns aka avoid showing she's transgender. It's on the same level of frustration with the translators i had when i saw they had Mika speaking standard English, there's a LOT that gets lost if you don't show those little things.
#and sure maybe some things wouldn't matter bc - i don't read many knights stories so beyond what's mentioned ab arashi in stories i've read#like those featuring mika and such#so i can't say for her but i can say for mika - because a lot of it is touched upon in ! which isn't getting translated#mika talks about his accent and dialect and such the most in ! HOWEVER#you still have idol story 3 where he talks with Tsumugi about how people perceive him because of his accent and#about how he feels like he's letting people down by not conforming to the positive stereotypes associated with his speech#and if you make him speak the standard language you completely lose that layer#if you erase the fact that Arashi is transgender you completely lose that layer of her characterisation and motivations#she literally has a story in !! where she talks about how much it hurts her to always be cast as the male character#in princess-knight themed shoots when all she wants to be is the princess#but how are you gonna get the full context of that if the story refuses to give you the context you had in the original#ie. that Arashi uses the (hyper)feminine ''atashi'' pronoun and that her speech pattern is one associated with young women#in ! she has a line where she asks i believe koga to not use the slur used for effeminate/gay men for her#because her name is arashi narukami and if anything she wants to be called arashi-chan or naruko#which is also additional context lost if you don't translate it right - the -ko suffix in a name is traditionally feminine#i'm no expert either but i'm a writer and i plan on working as a translator#and these are things that - if lost in translation - will impact your understanding of the entire story and/or character#whether it will have you completely misunderstanding it or just being confused is irrelevant but it's like#in my opinion as a translator it's your duty to translate even the subtext#if you need to show that arashi is transgender you don't need to say it (even tho#she did once say ''i will never be the woman i want to be'' iirc and#i do have recollection of mika telling her ''i don't really get it but you're a girl right?'')#but you should give us the same chance to come to the same conclusions which is to say. translate naruko to the best of your abilities.#idfk Nary maybe ? i feel like the -y ending is usually diminutive rather than feminine but.#something to that tune. and give her a girly speech pattern. it exists in english too.#slang can be associated with gender too#like you guys get it right.
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chiocchi · 4 months
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If you don't mind answering, why do you ship Tom Riddle and Harry Potter? Besides the whole issue that they are enemies, and the age difference, both characters are heterosexual. It's canonical fact. If it's the dynamic you like... Have you thought about Tomione's ship? They have a lot of potential together. And in the right direction, they would be a couple that could make it in the books.
JDKLJKLFJSDLKFJA This kinda feels like people knocking on your door and trying to get you to believe in their religion. It's pretty funny.
I don't know why are you calling issues to a part of the pairing's appeal lkajdsjfs (And Hermione is Harry's age and they are on the same side too?). And not sure about that canonical fact. Harry can be read as bisexual quite easily and Voldemort|Tom... idk he seems more obsessed with power, immortality, and Harry. But even if that's the case, I don't see why it should matter. We're in fandom after all.
I don't know if I'll be able to convey why I like this ship so much. For starters, I'm really into the unique connection they share. There was a piece of Voldemort's soul inside Harry's; they had a mental link; a whole language they're the only ones to speak (for the most part); Voldemort chose him and marked him; and there's even a prophecy that linked them together. There aren't two people more connected than them. They're soulmates, and the fact that Voldemort didn't intend it and Harry hates it adds another layer of complexity.
But not only that, they're like a broken reflection of each other, which I find fascinating. In his second year, Harry was worried about the similarities between them. Both half-bloods, orphans, raised by Muggles, they both considered Hogwarts their first real home. I feel like they would have really understood each other in other circumstances. They would have been friends. Because one of their key differences is that Harry found friends and adults that loved him while Tom was probably bullied and, y'know, the whole Dumbledore thing.
Not to mention that Harry would die for everyone whereas Tom would kill everyone. They're insane in their own way. I love their similarities and differences, but more than anything else, I love when they're together. The fanfics and fanarts are awesome.
And the whole thing of being enemies feels quite gay sometimes klafjdlskfja. Harry can't help but think Tom is handsome and, despite everything Voldemort did, Harry wanted to give him one last chance to show remorse. I have no doubt Harry is crazy enough to actually forgive him.
I've thought about Tomione and I've come to the conclusion that I don't like it. pinktom has a really good post about it and I agree with it. Besides, Hermione liked Ron and had something with Krum, and they're nothing like Tom. Just because she's heterosexual doesn't mean she's attracted to any man, y'know? klajdlfkdjs I don't think they would have been a couple in the books, no matter the direction. If it's the dynamic you like, have you thought about Tomarry? More believable, more intense, and a wider range of wholesomeness to fucked up in the fics. It's really interesting. Unless you don't like men being together? Hmm? Suspicious (just kidding. To each their own. So no need to go to other people's asks to try to change their minds :kek:).
Also Harry is my favorite character and he's not replaceable. I kinda don't care about any other character tbh. Thank you for coming to my Ted talk.
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blondephenobarbitol · 7 months
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TSH hot takes 🔥
-Julian was actually a dick. He isolated and groomed vulnerable students (do you think it's a coincidence that every single member of the greek class had a difficult home life?) into thinking that these very outdated concepts of love and power were good for them. He compared their dangerous behaviour to that of ancient gods. Then, rather than face the consequence of his actions and take accountability, he left when it mattered.
-Charles was an asshole, but he's not a scapegoat. You cannot blame all the problems on Charles, he was an addict as a result of his trauma. He needed help. This doesn't excuse him from his actions, but it explains them. At the beginning of the book he physically could not bring himself to hurt Camilla. He's not a "bad" person. He's a sick person.
-Bunny didn't deserve to die, but he was also probably going to condemn the group at some point. He didn't just die for no reason. (Believing that Bunny's death was truly pointless also means believing that Henry was an actual psychopath who killed his friend for shits and giggles.)
-Judy, Cloke and Sophie ended up the happiest. That is literally the moral of the book. Judy wasn't all tortured when Richard didn't want to hang out with her, she shook it off and kept living her life. That's literally the point.
-Richard was never in love with Camilla. He loved the idea of her, but didn't see her as a person. Because of this specific dynamic and the fact the Richard is narrating, we know nothing about her actual personality. Anything he says can be disputed, and a lot of it contradicts itself.
-Francis is not blameless or unproblematic, but of the group he probably had the best intentions. Most of his behaviour that can be interpreted as creepy can be chalked up to Richard's internalized homophobia (remember, everything is told from his point of view, and Francis was a gay man in the 80's) When you look objectively at what Francis did, you see that he made a pass, got rejected, then dropped it and moved on. There is (i think) one more attempt made later on in the book, and that is furthered by Richard and only interrupted when Charles shows up.
-Henry may be the metaphorical representative of death when talking about the book, but in the narrative it's important to remember he's also just a person. Otherwise everything he does seems beyond question, and he's assigned this label as just "evil." He was 21!! Literally still a kid
-There were not good or bad characters. The reason they hit so hard is because each of them are so layered. They all have good traits and bad traits, but calling one "evil" takes away their humanity and dismisses their complexity that makes them so great.
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evilkitten3 · 3 months
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ok so like i know the reason is just. sexism but one thing that really irks me about how the post-timeskip naruto manga handled which characters became medic nin bc it makes absolutely no sense to me
sakura's decision to train under tsunade makes sense, and i love that she got a super strength power up, so no notes there, but the other teams.... yeesh
so first off, team ten. we're told that ino decided to follow sakura into mednin land to keep being rivals with her... despite that at no point factoring into their rivalry at all beforehand. ino never showed any interest in that, nor was the yamanaka clan ever mentioned to have anything to do with healing as far as i can remember. it's like going to art school to stay with your bestie when your goal is to become a dentist. why are you there. find other ways to spend time together. it also kinda goes against her family's whole thing as. the guys who do the torture stuff. and it's barely ever relevant anyway
for team ten, i think the team medic should've been shikamaru, and i think this not just bc i think it makes more sense skill-wise (something about the way the nara clan's various shadow jutsu work just screams "you need good chakra control for this" to me), but also bc i think it would make asuma's death a thousand times more painful. bc shikamaru is a slacker. he's not learning medical ninjutsu bc he wants to, he's learning it bc someone on the team has to in order to stick together. they're all chuunin now; one of them has to be a medic. them's the rules. but he doesn't really care that much, even when he is trying to learn, and he's so used to being smart enough to not have to pay attention in lessons anyway that he's not prepared for classes that require his full focus. and then asuma dies and shikamaru is doomed to spend the rest of his fucking life wondering if he could've saved him by paying just a little more attention to those medical ninjutsu lessons (he could not have (but he'll never know for sure))
team eight makes some sense, since giving the girl who struggles with fighting the healing job isn't exactly out of nowhere, but i do feel it was the lazy choice. kiba already had a sister involved in the medical business, even if she deals more with animals, so he could've started learning from her and found that he liked it. plus kiba's goal is to be hokage, and the current hokage is a mednin, so it's not like it wouldn't support his goal. or shino could do it; would add another layer to his character. hinata works fine but. it's just not a very interesting development imo
but what really gets me is team gai. good freaking grief. out of every single team, team gai was the one with the most obvious choice. bc there was only one choice. lee can't do any kind of ninjutsu, and tenten's only real backstory is that her chakra control isn't good enough for her to be a medic nin. so it had to be neji. canon establishes that every team has to have a medic; this is a policy tsunade got passed even before she became hokage, so no way in hell is she going back on it now.
moreover, neji becoming a medical ninja - especially if hiashi encouraged it - would show some development for the hyuuga clan maybe starting to suck a bit less. bc as a medic, neji would be bound by oath to stay alive for as long as possible. imagine a world in which hizashi came back and hiashi was able to tell his brother that not only was their family starting to change, but his son had chosen a path that would prevent him from ever following in his father's footsteps. it would be the first step (of many) to show that the hyuuga clan was freeing itself from its own bullshit.
also it would've made sakura catching the zetsu pretending to be neji a thousand times funnier. like that's her coworker. they've shared shifts at the hospital together. she's seen neji drink vodka straight from a bottle and then crash on her couch after they got out of a twelve-hour surgery on the fucking dumbass chuunin who managed to step on his own boobytrap. she knows him.
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let's talk about that one scene in oops
(and fizzarolli in general bc me and my autism r obsessed with this scene and haven't seen someone break it down. also ft. blitz lmao)
just a general scene and vague character breakdown/analysis!
i first of all want to admire the perfect representation of best friends to enemies with blitz & fizz because ugh.
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And like Blitz tells everyone this but the way it's so malicious here. Just the perfect simple dig and Fizz's little shit eating grin because it delivered how he knew it would sdfkjsdkf. Shoves Blitz to the side because really that's all he cares to say. Fuck you and what you did to me, bye bye <3 Fizz is so for talking shit and dipping (House of Asmodeus) I love how messy it is but also shows how he really doesn't hold malice for Blitz otherwise. Obviously we see this front and center later in the episode once they start reconnecting, but I like the subtlety and how he's so willing to snap at Blitz despite his usual anxiety with confrontation.
Blitz also knowing exactly what to say to really piss Fizz off once things escalate <3
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(Fizz literally so smug and content with himself lmfao)
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(smirk wiped off bc hey that's the thing i'm sensitive about!!)
But Fizz keeps his composure. And if you'll let me be alarmingly gay for a second, I love how his version of keeping his cool as a messy gay is managing to basically recreate this drag race confrontation in what is probably my favorite set of Fizzie lines.
youtube
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eat him up babes. also it's so important that that shitty coffee and fizz were on this side of the street for framing i'll talk about it more in a sec jfskjdfksf.
and now my personal favorite exchange of this entire scene that is criminally underrated imo:
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love his face after this line. I SUPPORT DISABLED PEOPLES WRONGS sfjdlkfsdd. literally so fucking nasty with his clown wit but also so justifiable because yeah blitz did just pull this nightmare and dip in fizz's pov. i cannot wait for that to get touched on more likeeee why were they kept apart ugh.
and finally!!
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this cut to blitz,, specifically the scarred side of his face is sooo good.
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the face of a man who just achieved critical vicious mockery vs. the face of a man that knows he can only win this interaction one way now
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Blitz does deserve a little violence maybe <3 Fizz underestimated his ass jjdkfsdlk.
Idk I just love how indicative this whole interaction is for their characters but especially Fizz, it's a perfect build-up for him. Fizz has major imposter syndrome with dual layers because of general haters but especially because of Mammon and Asmodeus. Not on any fault of Ozzie's,, we just see Fizz obviously thinks he isn't fully deserving of their relationship/his situation and the healthy dynamics of it and so do most major news outlets apparently askjfsk.
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(full fizzy meme post & also i like how this is a special also like damn do u think they were also apart of the crossword??)
It'll be really interesting to see how his character develops in future episodes because I feel like a lot of what I've rambled about here has come to a resolution after 2 Minutes Notice in the musical special lmao. I really like how here when he goes to compose himself, this is how he does it.
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Makes me wonder how many times him and Ozzie have had the self-worth and imposter syndrome conversation before it finally stuck in the Mammon Musical Special. I just love their relationship and how they compliment one another,, and how it projects into Fizz's other relationships because they're healthy for one another. Love my OTP love Blitz & especially love Fizzie. Obviously.
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bulbagarden · 7 months
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Opinion: Scarlet and Violet are Pokémon's Queerest Games Yet (Bulbanews)
Hi it's Lisia here!! The following is an opinion piece from one of our staff members, Torchic W. Pip!! Blanc and I both loved this and like... we had to share it here LOL.
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Pokémon was my queer awakening. I had silly little crushes on male and female characters alike, and I resonated with many of the designs of the series’s more gender nonconforming designs. Pokémon has always had a wink and a nod to queerness: Jessie and James’s genderbending antics, Beauty Nova in X and Y, Blanche from Pokémon GO… the list goes on. But with Scarlet and Violet, queerness shines bright as celestial stars.
“But wait!” you might say. “Scarlet and Violet has no canonical gay or trans characters! How can this thesis make sense?” Well, queer representation need not be explicit to be impactful. Sometimes, the stories queer people resonate with most are told through metaphor, from the misfits in Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer to X-Men to Luca and Gwen Stacy. The roots of this trace back to a history of censorship. LGBTQ+ stories have been historically censored, such as with the Hays Code. Queer people have long been unable to see stories with explicitly queer characters, so they instead turned to metaphors and symbolism. Gender nonconformity is also nothing new to the scene of video games. Metroid, Legend of Zelda, Final Fantasy, and Guilty Gear are just some of the games that play with our expectations of gender. It’s also nothing new to Pokémon. East Asian media tends to depict transness and gender nonconformity differently from the West, but for more on that, I'll direct you to this video.
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Even before the release of Scarlet and Violet, gender nonconformity shined through. Take a character like Grusha, for example, who many mistook for a girl when he was first introduced. It goes a little deeper than that, though. “Grusha” is Russian for “pear”, but it’s also a diminutive for the name “Agrafena”... a female Russian name. Whether or not it was intentional, it does add an extra layer of nonconformity to Grusha. Another character with some queercoded elements is Iono: Her color palette evokes the colours of the trans flag, and her Magnemite headpieces evoke an explicitly genderless Pokémon. Baggy clothes are common among many transgender people. Her friend Bellibolt is a frog, and many frogs in real life can change their sex. In Japanese, she speaks with a Bokukko speech pattern (a girl using the masculine “boku”), which is often used for plucky characters, but also nonconforming characters. All of Iono’s names across translations evoke themes of questions. On top of all that… well, the Vtubing scene is, from personal experience, very queer. All of my friends who watch VTubers are queer in some way. More seriously, creating a persona where you can let your true self shine in a way that regular society won't allow you to... that's pretty queer.
With the release of the games, we’ve seen a wide array of characters—Rika, Saguaro, Penny, and all of the leaders of Team Star, among others—showcase a wide range of gender expressions, either in their appearances, their personalities, or their hobbies. And all of these characters are seen as heroes, as role models.
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As with games before, there are two characters with queer subtext in their relationship. Hassel and Brassius have been seen by many as being in a gay relationship, bonding over a love of art, supporting each other in dark times, and giving each other pet names. Even if it's not outright stated that they're in a romantic relationship, their care for each other is a beautiful thing. Many gay coded relationships are often of younger men or women, and while these relationships are important, it's also important for older gay couples to receive some of the spotlight. After all, queer people have always existed, and it's important to remember our past and honor those who came before us, who helped paved the path to acceptance.
For the first time in a mainline game, the player character can choose any clothes, hair style, and so on regardless of gender. While the player can still only choose between being referred to by masculine or feminine terms, this is a step in the right direction, and it opens the door for many opportunities never seen before. Boys can be feminine, girls can be masculine, and both can be anywhere in between. The world of gender expression is as big as the open world of Paldea.
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But back to Team Star. The whole Team Star path is one big, queer metaphor. Think about it: kids are bullied for how they dress or act, these misfits band together and retaliate against their bullies, finding a sort of family in each other, villains who turn out to be just the opposite… It’s a story that, in some way or form, can resonate with many kids who have, sadly, dealt with homophobia or transphobia in school. The path is a story about righting what’s wrong, about making the world a more accepting place.
Scarlet and Violet is a game about shining bright in the sky with other stars, about being your true self. Its themes are deeply resonant with the queer experience. At the end of the Team Star path, you battle Penny, whose ace Pokémon is trans flag-coloured Sylveon, and as she Terastilizes her partner, she says, “Shine bright like the starry sky and become who you really want to be!” So shine bright, trainers, and be your true self.
Oh, and of course, Quaquaval is the queer icon of all time.
[Torchic W. Pip is a Bulbanews writer with a focus on music, merchandise, and spin-off games. They're also a fanfiction author and moderator of the Writer's Workshop subforum. Outside of writing, Torchic is studying music theory and linguistics, and his favorite games are X/Y and Omega Ruby/Alpha Sapphire.]
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sparrowlucero · 26 days
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moffat's weird fetish for lesbians and general misogyny turns me off everything he does. he creeps me out. that said, he does make very good one or two episode stories, like empty child. but every time he gets to write a story that goes longer than four episodes, like some of his work outside dw, hyde comes to mind, it turns into a poorly written convoluted mess with the most insultingly written women and ridiculous plot revelations. i had to ditch 11th era who bc it got intolerable and it turned me off the show entirely till 13. but he could be the best writer of all time, and i'd still think he's a lesbian obsessed weirdo who can't write a realistic woman if he had a gun to his head.
weird ask to send a gay woman talking about how they like his work, especially since you say you didn't watch the show I was referring to...?
But yeah I, again, strongly disagree, I think his character work is compelling and his plotting is very layered and thematically rich, and I don't think the one lesbian lead in that era of doctor who is fetishized at all.
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cryptidcorners · 5 months
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hi!!! i love how you write so much and i,,,
so... since vanessa mentions being a trained EMT in the movie, what if reader ends up getting hurt by one of the animatronics (be it accidental or not) and vannessa takes the time to patch them up! maybe after, she ends up teasing the reader about their racing pulse, considering they are flustered with the personal attention from nessa.
just a silly little gay thought 🤭
Electric - Vanessa Shelly x F!Reader
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Description: While being accompanied by Vanessa during one of your shifts, a quick checkup towards one of the animatronics results in you being shocked and knocked out. Luckily, Vanessa rushes to your aid and comforts you while patching you up.
# requested by anon
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Media: FNaF!Movie
Character: Vanessa Shelly
Tags: Romantic Implications, Fluff, Sweet Talk, Mutual Care, Encouragement, Opening Up, Connecting, Playful Vanessa, Flustered Reader, Co-Workers to ? ? ? + F!Reader.
Warnings: Injury (Electric Shock), Descriptions of Burns, Blood, Unconscious, Brief Descriptions from Vanessa's Childhood (Abuse), Some Tension + Anxiety from Vanessa, Possible FNaF Spoilers
Read my TOS, Thanks!
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"So, how long have you been working here for?" You asked, hands delicately twisting the rusted gears within the metallic mascot's darkened skeletal figure. You were struggling to get inside this trap, even why animatronics this ancient, their parts wouldn't be hard to twist. Nor smell as bad.
"Years after it closed," Vanessa answered. She had been feeling antsy staying put and watching you work, so tidying had been her priority for the last couple hours of the night. "believe it or not, it's only been recently that this place has required night guards. As soon as I became an officer, applications started opening for more security."
"Really?" You hummed, face fixed on Bonnie's complex systems. You scratched the side of your head, sweat oozing from your face. You had been told the machine had been acting unorthodox as soon as the power went on, as well as that error in his guitar. "Must have been some wild kids then if it needed more than some iron fence." Curiously, you began walking towards the still animatronics instrument. Fingers treading lightly before tinkering with it. Vanessa's eyes flickered wildly, and she screamed, "Wait, no! His guitar-"
It was too late. Soon, your vision was engulfed in white stems of electricity and wild baby blues. You yelped before falling off the stage, falling unconscious almost immediately as dark seeped into your gaze.
Your mind was plagued with a yellow haze, as well as your sight. You blinked rapidly, head twisting with pain. When your eyes began to clear, you could see a tall figure looming over your body. As the seconds drifted by, your senses began to grow back to normal. You could feel your wrists stinging as she wrapped a thick bandage around your cindered skin.
You winced, "Shit."
"Oh, thank God." Vanessa breathed, "You're awake."
You heaved, cringing coldly as pain skyrocketed through your veins. "What happened?" Your lip quivered, jaw twitching as you tried to read your current situation. You could feel blood oozing through your arms and legs which were hugged by white layers. "Oh, fuck." You coughed. Agony gripped your body, making you shutter.
"Take it easy," Vanessa grabbed your shoulder tenderly. Your eyes turned to Vanessa nervously. Maybe it was the shock, or it was something else you couldn't put your finger on. Vanessa frowned, rubbing her thumb to ease your anxiety. "Bonnie's guitar was unstable, and even at the simplest of touches, it can explode. It's not too severe most of the time, but still, it can hurt like hell."
You blinked, "When Steve said it was broken, he never said anything about it exploding." You tried to catch your breath. Vanessa hushed, "Calm down, alright? You're fine." She assured you, voice low as a whisper. "Just take a breath."
You inhaled sharply before releasing. After you did, Vanessa wrapped another section of your arms, which made your stomach twist. You never realized until now how much detail her face held so close, it was memorizing. And nerve-wracking for some odd reason. You were growing more flustered by the second, and she began to notice. Vanessa rested her hand near your chest, and you swore you could see stars.
"Your pulse is crazy fast," she said with a chuckle. You blushed, chuckling weakly. Vanessa pulled her hand away, "You look dazed. What are you so nervous about?"
"Nothing." You answered softly. Vanessa tilted her head, obviously intrigued. "Really?"
She rested her touch against your pulse again, making you shutter. Vanessa giggled, "Are you flustered? Because of me?" She gasped, "You are." Vanessa sounded almost giddy at that, childishly so. You defended yourself, "No, no. I'm just, trying to get my head together. I'm just out of it."
She teased, "Are you sure? I don't care if you get a little red around me. We all get crushes." Vanessa read your starstruck face and smiled once more before applying a light bandage to your cheek. "You feeling better?"
"Just a bit." You laid down, catching your breath. "I'm sorry I put you through this." Your eyes awkwardly shifted to your wrapped hands.
"It's alright, it was a mistake. As long as you're fine, I'm fine." Vanessa began packing away the bright red kit, eyelashes batting as she spoke. Internally, she was furious. Her father lied to you, probably to get you weak. He probably wanted her to leave you burned on the ground and leave the children to clean up everything. That's how it always had been. She was always cleaning up his messes, even as a little girl. It was horrible. Her nails dug against the table with a strangled huff, "You are okay, right?"
"Thanks to you." You told her. You sat up again and nudged your gaze ahead. "A little help?"
"Shit, right." Vanessa walked toward and you felt her warm hands around your sides. She could tell you were screaming inside, and that stole a smirk from her almost immediately. "Hey, if you fall, I'll catch you. My arms are always open,"
"Thanks for the offer." You played along.
You struggled to get on your feet for a couple short seconds, with Vanessa holding you delicately. You were able to walk again, just before the crack of dull dawn. You started gathering your tools with Vanessa next to you. She was toying with her hair when you met her gaze. You shyly extended your hand, "Thank you for helping me . . . You really didn't have to."
"I wanted to." She grabbed your hand and shook it, "I'd love to help you. Well, whenever you need it."
You both remained silent for a minute. And her eyes wandered down to your lips before you cleared your throat, "I hope we can keep in touch?"
"Yes, of course. But, not here, y'know?" She says seriously. "It was a pleasure being with you."
Your heart grew heavy and you couldn't squeeze out anything. You simply waved with a warm expression and walked out into the parking lot. For the first time in your life, you had truly felt something electric. Not just the shock from Bonnie, but from Vanessa.
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smytherines · 1 month
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The wild thing about SAF is that it's a comedy spy parody musical from eight years ago, but people (including me) really have the most elaborate headcanons for these characters and are so invested in them, because they're not Good Representation for Fine Upstanding LGBTQ+ Youths, it's compelling representation for weird messy queer people.
Like I don't know if I'm expressing this well, but we're only able to have this kind of weird deep conversation about the meanings behind the gay comedy spy parody musical because these aren't sanitized characters.
One of them does absolutely nothing wrong to deserve the massively horrible thing that happens to him, gets hurt by the man he loves, gets abandoned. But he also tortures and kills people. He's canonically the villain, but he's sympathetic.
The other one is kind of an asshole- cocky, careless, jealous, petty. He fucks up big time, but he's also an ADHD himbo who is lovable in ways you can't describe. He's canonically the hero, but there's very much an "Oh, sweetie" vibe to him
And SAF succeeds at having such interesting representation because while the Big Reveal is meant to be a surprise at the end of the show, they layered it in from the opening minutes of the show.
It isn't BUT THEY'RE GAY HAHA, it's relying on our understanding of the rules of the spy genre to tell a surprisingly meaningful story. Mary Kate sings it right at the beginning- it's time to get the girl again. The reveal works because it plays against what you know, what you expect from this genre, so wonderfully.
And it also isn't Here Are Two Flawless Gays Please Do You Like Them?? It isn't PR. It isn't representation for the sake of representation. Being gay is not the only thing we know about them. And because the reveal doesn't happen until the end, it's arguably not even the most important thing we know about them.
It's just two kinda fucked up guys who might have been great together, but who lived in an era and especially worked in a profession where they had little realistic prospect of making anything work in the long term.
Who probably had a lot of shit on their shoulders from having to hide who they are their entire lives, growing up in wartime, and maybe even being neurodivergent. There's so much room to use our knowledge of the real world during this time period to flesh out these characters in a way the musical just doesn't have time to do.
And once you rewatch the show with the context of the Big Gay Reveal, it actually colors in a lot of those traits and interactions in subtle and interesting ways.
And especially knowing that this came out eight years ago, and was created by a tiny little independent theatre company, it's just... thanks, Tin Can Bros. I like your messy gays
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rottenpumpkin13 · 6 days
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(I just watched a musical 😂)
woe, Genesis has been tasked with getting together and directing a musical theatre production of his choice Loveless featuring the entire SOLDIER floor, for an official Shinra fundraiser gala. nightmare scenario or dream come true or both. the show must go on! also, you are incredibly funny and uplifting! :)
• Genesis has been tasked with organizing and directing the annual musical Shinra puts on for the charity gala, which has one of its departments as the actors. This year the roulette wheel landed on the worst combination—SOLDIER and Loveless.
• Rumors say Zack's anguished "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO" as soon as it was announced was heard from 13 floors down.
• Genesis is being benign and letting everyone choose their parts.
Genesis: Who wants to play the goddess?
*Sephiroth raises his hand*
Genesis: Really? You want to play the goddess?
Sephiroth: It was an involuntary reaction. I don't know why I raised my hand.
Genesis: Too late, you're the goddess.
Sephiroth: But I don't want to play the goddess.
Genesis: If you don't play the goddess I'm going to shave your head in your sleep.
Sephiroth: !?
• Since NONE of the female SOLDIERs wanted to play Rosa, Genesis appointed one of the other guys to the role.
• Cloud walked in at an unfortunate time to deliver some documents from Heidegger.
Genesis: CLOUD. You're perfect for the role of Alphreid. Welcome to the show.
Cloud: Uhh, really? Okay. Who's playing Rosa?
Zack: I am!
Cloud: For fucks sake.
• Angeal was placed in the role of Varvados against his will, the same case for Kunsel, who was bribed with money to play Garm.
• The rest of SOLDIER is tasked with being the stage crew. They have a month to rehearse, something which would've been fine had GENESIS not been the director. He insists on getting a director's chair, and wearing the typical director's beret and scarf while shouting from a megaphone even though he's AT MOST 3 feet away from the stage.
Zack: I thought you said I was playing Rosa. Where's my dress and wig?
Genesis: No, no. Since you and Cloud are playing Rosa and Alphreid, I thought I'd make this the gay version of Loveless.
Zack: Ohhh, I get it now. That's why it's Loveless - G edition. The G stands for gay.
Genesis: No the G stands for Genesis.
Zack: What's the difference?
Genesis:
• Sephiroth wishes whoever sold Genesis the megaphone an eternity in the deepest pits of hell.
*Genesis is standing right beside Sephiroth. Too close, in fact*
Genesis: SEPHIROTH, LETS TAKE IT FROM SCENE 3 IN ACT 1 WHEN THE GODDESS HAS HER BIG MUSICAL NUMBER.
Sephiroth: Genesis I'm standing right here. There's no need to—
Genesis: DON'T QUESTION MY CREATIVE CHOICES.
*Sephiroth grabs the megaphone and smashes it over his head*
• If Genesis were not Angeal's best friend, he also would've choked him with his scarf by now.
Genesis, from his director chair: Angeal, great dancing, but go stage left.
*Angeal goes left*
Genesis: No, your other left.
*Angeal goes right*
Genesis: LEFT.
*Angeal goes further left*
Genesis: Your OTHER Left. Turn around and go right!
*Angeal goes right*
Genesis: LEFT. LEFT. GO LEFT.
*Angeal goes left and violently falls off the stage*
• Cloud wouldn't have agreed to play Alphreid if he had known Zack was playing Rosa. Not because he feels weird playing his love interest, but because Zack is a diva.
Genesis: Alright, Alphreid, this is the scene where you're seeing Rosa again. You're feeling passionate, you're feeling butterflies in your stomach, you're sensing—
Cloud: —Zack's onion breath from lunch.
Zack: Onion soup helps me get into character. Get it, because Rosa has so many layers?
Genesis: Zack, I love your dedication. Cloud, quit complaining. Now kiss, you two.
Cloud: I ain't kissing him with that breath.
Genesis: Kiss!
Cloud: He smells like something died.
Zack: I've never felt more insulted in my life.
Genesis: You're being overdramatic. KISS.
Cloud: Please god no.
Genesis: KISS HIM.
*Zack grabs Cloud by the collar and leans in. Cloud takes one whiff of Zack's breath and immediately passes out*
Zack: I can't work like this.
• Opening night rolls around.
*Angeal approaches Genesis*
Angeal: Zack ate an entire onion and his breath smells like depression.
Genesis: The show must go on.
Angeal: Cloud attempted to knock him out with a broom, but it was a prop, so it broke over his head and he attacked Cloud.
Genesis: The show must go on.
Angeal: Zack sat on him and is blowing his breath in his face as we speak.
Genesis: The show must go on.
Angeal: Cloud has literally passed away.
Genesis: The show must—
*Angeal chokes him*
• Somehow the show does go on. Everyone nails their musical numbers and scenes, all goes well. Until act 4, when Sephiroth forgets his lines.
*During a scene with all the characters*
Sephiroth: To engage in the battle for which I have selected you, I bequeath unto you a....a....uh....?
Genesis, whispering from the edge of the stage: Improvise!
Sephiroth: What? Demise? The goddess killing everyone wasn't in the script.
Genesis, still whispering: No! Improvise the lines!
Sephiroth: Demise to the guys? So I am supposed to kill everyone. Alright then.
Genesis: NO
*Sephiroth unsheathes a sword he wasn't supposed to have*
Cloud: Wait, WHAT?
Sephiroth: The goddess was never merciful.
*He takes a swipe at Cloud and now the two are engaged in an active duel*
Angeal: Guys, this wasn't in the script!
• Angeal dives forward and starts trying to haul Cloud away, who's kicking and struggling. Now Sephiroth veers his attention unto Zack and starts chasing him around with the sword. Zack has no weapon, and is screaming as he dodges Sephiroth's blows.
• Genesis, angered, climbs onto the stage with a ball of fire in hand, screaming and hurtling it at them ("ALL THAT HARD WORK GONE TO WASTE—NEVER BEEN MORE EMBARRASSED IN MY LIFE—SEPHIROTH STOP USING YOUR HAIR AS A WEAPON")
*Kunsel, in a last-ditch attempt to save everyone's dignity, closes the curtain, ending the show*
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red-might-be-dead · 22 days
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hello hi here to force strange thoughts into your brain once again, this time about jrwi (wow who could’ve guessed)
been thinking about this for a little but it’s basically what i think some campaigns would be if not podcasts, i haven’t listened to some of the older ones so i’m sorry they’re not on here :(( if you have any ideas feel free to add them btw :DD
RIPTIDE!!!!! - really long animated series
not an anime though, no matter how much grizzly wants it, it would be an animation style where the characters could have very clearly different nose, face and body shapes, really pushing my riptide nose agenda here sorry, each episode would be like 20-40 minutes long and instead of coming out in seasons there would be massive gaps in between episodes, from 2-6 months long, to leave time for writers and animators to get stuff done (massive team of animators btw, i feel like it would be pretty successful)
PRIME DEFENDERS!! - comics
literally nothing else they could be, just really well made, well performing comics (i’ve already talked about this before you can stalk my talk tag if you really want to find it lmao), the comic company making them would be keeping well away from movies n shit btw
APOTHEOSIS!!! - i wasn’t really sure about this one to be honest
i had to ask my friend and she said anime which i don’t agree with but i can see it, i think maybe a short book series where each book is 150 - 300 pages and is about a different god they have to kill/a different episode, i think that works but if anyone has any better ideas please tell me :D!!
BLOOD IN THE BAYOU!!! - i hate to say it, i really do…
bitb would be a really long really good 80s horror book with strong homoerotic undertones, a satisfied fanbase and lots of active members in the community making fan comics, films, writing, theories and art ect… until well after the book came out……….. and then it would be made into the most egregious and awful live action movie you have ever seen, the most awful casting (like chris pratt as officer dudes….. throws up) and even worse sfx, oh yeah and the characters would be ruined and the story would become so butchered it wouldn’t make sense, they would do some shit like cut out becky so kian just kisses some random lady (removing both a really good and well written character and a layer of kian’s character that i think is super important) and make rolan really be an evil bug spy the whole time so rand has to kill him to save the town also add in a whole new sub plot that never existed like the rand family is secretly a long line of bug alien hunters or something fucking stupid like that and the entire fanbase would murder whoever thought re-writing the story was a good idea (ahaha can you tell ive been through something like this before ahahaha, character morals and motives being removed and whatnot ahahahhahahaha.)
anyways………
THE SUCKENING!!! - live action series
it would be well made though, unlike the bitb movie it would be its own original thing, have great makeup and effects also be well casted and well shot, well written, ect ect, it would bloody and gory and not suitable for people who can’t handle showing bones and organs all over everywhere, lots of shitty rip off merch would be made though and the fandom would be 99% gay little freaks (normal suckening enjoyers) and 1% homophobic straight white men who get mad whenever they see soda and emizel having gay sex on screen or whatever fag shit that biting thing was
again feel free to add your thoughts and ideas and shit in the reblogs it would be nice to read them :DD!!
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bestygogirl · 3 months
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BEST YGO GIRL: FINAL ROUND
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please use this as an opportunity to say why you like a character, not why you don't.
Propaganda under the cut!
Isis Ishtar
gorgeous, very caring sister, strong duelist, and the only woman to ever make Seto Kaiba squirm
anyways. not only as mentioned above is she the first woman to make kaiba squirm, but she was by all means going to beat him if not for the millennium rod's millennium interference. yami marik admits that she's a strong duelist with a strategy that's been working for literal years-- and given that she's not like, a professional duelist, thats pretty impressive
she also recently got some really cool meta bumps and let me point out that an "ishizu deck" now includes obelisk the tormentor-- which we knew she had prior to giving it to kaiba, but i think it only solidifies my opinion that she very much could wield an Egyptian God Card, an exclusive little club for top tier duelists
as a character she presents herself with an amazing amount of poise and grace, shes compassionate and kind and stays with mai and serenity even though she only just met them. shes struggling through living the past 5 years of her life drowning in guilt for her family's tragedy just because she wanted to make her little brother happy and shadi is a fucking liar. shes foretold her own death and marches towards it grimly but with so much love in her heart. and even then shes 20 years old and holds an important position in the egyptian government that typically requires a doctorate degree AND has been dealing with mariks off-and-on bullshit entirely by her lonesome. she also likes to flex her fortunetelling a little which is awesome i think she should do that more that scene where she tells the guy exactly how the stele is being transported was so everything
speaking of shes got such an attitude. "is it your destiny to waste my time?" iconic. never seen before will never be seen again. watch the duel between her va and joeys its so fucking funny
shes excult. shes doesnt flinch in the face of god nor death. seto kaiba and yami marik respect her. shes so sad and so sweet and battle city couldnt have happened without her.
also her parallels with kaiba are what motivate kaiba to give yugi the card he needed to beat marik.
kaiba, in duelist kingdom, was ready to jump off a ledge if yugi didnt let him through to face pegasus while trying to save mokuba out of sheer desperation to save his little brother. he KNOWS what that dedication feels like and the iron kind of will you need to have to make that kind of gamble. isis is being so fucking legit with what shes saying and he respects that and her judgement enough to change his mind and not only watch the duel, but give yugi a card that eventually helps him win, even if he has no real confidence in the odds. but theres a CHANCE, which is the same thing he taught her when he beat her in a duel. the layers its her faith that moves him to act. which is so crazy
anyway vote isis shes my best friend forever and a real rep for all the 20 year olds who honest to god did not sign up for this bullshit
Yuzu Hiragi
The entire show would not work if the cast wasn't obsessed with her, and they're all right to stan her, literally gets Sora and Serena to defect from Academia with her sheer charisma, beat Masumi at their gay little rivalry, Yugo spends a few days with her and is ready to die for her, Yuya is simply just the loudest about adoring her And why not? She is so clever and determined, doing the most work out of anyone to figure out the myth plot. Actively trains to keep up with the rest of cast. Even when the universe is conspiring against her and trying to keep her down, she fucking headbutts Roger and tells him off or manifests to help save the world in the ultimate girlboss team-up that was the Arc V finale. Truly any dimension without her is worth upending.
The mysterious magical bracelet that isekai's her to different worlds, the Can-Do attitude, the cool poses (fusion summoning), the ADORABLE character design, AND she was 1/4 of a world-saving hero in the past?? If it weren't for the meddling writers, she would have been the main character
yuzu is everything. literally the plot of arc v hinges on the fact everyone who meets her become just as obsessed with her. and they are totally right to do so
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comradekatara · 2 months
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Thoughts on sokka and ty lee?
okay so i have a little theory that the reason ty lee had a crush on sokka was because she knew it would drive azula insane. i know that we never actually see her talk about sokka to azula (although we do see that it pisses mai off), but surely talking about how hot sokka is just to see azula’s eye twitch was like one of her favorite offscreen hobbies. also they are just kind of fascinating besides the obvious flirtation between them because they are both so scarily intelligent that any sort of actual relationship between them (whether romantic or platonic or whatever) would be operating on levels we could not even begin to comprehend. like they’d get into fights about astrology but instead of the idiots of makapu village or katara who is just like “science is gay” ty lee is actually making a persuasive and somewhat convincing argument and sokka has to expend more than 3% of his brainpower to actually refute her. i also think they are the only two people in the world who are actually evenly matched at pai sho and their games last hours each. but in my mind their relationship is like. they are both dating suki and they will flirt with each other but they won’t actually hook up in any capacity unless suki is also there. but most of the time they just have a very strange, scary friendship wherein no one else can understand what they are talking about except for maybe mai and suki (and even they get lost sometimes). so i don’t really ship it in a traditional sense, but i do nonetheless think their dynamic is very fruitful because they are both such layered, fascinating characters in general.
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hubristicassholefight · 6 months
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Swordswoman Showdown Round 3
Malenia (Elden Ring) vs Xena (Xena: Warrior Princess)
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(Better here in a "preferred character" sense, not "who would win in a fight")
Propaganda below cut
Malenia
She is arguably the hardest boss in any Fromsoft game.; She is the favorited boss of Animal from the Muppets.
"Arguably" the hardest boss in any fromsoft game? You don't even know. She is OBJECTIVELY the hardest boss in any fromsoft game. On march 1st 2023, a bit more than a full year since the game's release, From Software released the stats on the amount of attempts each boss took for the players collectively. As of march 1st 2023 Malenia has killed the players 329.000.000 times. That's 10 Tarnished every second. That's almost the entire population of the United States. Malenia is also an optional boss in a secluded area hidden away from everyone. According to PlayStation trophy statistics, only 37.9% of people who ever bought the game managed to even REACH Malenia in the first place. Which means among those 329.000.000 people she has obliterated were only the most dedicated of Fromsoft fans. Only 33.3% of people even managed to beat her. That number also includes everyone who beat her with summons, which makes her significantly easier. This means out of all people who bought the game on PlayStation 4 or 5 and reached Malenia which is about 3 million people, 377.000 just fucking dropped her, they didn't even do it with summons. Difficulty aside. Malenia is also extremely pretty and has the softest lips, her Goddess form looks like a painting. She fights with elegance and style unrivalled by any boss in the game, dancing through the battlefield with deadly, fluid motions. Malenia is also 256cm or 8'4" tall. Huge woman.
post let me solo her
#malenia is 8'4“ flat chested and broad shouldered#she kills you with incredible grace and poise#trans icon#id let her Waterfowl Dance on me and Infect Me with her Scarlet Rot...
#malenia is so dedicated to the sword it mends her failing body. she lives by fighting#her strongest attack is a technique that halts the progress of her terminal illness#i can never stop thinking about that. by all means she couldve rotted into a mile of mush before the game started#but she persists!! she persists!!!
#malenia blade of 15 layers of contradictory goals and personality traits summed up in like twelve total lines of dialogue#she's a stupidly good character but shes also a woman who did horrible things in a game with a deliberately vague narrative#so everyone just enters What A Bitch / Step On Me mode with her#as they are wont to do. the lowlives.#anyway what would happen if you hated yourself and successfully became someone who can do plenty of good#and yet the only way to live on and keep doing good would be to embrace the self who causes so much pain#but there's nothing left. so you wait and you rot and you keep telling yourself that you're still the self you love#and then you have to do it again. and now your conflictual agony is over because clearly you lost yourself long ago#and you look up knowing that you're the danger you've always feared you were. and you smile#and turn john eldenring into filet in 2 seconds flat
Xena
Warrior Princess
She wields a sword and chakram. Just had to submit a biconic swordswoman.
i love her. she made me gay as a kid. Anyway, her weapon of choice is her sword, she is obviously very good with it
#unfortunately i have to choose and i have to choose xena#a) utena had no warcry. b) xena fought gods. c) xena has kickass goofy comic book combat which is my favorite
xena didn’t just fight gods. she fucked up a girl’s life so bad that she (calisto) devoted her entire being to destroying everything that xena loved that ended up with calisto becoming a god in order to destroy xena, which didnt work because xena entombed her in lava. and then when xena and gabrielle encountered calisto in the (christian) afterlife (different from the greek one which they also fought her in), calisto dragged gabrielle to hell so xena became an archangel in order to save gabrielle and then sacrificed herself in order to undo all the harm that she did in calisto’s life and then when not!jesus (played by timothy omundson) revives xena and gabrielle, calisto impregnates xena with the reincarnation of calisto’s soul in order to end the cycle of hate. xena doesnt just fight gods. she creates and destroys them
#this isnt even mentioning her fighting julius ceasar several times#telling brutus that caesar is not his friend#xena and gabrielle’s souls reincarnating across centuries in order to kick ass and fall in love all over again#or the time xena became a god but tbh that ep is kinda ‘uhhhhh…..’ even if they did hire a consultant for it
#I think everyone here knows to vote for Xena. I think a couple people here might have some propaganda for Xena saved already#everyone remember that Xena/Gabrielle is CANON and that's a pretty big deal also#(does anyone have that Xena Loves Trans People interview around because that would also make good propaganda)7:47 PM
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casmick-consequences · 5 months
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Black Pete, my beloved
This is just gonna be a post where I talk about Black Pete from 'Our Flag Means Death' and his arc on the show (so far!!!!), as well as what he means to me. (And by post, I mean essay, lol. I'm passionate.)
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So right from the get-go, you immediately see the kind of character Pete is set up to be. Stereotypical rugged pirate, very much "I live to loot and plunder and I eat danger and bloodshed for breakfast". He's immediately set up to be someone who is very unlikeable, and someone who you would get annoyed with fast. An overly confident macho character that thinks he's better than everyone else, yet has nothing to prove it. Think characters like Nelson Muntz from 'The Simpsons' or Eric Cartman from 'South Park'.
In episode 1, you see him being the character to effectively try to start a mutiny because he thinks the captain, Stede Bonnet, is incompetent and unfit to be a captain, even confidently stating that he'd take over in his stead because 'he's the most experienced'.
If there was one character trait to shadow all of this, though, it is undoubtedly his idolization and admiration for the dreaded and feared pirate; Captain Blackbeard. He makes up stories of him having been on his crew, and this being the reason as to why he is so skilled and great. Whether these stories are true is never mentioned, but nonetheless not a single person (except the quite gullible captain Stede) believes a word he says.
What is SO interesting about his character, however, is that all of this is just a first look into his character. It's a first impression. Yes, throughout the show he shall always have his little moments of "being a dick", but the further you get into the show, the more you see the layers of him.
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We've established he's kind of a dick, he's self-centered, delusional... but under all this there's actually the sweetest core you could imagine. Whenever he does something wrong, or he offends someone, he's the first to apologize as soon as he can.
Accidentally stab Frenchie's flag during an ambitious attempt to start a mutiny? Show remorse and say I'm sorry immediately. Your captain makes someone cry? Tell him that that wasn't okay and console the crying person as soon as possible. Your captain wants to put a cursed suit onto other innocent people, just to lift the curse from themselves? Question it because it makes you feel like a horrible person.
And even to Stede himself. In Season 1, it was pretty clear that Pete did not think anything of Stede. He thought he was dumb, incompetent etc etc and loved NOTHING more than the idea to get rid of him. But then in Season 2, where a very offensive comment is made towards Stede by the newly-back-from-the-sorta-dead scribe, Lucius Spriggs, who now holds a vendetta against Stede because he's indirectly the reason Lucius had to come sorta back from the dead in the first place, you see him like this:
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He is visibly uncomfortable here, while in season 1, he would've jumped on the Anti-Stede train in a SECOND. But here, he just sits and tries to kind of get rid of the thick tension of that moment, and get the negative attention away from Stede. GROWTH.
Not only that, but (and this is gonna be an insanely weird opinion of mine but hear me out): out of all the crewmembers on Stede's ship, I might say that none of them are as much like Stede than Pete is. Stede is quite dumb, quite gullible, obsessed with Blackbeard, very much wants to be a "big, strong pirate" and despite all of this still manages to be kind to the people around him and makes sure to take care of others just like he takes care of himself. To me, that sounds just like Pete.
And, maybe one of his most redeeming qualities:
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He is the sweetest, most loving and most caring partner on the ship.
Lucius is pretty much what you think of when you hear the words "sassy gay sidekick". He's sassy, he's queer, he's confident, he's very flirtatious and basically the LAST person you'd think to pair with Pete. He's also immediately portrayed as likeable, and is understandably one of the absolute favorites in the entire fandom.
They sound like the crackiest pair of them all. And yet somehow, they work perfectly together. They balance eachother out like two sides of the same coin. What Pete lacks in self-awareness, Lucius got enough for the both of them. What Lucius lacks in pirate skills, Pete has heaps to keep them both safe. And so on and so forth.
Throughout the show, Pete has learned to put someone else before him for once. It used to always be him as number one, but it becomes very clear that he now has a new number one. His number one.
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There are lots of reasons why this relationship in particular means a lot to me. The main one being the way that they are perceived in the show.
Pete has a cleft lip, a bit of a lisp, a bald head, and overall just isn't what you'd normally expect from a TV show that depicts gay characters. He's average-looking. He's just some guy. And despite all of this, he gets to be in a sweet and loving relationship with his cute boyfriend who loves him, adores him, and looks at Pete like he's the most beautiful thing in the world.
Lucius himself isn't really that conventionally attractive either, but this fandom definitely perceives him better than they do Pete. Which is apparent in the way they pair him up with other, more conventionally attractive people, which is upsetting but hey. That's how the world works, I guess.
But it's the way these two are not perfect in any way, they're just two dudes on a ship who happen to be in the most beautiful relationship imaginable. Their relationship isn't perfect either, but it's perfect enough. They're just like a regular couple you'd see anywhere in real life. Nothing too fabricated, and it all just feels so real. Which is also why they remind me so much of my personal relationship with my beautiful, amazing partner whom I love more than anything in the world. The Lucius to my Pete.
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Pete means a lot to me because, aside from having the best oneliners in the show and making me want to study him in a lab, in a way I see a lot of myself in him. I like to think I'm not nearly as delusional or self-centered as him, but the way he engages with the world around him feels just so familiar to me.
He's a bit dumb most of the time, and he's prone to make mistakes, but he always means well. He keeps up a hard, rough exterior to be able to protect his loved ones and look tough to others, yet in his core he is so incredibly sensitive and caring He found love in a place and time where it pretty much could've been impossible, and he spreads that love as far as his bare, sleeveless arms can reach.
He's a dick, but he's my dick. He whittled his boyfriend a damn finger, he deserves to be a little obnoxious every now and again as a treat.
So yeah. Black Pete does not NEARLY get the appreciation and recognition he deserves. And neither does his relationship with Lucius. And I wanna thank Matthew Maher for his incredible performance of this incredible character. Thank you!
(Also he's trans because I'm trans and I said so <3 ok bye)
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