#karmaland analysis

[shikai-the-storyteller]

Actually no, let’s expand on the theme of memory in Karmaland and how it plays into the series’ overarching story as a whole.

In Karmaland, heroes are reincarnated (or pulled from other dimensions, however you may see it) time and time again. Their memories are wiped, and they’re a complete blank slate with no recollection of any of their previous lives at the beginning of each season.

...Or at least, that’s how it’s supposed to go. But some things outlast lifetimes, and two of the biggest examples of that in this series are love and trauma.

Let’s look at Luzu — betrayed, hurt, and left heartbroken in K4 — who cannot shake his fear of betrayal even in a new lifetime. In this current world, he operates with automatic wariness and distrust of everyone (with the exception of Quackity, to some degree), and although he still retains some of his old kindness and compassion, the grief from his past life is so strong it almost erased that part of him entirely.

In Karmaland, the strong emotions and meaningful experiences you have in your lifetime, whether good or bad, leave behind invisible marks on your soul that cannot be erased. And nobody exhibits that better than Rubius and Vegetta, especially after today’s revelations.

An undeniable truth that almost feels written into the very fabric of Karmaland’s universe itself is that Rubius and Vegetta love each other. The problem is: that love has very different ripple effects on the two of them, and each subsequent life they live.

This season, there’s clearly love between both characters, but a lack of commitment to that love, and a emotional imbalance to their relationship as a whole. When trying to explain it to a third party, Vegetta said, “Rubius doesn’t love me the way I love him,” and jokingly likened it to him making Rubius a hamburger, but Rubius refusing to eat it. Vegetta is, of course, always willing to play along with Rubius and reciprocate the affection he’s given, but he’s not expecting anything more from Rubius. The way I see it, it’s almost as if Vegetta’s default response to Rubius’ lack of commitment is resignation. He expects nothing more than what’s given, as though he’s preemptively saving himself from heartbreak.

Except that heartbreak has already happened.

In Karmaland 4, Vegetta gave Rubius his love, his heart, his everything, and the moment they were married, Rubius revealed it was all a con. Regardless of anything that came afterward, in that life or this one, the effects of that moment left behind deep scars on Vegetta’s heart.

Rubius, on the other hand, never seemed to be troubled by any events in his previous lives until today. All at once, he’s forced to remember the life he once lived, but during that confusing revelation, his gut reaction is to ask an old loved one: “What was my relationship with Vegetta?” Rubius is a powerful man with questionable morals at the best of times, but this seemingly instinctual reaction says a lot about him as a character, and his priorities as a whole.

I think one of the most telling moments from today’s event is that, while Rubius remembers the wedding, he doesn’t remember his betrayal. He associates that memory, and his relationship with Vegetta, with joy, and sees it in a positive light.

The difference is: Vegetta associates that hazy memory, and Rubius, with abandonment. And as we’re rapidly approaching Lolito’s and Vegetta’s wedding day, it seems like history is doomed to repeat itself.

With pressure from Rubius and Alexby, and influenced by his own questionable motives and thirst for power, it’s looking like Lolito won’t marry Vegetta after all (and if he does, the marriage certainly won’t be a happy one). Even as Vegetta tries to distance himself from Rubius, he still winds up getting hurt because of his direct and indirect actions. It’s almost as if in every new lifetime, Rubius is coming closer and closer to fully embracing his love for Vegetta, but at the same time, each new timeline is driving Vegetta further and further away from him because Vegetta is subconsciously starting to associate Rubius with negative things.

Broken promises. Lack of commitment. Betrayal. Abandonment.

Rubius and Vegetta are permanently bound together by fate, but that “red string of fate” is slowly killing one of them. Or, to quote a meme shared by another Spanish fan; “You don’t want me to be with you, and you don’t want me to be with someone else. How miserable do I have to be for you to be happy?”

Karma is defined as the sum of a person’s actions in this, and previous states of existence, determining their fate and future existences. So what did Vegetta do to deserve this kind of suffering?

When does love become torment, and when does fate become a curse?

[bistaxx]

Me: k!Luckity were always doomed to end up like this- even if they really both did have true feeling for one another their were just too many issues that would keep them from working out- it was always a toxic relationship and there's been signs of that from even the sweet early honeymoon bliss days of their dynamic... it was always gonna end in a bitter way given who they are... and now things between them seem to be broken forever, they are both set on paths where the goal is to destroy the other even if it hurts to do so... and those paths will likely lead to their own doom as well. It hurts a lot but at least it's a very fun and interesting new dynamic to watch play out. I do think there are timelines where they could've made it work out but those are few and far between... Love wasn't enough, but what matters is that it was there...

Also me: Okay but,,, what if they- if they made-up and kissed 😳- what if they made it work and went back to the sweet happy days 🥺?

[rain-dere]

Hmmm I don’t actually mind this Karmaland amnesia plot as much as the c!tommy finale. I’m not entirely sure why but I think it’s mainly because they’re actually playing into it. Their memories being gone wasn’t actually the end, and they both keep going past that point with Sapo Peta showing them around etc. 

And as time passes and k!Q keeps asking questions, you can almost see the gears turning in his head, like that moment with him not knowing Luzu’s name yet they were somehow both mayors. It’s so interesting as a viewer because you want them to remember what happened! Even if how his and luzu’s relationship went was awful this is undeniably worse! And Quackity even acknowledged that right before the brainwashing happened. 

I don’t know how this is going to go, but I think the theme of people underestimating Quackity is going to continue to be very important. First Luzu, now Sapo Peta. Aaaahhhh idk I’m so excited though even if I can only understand so much of what they’re saying lol 

[antimony-medusa]

MCYT on Ao3 - July '24

It's that time again, looking at the stats on Ao3! My deadlines are crushing me to a fine paste, but at least I have conditional formatting.

Some Notes:

No new fandoms this month that I found! If you know of any, let me know. We are sitting at 54 fandoms I'd consider MCYT, and also Video Blogging!

Fics are still primarily in english, but we have three exceptions with significant spanish fics. Karmaland (794 of 917 are in spanish, which is actually down from 797 last month), Tortillaland (115 of 121 are in spanish, up from 113 last month), and QSMP (1,072 of 10,037 are in spanish, from 1031 last month, when we broke a thousand for the first time.)

QSMP also shows 51 works in French, the same as last month, and 603 works in Brazilian Portuguese, up from 569 las month.

While I didn't do an analysis across fandoms, the @mcytmultilingualbb posted this month, which is 22 mcyt works in non-english languages! Check out the collection here.

In the small and micro fandoms, we didn't see much growth, but the two fandoms that did post a significant increase are higher than last month. My Inner Demons showed an increase of 23, contrasted to last month's 8, and Kaboodle SMP showed an increase of 21, up from last month's 14. However, we didn't show a decrease in any of the small fandoms!

In the midsized fandoms, MyStreet took it comfortably, with an increase of 75 fics! Since being canonized, all of the Aphmau tags continue to be vibrant. Mindcrack showed a decrease of 8, in contrast to last month's increase of 12, so I suspect that is a tagging issue.

In the large fandoms, most of the big powerhouses all posted less than the month before, with Hermitcraft posting 655 in contrast to the month before's 700, QSMP posting 282 versus last month's 396, Traffic posting 401 versus last month's 494, and DSMP posting 265 to the month before's 352. It's notable that that's three months in a row down for QSMP, but Hermit, Traffic, and DSMP were all showing an increase over the previous month last month. Lifesteal's 95 was higher than last month's 92 and Empires 147 beat last month's 145, both holding very steady.

Video Blogging RPF showed an increase of 2,104, very comparable to last month's 2,452, but notably down from 3,548 at this time last year.

[deinotname]

BNHA Fanfic Idea 2

Okay! Now we're leaving RotG ideas aside and going back to BNHA (I also have ONE idea for TROLLS and a bunch of ideas for Karmaland 4 [which you might not know what that is] and some very vague ones for Harry Potter). Anyway, here's the idea:

Warning, this will be long

Title: A little breeze (Like the flutter of a butterfly)

Summary: In which Izuku has a quirk considered "weak", but Izuku is also extremely intelligent, and knows that a simple screw can be the support of an entire large structure. Or, the story in which Izuku obtains a quirk related to the mixture of his parents: Inko can attract small things to herself, Hisashi can breathe fire from his mouth. The result? Izuku can control, in extremely small quantities, cold or hot air currents.

Facts: 1. For much of his childhood, Izuku was teased for not having a Quirk, as during his visit to the doctor, even though it was determined that he technically did have a Quirk, they couldn't figure out what it was. So people assume that Izuku either has a weak Quirk, or he doesn't have one at all.

1.1 His father abandoned him for the same reason, his mother stayed to support him.

1.2 Because they couldn't figure out what it was, there was a record that he had a Quirk but the box was never filled out. So, in the civil records, instead of being marked Quirkless, it just appears empty.

---

2. Since his mother stayed behind to support him, she taught Izuku how to control his Quirk (initially). Also, seeing during the first few years that Izuku would come home from school beaten up, and because she's a nurse, she taught him first aid and took care of preparing a small first aid kit for him for any emergency.

2.1 When they discovered Izuku's quirk, Inko was so happy for her son that she forgot to carry out the Quirk registration. This was when Izuku was 9 (not a late bloomer, they just never identified his power before).

---

3. When Izuku is ten years old, Inko is killed in a villain attack (she actually dies in the cave-in that occurs during the fight) and the heroes do nothing to help her or Izuku (when they find out). Izuku runs away from the police, angry at the heroes and determined to be better than them.

3.1 Being the clever little guy that he is, and for the convenience of the plot, he manages to hide his identity well: he temporarily dyes his hair (with washable paint), wears fake glasses, covers his freckles or paints on marks, among other ideas.

---

4. He goes to public libraries to learn. He watches parkour videos and starts training (he gets hurt a lot at first, but slowly learns). He also looks up martial arts fighting videos to learn how to fight. He eventually starts practicing gymnastics to become more elastic.

4.1 He originally tries to keep up with the school program he is supposed to follow, but because he is homeless, training on his own, has no money, and struggles to get food and live the day, he drops out.

4.2 He still teaches himself, but only subjects he finds relevant: improving his reading (so he can learn other subjects), English (potentially can help him pretend to be a foreigner if someone recognizes him), basic medicine (he remembers his mother's teachings), history (he became interested in the subject and it helps him with research). He will eventually learn advanced mathematics, so he can calculate how much wind power he will need for certain movements.

4.3 He still carries out his hero analysis, but instead of writing it down, since he doesn't have many resources, he stores it in his memory.

---

5. He uses his Quirk to help him with his stunts, he's a bit faster, can do more risky turns and jump a bit higher. He can also slightly withstand different temperatures (since he controls the temperature of the breeze).

5.1 Much of his practice is due to the fact that he needs to use his Quirk constantly to survive (running from dangerous guys or surviving the cold of the night). He uses his Quirk so often that he managed to slightly increase his power and incredibly his resistance using his Quirk.

5.2 When he exceeds the use of his Quirk, his head starts to hurt and he has trouble breathing, as if he were short of air.

5.3 He can eventually use the air currents to create a barrier between him and fire (it doesn't work as a constant shield, but as a temporary shield to move before receiving the blow). He can also eventually use the currents to create air bubbles around his head to resist underwater.

5.4 He uses the breezes to climb walls with parkour even if there is nowhere to grab.

---

6. His vigilante name is Breeze, as according to the people he saved, or the guys he stopped, he comes and goes like a breeze.

6.1 Due to suffering from Quirk discrimination (having no or weak one), Izuku doesn't like bullies, and always puts them in their place when he's Breeze.

6.1.1 He saved Shinsou, Monoma, and Toga. He talked to Monoma's parents (who didn't know their son was discriminated against) and they agreed to take care of Shinsou and Toga. Izuku later runs into Dabi, forcibly adopts him, and then gets Monoma's parents to adopt him as well.

6.2 He meets Eraserhead in his second year of being a vigilante, when he saved a girl trapped in a building about to collapse. Izuku uses his power in two approaches: running faster and pushing some falling debris out of his way.

6.3 Eraserhead tries to catch him (to bring him to Ingenium for adoption into their agency) until he realizes he's a child. He then starts bringing him food, helps him improve his fighting styles (good moves, but sloppy in several spots). He wants to gain his trust so he can help him. We're team Dadzawa here.

[fandomanimatic-tournament]

Fandom song animatic tournament: Bracket 2 Side A Round 2

Achilles Come Down ([Blank] Come Down) - Gang Of Youths

"Achilles, Achilles, Achilles, come down Won't you get up off, get up off the roof? You're scaring us and all of us, some of us love you Achilles, it's not much but there's proof"

My R ([Blank]'s R) - KurageP (Cover by Rachie)

"Just as I was about to take my shoes Off of the rooftop, there I see A girl with braided hair here before me Despite myself, I go and scream 'Hey, don't do it, please!' "

Remember that we're voting on how Iconic they are for ANIMATICS, not for the song itself. In order to make things fair, the tone and mood of the song should not affect how iconic it is (for example, a serious song should not be considered more iconic than a joke song just because it's serious)

Propaganda and animatic links of the songs under the cut:

Achilles Come Down - Gang Of Youths

Propaganda:

No Propaganda Submitted

Animatics with the song:

DSMP Tommy Animatic

DSMP Wilbur Animatic

Unus Annus

BNHA

Rain World

My R ([Blank]'s R) - KurageP

Propaganda:

I cant explain this one other than i just remember seeing it a whole whole lot

CMONNNNNNN THIS IS THE MOST ICONIC SONG POSSIBLE FOR AN ANIMATIC ITS EVERYWHERE also a banger

my r is such an iconic song for animatics, there are so many different interpretations of the song and it’s so lovely to see all of them in different animatics across different videos not to mention the comment sections usually have like essays of in depth analysis which is so good bro also it’s so catchy my r sweep!!!!!

Animatics with the song:

Mystic Messenger

Heathers

DSMP Tubbo Animatic

OMORI

Karmaland Evil Luzu Animatic

Please be cautious and read the title, description and warning cards on the animatic videos if you decide to watch them. If you've got specific triggers I'd recommend even more caution when watching animatics of fandoms you don't know, since sometimes canon-typical themes don't get warnings.

[cokemcyt]

I don't want to make a post trying to guess what character has what stance on justice and what would qualify someone as a criminal because I don't understand the characters well enough to do that sort of analysis. But, I think it's interesting how canonically all these people from different worlds have been brought to the island.

Some people came from a world where jail is for murderers. Some people came from a world where jail is for griefers. Some people came from worlds without any sort of jail or prison. Some came from Hell itself.

It'll be more apparent if Cellbit's past is publicly brought to the light and people get asked what their thoughts on it are. We've already seen it with Roier, someone who sees jail as a slap on the wrist for griefers and thieves (specifically for breaking into houses. Like Karmaland.) He's with Cellbit 100% no matter what and doesn't take jail seriously. And while Bagi is 100% with Cellbit as well, she sees jail as a serious place where criminals are punished for breaking the law. It's an interesting difference to see!

It's hard to compare worlds where you have permanent deaths and people who go to jail for killing and worlds where your deaths are trivial and people kill for fun. I'm excited to see what other character reactions we'll get as time goes on!

Self-indulgent section because Technoblade never leaves my brain. Biting and Chewing.

SMPEarth in my brain ever forever. Antarctic Empire!!! They took over the world!!!!!

Phil. Philza Minecraft. Angel of Death, husband to the Godess of Death. Co-leader of the Antartic Empire alongside Technoblade. Technoblade! Techno who he took over the world with. Who was known for his PVP prowess because he was a fighter, a killer, a legend.

If survival games are seen as cruel and malicious, what would the people of the island think of someone like Technoblade who played them for fun. Someone who killed for sport? As a challenge to himself? Someone who played Bedwars and achieved a streak of more than a thousand victories straight with a team of skilled players just to prove it could be done.

It's hard to imagine Phil would judge Cellbit for his past in Survival Games when Phil and Techno are killers as well. (They took over the world together!!!!!!!!)

Oh, how different the worlds can be.

(Also, I don't know if Roier would ever come to integrate stuff like Squid Games and Chafaland into his lore, but. Imagine... ^_^)

[froggyrights]

Hi everyone! Since a couple people were interested I made a small blog recommendations list 🌟

These are all people I personally love to see on my dash! Specifically those i know well enough to comment on or people I like that I haven't seen on many other follow lists floating around.

If you enjoy following me you'll probably like these people's blogs as well.

-

Mostly Dream SMP content:

@carpedzem my c!dnf partner in crime!! also an amaazing artist and good lore posts!

@elliotl beloved dreblr member, general Good & Nice presence and good c!dream posts!

@cdiskduoisms I would trust his opinions on discduo with my LIFE. Writes so many incredible dsmp fics you neeed to check them out

@dorito-with-no-weakness both based c!dream & dsmp stuff and fun other mcyt posts!

@call-me-apple also dreblr! every apple Post I see I go woah. thats based. Recommend.

@kiuda her c!dream headcanons make me So sad. Posts analysis and cc content too!

@rutadales there's no one whose c!foolish analysis i trust more! Also a lot of c!dream, cool art and general mcyt content.

@simplepotatofarmer such a cool blogger! posts awesome c!Techno & c!rivals stuff and posts about their chickens (!!) There's no negatives here

@bigbaras recently started posting their c!dream and dsmp art on here and wow. Woooooww. Wow.

@foolsocracy posts dsmp stuff! Makes aweesome art like their c!Sam design is everything 2 me

@cgogs one of the like 6 other cdnfers on this site woo 🥳 I'd mention him just for that but she also has awesome analysis abt cclingy and cawesamponk

@yumgrapejuice I'm a huge fan of grapes endersmile fics!! Also blogs about c & cc dream :)

@kenjo-arts posts so much cool c!dream and dsmp art!!

@theminecraftbox can't rec dsmp blogs without mentioning their blog ! Has the best c!prisontrio analysis on the website for suure

-

Mostly CC content:

@dteamtogether pandasblr! Posts mainly sapnap & dtqk+!! Blaze is awesome follow him neoooww

@dtqkplus the url says enough right? Also reblogs tommy and wilbur stuff, if there's a good post I'll probably see it on their blog

@catboydweam all sorts of c & cc dream stuff! Also talented fic writer!!

@dnferisms posts general dtqk+ content, definitely a fun addition to your dash!

@alien-girl-21 mix of mcyt and general fun posts. My go to for updates on what Quackity has been up to on Karmaland!

@gnfghibli dteamblr and some other mcyt comtent, really fun to follow

@respiteresponse posts suuuch wonderful mcyt/dsmp art!! Mainly dteam and tina from what I've seen, it's awesome

@calamitydaze posts general dtqk content and also makes the most heartwrenching dsmp webweaves ever. Such good c!Quackity & c!fiance opinions too

@f4c3 literally a dteamblr staple. Where would we all be without f4c3. Has been here for ages & will outlast us all

@tinogie posts mainly abt dtqk+, always has something fun/interesting/cursed going on in their askbox. Also very talented dnf fic writer!

@foolishgamersbf my favorite foolish gamers enjoyer!! Posts abt foosh and tina mostly, runs @tooshdaily as well!

@sappymix1 dteam main, posts tons of mcyt stuff, very fun to follow!!!

@georgelore one of the first dteamblr blogs I followed in like 2021 and never regretted my decision, just posts good mcyt content

Also honorable mention to Leo @hoshogie who doesn't post mcyt content but you should follow xem anyway thank you👍

[karmalandboxinmyattic]

To all of you making deep analysis and meta-ing in the Karmaland tags:

I love you. You are the light of my life. I can know stupid useless details about the series but you are the ones that actually interpret things and put it to words. I Love You you beautiful beings

[shikai-the-storyteller]

UEUEUEUEUEUEU ILL SEND YOU THIS WHILE WAITING TO SEE BOBBYS STATUS.

Dw idm u answering publicly, I want everyone to be cursed w the thought that Rubius is a babygirl and a very bad one at that <3

Honestly I've only read a few explanations of their lore and bits about their relationship but they seem sooooo,,, /pos. Like they have such a fun and silly dynamic that has this air of toxicity and their loves feels quite self destructive bc rubius is kind of a destructive force of nature of a person who has a tendency to hurt those around him, perhaps as a defense mechanism or perhaps out of simply not understanding there are consequences to the things he does while vegetta is someone far too forgiving, he continues to love rubius despite how much he hurts himself, others, and vegetta himself. I'm not saying cubito rubius is an awful person but from what I've seen he is,,, complex. Difficult despite seeming silly. I could be just completely wrong tho LOL I am doin my best I prommy

ANYWAYS IM CHEERING U ON IN WRITING!!! I'd love to talk to u abt them more and learn more abt rubegetta bc like. Look. Theres no way q!vegetta isnt hung up on that demon idc,,,

I'm likewise waiting for the Eggstatistics (which will probably get posted while I'm in the middle of writing this) (EDIT: IT DID) and you gave me the opportunity to infodump so prepare for an essay LMAO

There are SO many layers to Rubius and Vegetta’s relationship (both romantic and friendship-wise), and that complexity makes them fascinating characters to study. I’ve been discussing this a lot in private lately, but I feel like there’s quite a bit of misinformation / misinterpretations of Rubius and Vegetta’s relationship amongst some of the newer fans who might not know some key components of their personality and their relationship dynamic as a whole (which is understandable since the majority of their lore came from Karmaland, and a lot of newer fans only speak English / only watch QSMP), so ALLOW ME TO ELABORATE:

I think of the two, Rubius definitely gets mischaracterized the most (which, again, maybe isn't too surprising since not everyone watched Karmaland and he hasn't been on the QSMP server too much lately). I could go off on a tangent here and list my frustrations about the people who harassed him for his role / his actions during the Egg event / whining about ships to the point where he decided not to log into the server again ‘til the Egg event is over, but that's ultimately irrelevant to this discussion.

“Their love feels quite self-destructive” is a really good way to sum things up, because Rubius is a pretty self-destructive man. Rubius is, fundamentally, a man who is full of love for the people he cares about, but those feelings are in direct conflict with his reluctance to let people get close to him (and his commitment issues). He can freely give hugs and kisses (and more) to Vegetta, but when it comes to expressing his true thoughts and feelings, he’s pretty emotionally constipated. We’ve already seen this a few times on the QSMP server – when Rubius visits on Vegetta’s birthday, he sings him the most beautiful heartfelt love song ever, but as soon as it’s over and Vegetta tries to talk to him, Rubius runs away. Even in Karmaland V, when hooked up to a lie detector and asked about his feelings for Vegetta, Rubius tried to wiggle his way out of answering. Only when the world was literally ending and they all thought they were gonna die did Rubius finally admit his feelings, shouting his confession and his love for Vegetta at the top of his lungs.

(The real tragedy here is that it was so chaotic with everyone shouting, Vegetta never heard his words…)

Although it’s easy to slap the label “toxic” on Rubius, I think that’s unfair to him and his character, as well as his intentions. He truly does love Vegetta with all his heart, in every universe, and he doesn’t want to hurt him, but Rubius doesn’t want to get hurt either. The Meteor shower conversation gives us a clear understanding of that:

Rubius: I don't want to get hurt. I don't want to get my hopes up, and then get hurt. It's happened to me many times before. Especially here in Karmaland. Vegetta: Have you had lovesickness? Rubius: Yes. In Karmaland, everywhere, in real life... I'm already used to getting beaten. Vegetta: That's a pity... Rubius: I just want someone to take care of me, and that's it. I don't ask for much. Vegetta: I'm very protective.

The way I see it, Rubius is afraid of his feelings for Vegetta, because the larger his love grows, the larger that potential for hurt and disappointment gets. Does this excuse all his actions? No, of course not, however there’s a big difference between doing something out of self-preservation (possibly as a trauma-response, depending on how you interpret his character) and doing something with the intent to hurt someone.

IMO, Rubius isn’t a toxic guy, he just needs therapy.

Vegetta doesn’t get mischaracterized quite as often, though I do feel like people have a tendency to put him on a pedestal and minimize the flaws he has. I’m a massive Vegetta fan, but this guy’s far from perfect. He’s self-centered, borderline narcissistic sometimes, and he’s a very prideful man. He’s never left Rubius at the altar, but he’s still had his fair share of “oopsies” and "yikes" in their relationship. One (which I’m surprised people don’t talk about more) is an incident from Karmaland IV where Vegetta, very unhinged and mentally unstable at the time, kidnapped Rubius’ wife Nieves and threatened her with a sword, saying, “If Rubius can’t be mine, he can’t be anyone’s.”

For the longest time I genuinely thought that line came from a fanfic or something, then I stumbled upon the clip one day and I was just like:

Anyways

In Karmaland V, Rubius became very close with a little alien child named Titi. He took care of Titi like he was his own son, and despite his attempts at emotionally distancing himself early on so he wouldn’t get attached, Rubius wound up caring a lot for him.

Then Titi died.

It was basically Rubius’ worst nightmare come to life – he’d let himself get close to Titi, he’d loved him unconditionally and let Titi into his heart, and Titi’s death utterly destroyed him. Everyone in Karmaland was affected by the death, but Rubius took it especially hard because of how close they were. Rubius was hurting badly and resorting to terrible coping strategies to deal with the pain, and Vegetta…

Well. Vegetta wasn’t very nice about it.

There are a lot of ways we could interpret Vegetta’s actions and words during this time – maybe he’s not super sensitive when talking about death since he’s probably some kind of demigod, maybe he speedran the grieving process, maybe he thought brutal honesty and direct action would help Rubius “snap out of it” sooner. However you see it, ultimately it did a lot more harm than good for Rubius’ overall mental health.

I bring these examples up not to paint their relationship as toxic or negative, but rather to express just how complex it is. Because, despite all their mistakes and drama and heartbreak, at the end of the day, Rubius and Vegetta still love each other more than anything else. Even towards the end of Karmaland V when they were quite literally on opposite sides of the battlefield (one supporting Quackity, the other supporting Luzu), their true loyalties lay with one another. When Rubius was hit by an enemy, Vegetta defended him with his life, and when Vegetta was hurt, Rubius did the same.

Yes, Rubius doesn't really know how to handle healthy relationships, and yes, Vegetta tends to forgive him too easily, but that doesn't erase the love they have. The key we need to remember here is that Rubegetta is a telenovela that sits squarely in the romcom category. They may wander into other genres and tropes from time to time, but they will always gravitate back to one another. Whether you define that as fate or soulmates or just sheer dumb luck, the facts remain and the love is there.

PHEW anyways that felt good to get out, I have so many thoughts on Rubegetta so I appreciate the excuse to rant. I'm always happy to chat about these two! :D And you're so right - Vegetta is so smitten for that demon, I hope he gets to meet the angel too. I hope Rubius comes back soon so Vegetta can see his Osito Fiu Fiu, but in the meantime, we'll have to keep wishing and praying just like Vegetta...

(ALSO THANK YOU the current chapter of that dang Rubegetta fic is kicking my butt rn because it's the only chapter I didn't outline and life events keep interrupting me when I try and work on it, but it IS getting chipped away at bit by bit! I hope folks enjoy the outcome when it's released :D)

[bistaxx]

Hi there! You can call me Jinx, or Scuttlebug or Staxx if you want! I go by any pronouns including neos- use whatever you want for me! I'm only fluent in English but I am in the process of learning Spanish!

I'm just an American bug blogging about minecrafy roleplay- I mostly talk about qsmp these days but I also talk about Karmaland V! I try to keep things positive and jokey on my blog, I love reblogging fanart/fanfics, and occasionally will drop an analysis post! I also like chanigng my url frequently depending on my mood, but my icon will usually stay the same because I don't want to fall victim to a glitch that marks you as an adult blog if you change your icon that has tragically happened to several of my mutuals <;/3

If you wanna know more about me you can always check out my pinned post HERE! My biggest piece of advice for having a good time on here is to not be afraid to curate your own experience- don't be afraid to mute tags or block people- also do yourself a big favor and download x-kit and the post block extension they are life savers! Thanks for stopping by ^o^

[alien-girl-21]

this probably wont make sense esp. since im talking as someone whose only seen k5 and mostly through translations lol but it's like- k!Luzu hurts to watch because he's both doomed by fate and his own hands- mostly fate in k4 it seems but like that leads into him being set up to fail in k5 because he doesn't remember the full context of what happened to him in k4 so he ends up screwing over himself and his best friend- but also it's like- he could've stopped, he could've trusted Quackity to handle the mayoral position and respected him instead of acting behind his back, he could've supported his friend and tried protecting him without hurting him even if that felt riskier, he could've accepted that he fucked up and admitted to committing fraud, he could've resigned as mayor- when he's shown the video of all of his and Quackity's moments together it hurts but he still decides to keep going- but then again why would he back down when as far as his memories could tell him the pain he inflicted on Q seemed like a lesser evil then letting him become mayor even if it meant breaking their friendship and overtime his priority shifts from protecting Quackity from Karmaland to protecting Karmaland from Quackity and so he can't just give up now but-he doesn't realize or maybe just doesn't want to acknowledge that things at that it turned out this way because he betrayed him in the first place- that the fraud and everything that follows was all for nothing now. And the longer he keeps going the worse the war gets, but the worse it gets the more like Luzu feels like he's in the right for staying as mayor for the greater good even if it hurts- having strayed so far from why he even ended up here in the first place and like- BASICALLY It's like he was set up to fail from the start but he could've stopped but then again why would he at any point- his unhappiness in k5 is both his fault and not his fault like- omg I didn't mean to ramble this much I've just been thinking about k!Luzu a lot lately and it's driving me a little nuts this ended up longer then I wanted it to 😵‍💫 I wish I knew more Spanish to do a proper analysis on him (and the revolution arc in general) because his character is really awesome- I hope this was alright, I like talking about k!Luzu but the language barrier always makes me feel nervous to do so LOL (Also I just want to clarify I'm not like absolving k!Quackity of any blame here because uh he did a LOT of fucked up shit and I share a lot of general sentiments that I brought up here with Luzu with him- like they're both were screwed by shit out of their control but also like neither are totally blameless for their suffering- I have a LOT of thoughts about k!Q too, but I just felt like focusing on Luzu's side of the story rn because of the k4 posts lol and this ask is long enough 😵‍💫)

I accidentally wrote way too much, dorry

K!luzu is soo tragic once you start thinking about it ngl

Since karmaland 4 he did nothing but help people. Someone needed food? He was giving them as much food as he had. Vegetta wated to tame a cat but didn’t have meat? Don’t worry, luzu will let himself be stabbed so vegetta can have his cat, and so on and so forth, He has the biggest heart during the beginning of the series, not only for the heroes, but for karmaland as a whole. Hell, I mean, his house got blown up like 3 times in one day and he didn’t even bat an eye and forgave the people that put the mines there, even if he lost his pig, Manolo, for a while during the commotion.

He said that he wants to be positive and help everyone else in karmaland. He loves doing good things for his friends, he has an entire episode dedicated to cooking his friends’ favorite foods! And when rubius told him it was part of his electoral campaign he said that no, it was because he loved his friends.

I guess one of the most tragic things looking into k4 after knowing what happens after the elections and everything that goes on in kv are his interactions with the hermandad oscura and his first therapy session with auron. Since the hermandad oscura was formed, they have been trying to get luzu to their side, they have blown up his house, stole his pig, and made him steal so they could give him Manolo back. Thing is, luzu never acts exactly how they want him to. They blow up his house? Oh well, he’ll patch it up. They steal Manolo and ask for ransom that has to be stolen? He’ll just put a lot of signs saying he’s sorry in the most nervous way possible while taking one diamond out of fargan’s chest. It’s impossible to make him do evil in one way or another, and they are tired of it.

When they give him Manolo back, they say: “we have seen there is darkness inside you (…) someday, you’ll know more” which he does have, he has that darkness inside him, and it comes out after the election, and it goes full blast in kv. But they try once again, to get him to their side 2 episodes later, when they swap the fake Manolo for the real manolo:

Luzu: there’s no bad blood (between us) after this mishap. But I think we could make a deal because of this. Hermandad oscura: We’re going to do something we normally don’t do, Luzu. There is evil inside you. L: (snorts) okay? HO: We’re granting you a pact. You can do one evil thing. L: You mean I have to do something evil? HO: No, you can tell us we can do something evil, and we will do it. L: This is a lot of power; I have never thought of something like that. HO: The consequences will be yours. L: Okay, so you will be the instrument for whatever evil I want you to do? HO: Exactly. L: Can I say it now? Because I have an idea. HO: Yes. L: Well, I don’t know if you know, but there’s a new Karmaland member (…) There’s a new member in Karmaland, Auronplay, he just started, and I think it would be funny —I don’t want you to hurt him— I want you to do something to entertain him, to welcome him to Karmaland like the rest of us. I think it would be funny for you to block his house and make a treasure hunt to find something, with different tramps, so he has to fight for his life… what do you think? HO: It’s a good idea, but it’s your idea. Everything that happens now is your fault. L: Okay, but don’t kill him, if he dies make sure it’s his fault, not yours– mine.

So, the hermandad oscura does as Luzu tells them, and auron has to do his little quest for some items that the hermandad oscura put in a chest with a code lock in, and every single sign left blames luzu for what happened. But they end up making up after it, so it’s like nothing ever happened in the first place. No matter what they do until before the elections, it doesn’t work.

Then, during his first session with auron as his therapist, they have many moments that just punch you in the face.

Auron: I’ve heard you are a very kind-hearted person, that you are one of the few that enters conflicts and is always smiling (…) that’s what they say, that’s why I’m asking, why are you here?

Luzu: I don’t know if you’re heard, but there’s going to be elections in Karmaland for being the mayor (…) the elections are coming up, and I’ve been feeling this pressure that grows, that I didn’t realize before (…) you know I’ve been preparing my campaign and some friends have betrayed me during this (…) I think that (everyone should have) free choice, you know? Everyone has to be the person they want, but of course, I think: what did I do wrong? What did I do? Because, of course, I made my friend react that way, so I don’t know what I did wrong and I want support so I know how to take this campaign. And if I become mayor, it’s because of you helping me with the pressure…

So yeah, he wants to be mayor, but he feels the pressure, and it’s even more when mangel, who was meant to be the creative director of the campaign, decided to form his own political party. And then you look at luzu in kv, he’s constantly saying to quackity that he shouldn’t mess around in politics, that it’s not worth it. Which I think lines in with what auron says next:

“This is a tricky subject, my father always used to say: ‘never talk about football and politics on the dinner table’. I have to say politics creates many betrayals, many enemies, it’s tricky, and you knew what you were getting into”

What does luzu say to quackity whenever he brought up running for mayor? That it’ll destroy his life, that it’s not worth it. In kv luzu accidentally became auron, he did not only become the therapist of karmaland, but he was saying stuff that auron had once told him to quackity, the naïve kid with a dream (in luzu’s eyes).

Luzu was betrayed, someone decided to step up last second in the election and run along-side luzu, his friends voted for them; his friend left him behind for the other guy because he had power. Luzu was failed by everyone he knew and he fucking snapped. He had flashbacks to this in kv, and that’s why he repeated his own history, to save quackity from what he thought was going to be a fate worse than dying.

Luzu is just surrounded by a narrative that’s always against him. He tries to do good; he tries to be positive, he tries for people to like him, see him as a friend. But it always fails, people think he’s the hermandad oscura, no way a guy is so nice just because; he gets betrayed in the thing that meant the most to him because of the need of power. But he still does good, I mean, if it wasn’t for him the members of kv could have never gone back to k4. Even in kv, if he didn’t trust anyone, he still helped them out, he was still there in all the events being friends with everyone.

Mucho texto, so I will finish with: tl;dr: k!luzu is doomed by the narrative and the narrative lets you know like it’s a slap on the face and I think cc!luzu should be praised more for his storytelling skills <3

[tsui-no-sora]

There's something so interesting to me about the different ways in which Luzu and Rubius take care of Quackity.

In this cap, we saw Quackity with Luzu again, and just like last time Luzu was taking a lot of care of him, explaining to him how certain mobs work, and protecting him from them. He gave Quackity what the mobs dropped immediately, just to show him.

He also went out of his way to search for Quackity, he whole time they were on the mines, even when he got lost very far away from him.

He also was very adamant about ensuring Quackity keeps the backpack, he gave him closed, and he showed him that the rest could totally rob him at any time, wondering if he's never been robbed before. But afterwards, he made sure to give him everything back.

Luzu's priority whenever he was around Quackity, was making sure Quackity was alright.

On the other hand, we saw how Rubius behaved with Quackity.

Quackity already knew Rubius was a dangerous person, and he was seeking him out exactly for it.

And, at the end, predictably, Rubius totally killed him again, but more than that, he also was trying to teach him how to take care of himself around others.

But, what I find most interesting is what happened after Rubius killed him again, when Quackity who still upholds that good faith to the world around him, asks him why he keeps betraying him, even as Quackity keeps trusting him with his life.

Rubius says this: You are small. I'm taking care of you.

It was to introduce you to the rest.

I'm betraying you first so the rest can't betray you later.

I am trying to protect you, Quackity. I am trying to protect you.

(These dialogues are out of order for convinience sake.)

Rubius makes sure to tell him that he's young, that he's small, that he's the youngest person here, and that he needs to be taken care of.

And obviously, this isn't something Quackity can so easily understand. He only screams back, that he doesn't understand Rubius, and his way of protecting him, and his way of caring for him, that he's giving him too many mixed signals at once.

But, Rubius doesn't understand what Quackity can't see, because Rubius knows himself, knows the things he has done, knows that him more than anybody else plays against the rules, and he gets away with it, but that it isn't just him that the rest do too.

Rubius: What mixed signals?

Rubius and Luzu are both very aware of how harsh Karmaland can be. But Luzu is aware on the side of the one who gets betrayed, and Rubius is aware in the side of the one who betrays.

Rubius is aware that the world around him will pray for a moment of his weakness, and take advantage of it immediately, and he's showing that to Quackity.

He's grabbing Quackity's hand, and putting it against the hot iron, so Quackity doesn't forget that it burns, and this approach works, because the rest of the stream, Quackity keeps searching for any opportunity at all, to kill Rubius back.

And at the end, he succeds at it.

And oddly enough, Rubius's reason for dying is believing that Quackity wouldn't try to kill him, because he does very much suspect everything Quackity is doing, and he tells him as much, but he still stepped right on the mine. Because Quackity is still the youngest of them all.

He's almost impressed with Quackity as well, talking about the way he killed him very nonchalanty, and offering advice about how he could have done it better.

Rubius: If you had done it now, if you had placed it there, I totally could have fallen for it.

And through all of this, Quackity still doesn't understand why Rubius does what he does, he himself says he was being too obvious, that Rubius was already suspecting him, that it makes no sense, but he's still so proud of himself.

He even thanks Rubius himself, for giving him this victory, for allowing him to make justice, and get even, for being his first mine kill on the Server.

Quackity: Rubius taught me a lot. I owe this to him too.

And, I think this is Quackity seeing on his own way, what Rubius was trying to do, even if not seeing it directly, he was teaching him how to defend himself.

Quackity made him a tombstone, a crux to signify, a little funeral, to remember his big moment forever, to thank Rubius for it.

That's something only Quackity would do. Something only he would respect and care about. I'm sure Rubius himself would just find it amusing, tbh.

And, that really shows the way Rubius has taught him to think about the Server, as a place you have to fight to earn respect in, to earn victory throughout, and that's what I find so interesting, in the ways Luzu's character, and Rubius's character, introduce the world of Karmaland to their youngest, newest member, Quackity.

The one who they are always calling child, and young, and small. The one they are taking care of.

The key difference is: Luzu who says he will take care of Quackity, because he is his elder. And Rubius who tells Quackity, you better learn to take of yourself here, because you are the youngest.

Defensive vs Offensive

I will take care of you vs You better take care of yourself

Basically, too long didn't read, Luzu's way of protecting Quackity, and teaching Quackity how to protect himself, is showing him trustworthy people, keeping him close, and teaching him to defend himself, and defend him himself.

While Rubius way, is to show him the hurt first hand, is to make sure Quackity totally knows, that Karmaland isn't trustworthy, and something will always go wrong. Rubius, way is to teach Quackity that the best defense is a good offense. That it's better he got betrayed now than later on.

That before he can be hurt by anybody else, Rubius will hurt him first, and that Quackity before being hurt by somebody else, should hurt them first.

And he succeded on it, because Quackity killed him too, at the end.

[ladyddanger]

Thinking about k!Quackity and his deep deep need to belong. Even without his memories c!Quackity had this deep heartbreaking need to loved and cared about. He declares Willy and Staxx his parents and follows them around. He stubbornly stricks off on his own into caves but loudly complains about Luzu leaving him alone with just enough humor for it to be counted as a joke if you don’t look close enough. It’s just him.

[shikai-the-storyteller]

Literally have no words or reaction pictures to describe how fricked up I am rn over Luckity and Karmaland as a whole. Right now, I’m thinking about the theme of betrayal and self-sacrifice and how Luzu’s character is a contradictory combination of both. How does it feel to love someone so much you’re willing to sacrifice yourself for them? How does it feel knowing that very sacrifice is a betrayal -- not only to the person you love, but also to yourself? At the beginning of all this, Luzu said he was willing to endure Quackity’s hate if it meant he could protect him, but was he really prepared to lose himself in the process?

It’s ironic, and very tragic, how Luzu and Quackity’s characters handle sacrifice and betrayal. They were both willing to sacrifice the best parts of themselves to achieve their goals

[shikai-the-storyteller]

I just woke up to see some of the biggest Rubegetta accounts on Twitter talking about one of my rants on Rubius and Vegetta's relationship, I feel so proud :')

I really do love Rubius and Vegetta and their mess of a relationship, but I sometimes get in my head and worry that I don't portray them / their relationship well enough since I only joined the fandom during Karmaland 5, so it's really really cool seeing veteran fans being like "this is a great explaination" :''')