#last one not intended to be ship but interpret it how u like ^^

[sethiescope]

some of my favorite phones for the holiday. HAPPY NATIONAL TELEPHONE DAY!!!

[galvanizedfriend]

hi yokan <33 I hope everything is going well !!

I wanted to ask you two things:

1. I know you get asked this a lot, but is there any chance we will get an update this weekend or the next? 🙏🏻🙏🏻 (I'm asking specifically about the weekend because, from what I remember, those are the days you usually update, but you know, I wouldn't be opposed to a surprise👀)

2. this is more a "personal" question. So, I noticed a few times that Klamille fans bring up the fact that "Klaus called Camille his soulmate." I usually try to engage as little as I can with anything related to that ship (I'll never understand people who do the opposite. Don't like? Keep scrolling.) but I was genuinely getting curious, so i decided to look up the scene... Now, I'm not usually one that does a lot of slander on ship/characters I don't like, not publicly at least, but GOD, How the hell did the Klamille fans managed to came up with the whole soulmate thing?😭 having a "deep connetion" ≠ soulmates. He had a deep connection with Elijah, Rebekah, CAROLINE, Marcel, and even Hayley. he used to have one with aurora, too. Now, Camille is literally a therapist, IT'S PART OF HER JOB TO ESTABLISH A CONNECTION WITH HER PATIENTS. so, really, maybe I'm biased, but I can't see the soulmate thing even under a magnifying glass. Anyways, all of that just to ask you, what's your take? I'm pretty sure you will agree with me, but I just saw that specific scene that everyone keeps referring to whilst you watched the whole show multiple times, so ofc you have a bigger view of the whole thing.

love u tons. I can't wait to read the next chap <3 xoxo

Hi, friend! :) How's it going?

For the first question, there won't be an update this week. There's a small chance for next week, but it really depends on how much time I get to write and edit, which is unclear. But I'm almost finished with the chapter. There's a key scene I'm getting a little stuck on, but the final three ones should be more straightforward because they're less character-centered and more plotty, those are usually easier to get through for me.

As for the second, I was very confused for a moment because when did Klaus ever say Cami was his soulmate... 😂 I think you mean the scene where he tells Hayley that the person he shared a connection with is dead? That seems like a bit of a reach for me lol Doesn't he talk about his connection to Caroline as well in 5x11? By those standards, he has two soulmates? And I'm sure he said similar stuff about Aurora, he calls her a kindred soul or something, which is a lot closer to saying someone is your soulmate than saying you share a connection. Either way, to me it really seems like a bit of a stretch lol But I guess Klamille fans were given crumbles really, their ship was very badly treated and kind of lived in the shadow of another ship, so they do what they can with what they're given. IMO, Klaus saying to someone that he intends to be their last love and will wait for them for as long as it takes, considering he's immortal, is a lot more meaningful, but that's just me 😂 I'd never tell someone that they are wrong though, it's their right to interpret the shows whichever way they want and people are always going to be biased about these things. Ship and let ship!

[witheredoffherwitch]

The Strongs are not the good guys in Alys' story! They made her their servant and wet nurse for their babies when she herself was unmarried. What does that mean anon? It means in the best interpretation they were cruel and in the worst they must have abused her themselves!

Read critically what u consume.

The only sin Aemond did against the Strongs as far as we know and can be sure was murdering the young boys. That was wrong.

But in Alys scenario, aemond has done less/no canonical abuse than her own family.

Hi nonnie, thanks for the ask.

Careful now, you are making too much sense! Your theory would be the most obvious take-away for anyone familiar with the world of asoiaf. Bastards are not treated well unless you were fortunate enough to be sired by Stark male member (because Starks usually do not subject kids through brutal ostracization because of some mediaeval honor-code: Jon and Theon are good examples of that!) -- BUT other than that, you were pretty much fucked! Rhaenyra's bastards fared well because 1) the mother held a more privileged position (due to which her kids were ensured certain protection), and 2) admitting their bastardry would have tried Rhaenyra, Harwin and Laenor for treason.

Secondly, I think it is fair to conclude that House Strong wasn't some tight-knit 'loving' family. Sure, we've seen brothers gossiping during Rhaenyra and Laenor's wedding but apart from that, the house functions like any other Westerosi house. Lyonel Strong doesn't confront the truth about his grandsons until Harwin makes a fool out of himself in the courtyard.. and by then, the severity of the said matter was long-overdue and extremely consequential to the point of non-avoidance. The younger brother didn't even flinch before killing off his dear father and brother for some political gain. If Larys 'the Clubfoot' Strong did not feel any kinship with his family, then one can assume that reception of a known bastard is going to be less than ideal.

Thirdly, we still don't know how are they going to portray Aemond during his Riverrun arc. I keep saying it because Aemond (along with Alicent and Rhaenyra) is altered from his canon version. In the show, Aemond never insults Rhaenyra and only ever maintains a cold indifference towards her. He isn't shown to be some raging misogynist. He only insults the Strong bastards after Luke displays an absurd lack of self-awareness during that dinner scene. And in the Storm's End segment, he doesn't chase after Luke due to some back-handed comment from Maris... but rather, that conflict is shown as an extension to the last dinner scene. BUT the most telling of all is how Luke was killed off in a supposed accident - meaning that Aemond never intended to kill him in the first place. Interestingly enough, there was a deleted scene where we see Aemond giving the camera an evil look, but that part got cut in post-production for some reason. Instead, they chose to end the scene with his distressed expression.

Now, do I believe Aemond will experience some radical arc change? NO! But the way the future events unfold will be certainly DIFFERENT! That's why I am both skeptical and mildly optimistic about how the show might portray their relationship. Aemond and Alys are both heavily misunderstood characters - and this alone opens a massive potential for this couple than some other speculated ships. That being said, this ongoing hate for Alysmond is very forced - and it says a lot when the majority fandom has just discarded her as someone put their beloved prince 'under a spell' or is a homewrecker for pulling Aemond from their own crackship.

[tojiscrack]

since j cannot stop thinking and DREADINGGG the angst, i have theories on how the rest of the storys gonna play out (sorry if this is incoherent i am on my deathbed, and my thoughts are all scrambled so um)

OKAY SO. i think.. k*mo and mermaid will get together. (😐) cuz we know he likes her, and like how IIIII interpreted the tutoring scene and how fast they clicked, is shes gonna develop feelingd for him as well (EVENTUALLY) BUT!!! this is gonna cause distance in mercupines friendship BECASYEEE

i think he has SOME sort of idea about his feelings for her?? maybe not fully come to terms w it? but i think he recognizes that he feels differently towards her then like, he feels towards nobara (and not that shes his childhood friend) but its also the little things, like when they had that movie night, and he was FIGHTINGGG nobara to sit next to mermaid, and in one of the recent chapters w his football helmet.

LIKE theyre both definitely huge idiots but i like to imagine that hes a BITT more in terms w his feelings

(i also think hes BEEN aware of his feelings for her since the middle school chapter i rhink??? whenever it was when he was acting “weird” towards her. BCWUASEE we never found out what was wrong w him, so im just imagining it to be he has like an “OH FUCK I LIKE HER” moment.)

back to y/n, i think she LIKES megumi, but like doesnt really know it?? shes not aware of it, shes CLUELESS!! i just reread the scene w tsumiki and kamo, snd from my understanding, pretty much everyone knows they like each other (💀)

adding on to the “kamo x mermaid” (WHAT is their ship name) i think when theyre together, kamo is gonna get jealous of megs and hers friendship (maybe not JEALOUSSS but i feel like hes gonna be like “can u distance urself he obviously fucking likes you” (perhaps even beinf like “do u like me or him??” 👀)), but idk how she’ll react?? like i could see her being like “no hes my BEST FRIEND and he does not like me like what r u talkinf about” OR “hm okay but im not COMPLETELY cutting him off..”

i also think kamo x mermaid wont be like.. a “serious” relationship?? IDK maybe it will be but they are NOT endgame (mercupine 🤞)

okay this is off topic, but you follow the jjk storyline as close as you possibly can in a “everyone lives/nobody dies au” (WHICH IS RLY GOOD its one of many things i love about this fic and ur writing) but will anything happen to tsumiki?? like (jjk idk what chapter spoilers!!) ik she dies (or her body does at least) but BEFOREEE that she was in a coma (i think thats what it was i need to rewatch jjk). ik shes a huge part of megumis canon character, and im just wondering if itll play a part in this fic

one last thing becayse this was WAYYY longer then intended (i apologize), but i think itll be interesting to see how mermaid is gonna take the angst seriously?? regardless if my theories are close or way off, the only way to resolve angst is by handling it seriously, or by dying but i HIGHLY doubt that will happen, and weve never seen y/n in like a serious situation. the only one off the top of my head is when megs was acting weird, AND EVEN THEN she did NAWT like beinf serious. im just waiting to see her step outside of her comfort zone to resolve this becahse weve never really seen that side of her. IM JUST INTERESTED IN WHICH DIRECTION YOU TAKE WHEN WRITINF HER LIKE THAT

(i also lowk cant wait for the angst so i can assign sad songs to their scenarios 😶)

ooh a prediction? gimme more 😋👍🏽

(on a separate note, gET WELL SOON, I WAS SICK LIKE 3 OR 4 WEEKS AGO AND IT WAS HELL, I WOULD NOT WISH IT ON MY WORST ENEMY 😭)

‘i think… kamo and mermaid will get together (😐)’ — at least TRY to hide ur distaste, damn 😭🤚🏽

but interesting, very interesting. i cannot confirm nor deny, ‘cause you will CONTINUE to go into this story blindfolded (even if i wanna spill the beans so badly) 😋

‘and this is gonna cause some distance in mercupine’s friendship’ — well… it wouldn’t be angst if something didn’t go wrong 🌝 i just won’t say if that’s how it’ll play out or not 🙂‍↕️

‘i think he has SOME sort of idea about his feelings for her??’ — if i speak rn— 🙂‍↕️ all my plans would go to shit so i’m just silently smiling to myself LOOOL 😭 i also like the comparison between nobara and y/n, i think mercupine’s relationship is quite different to their relationships with anyone else in this story, and for a variety of reasons than what you might think

‘i also think he’s BEEN aware of her feelings since the middle school chapter i think??’ — sure! 👀

yeah the scene with tsumiki and kamo was to showcase how other people view y/n and megumi’s relationship 🌝 idk if everyone has thought of them as an item, but yeah, quite a few people have considered it, and they might be lowkey shipping them internally. the only person who’d try his best to do smth about it would be satoru, the instigator 🫣

i propose mermotionless their ship name unless something better comes along lol 😭 but interesting take. quite interesting, for several reasons i cannot reveal (ofc) but we shall see how everything plays out 👀

okay now to answer ur questionnnn:

JJK219 MANGA SPOILERS IN BOLD AND RED: when i put in the tag ‘everyone lives/nobody dies’, it is VERY much factual. like, i understand her character in canon had a major influence on megumi’s own character, but in my story, i’ve changed it slightly so that while what she believes matters quite a lot to him (he has a super small inner circle that she’s a part of, really) not everything he does is for the sole purpose of her living a good life (i mean, it’d be pretty dramatic seeing as it’s a highschool au where curses don’t exist — like i introduced sukuna as a demon LMAOO). that being said, yorozu will NEVER be intertwined with tsumiki like it happened in canon, and by extension, tsumiki will never die — long live our elegant queen! 🥳 the only grief these characters will go through is the grief of more-than-a-decade-long-friendship 👀 which might be sorted out… who knows…? (me, muahahahaha).

DON’T APOLOGISE FOR A JUICY LONG MESSAGE HOW MANY TIMES DO I HAVE TO TELL YOU THAT 😐🤨 i live for them!!!

i think one thing that everyone as a collective has truly enjoyed so far was the whole ‘serious y/n moment’ (you partypoopers, i love her more when she’s a goof 🤨). all i can say is that you guys win (🙄) you’ll get more of her serious side with the angst (why wouldn’t you? do you expect her to slap megumi’s bum in joy when the angst is at its height? 😭). girlypop is gonna HAVE to be serious then, there’s basically a gun to her head loool

I HAVE TO STUDY FOR MY SOCIOLOGY EXAM IN 3 HOURS SO I CAN’T REALLY ADD MY THANKS AND APPRECIATION FOR YOUR KIND AND SWEET MESSAGES AND HOW MUCH I ENJOYED READING AND ANSWERING THIS LONG JUICY ASK ML <333 SO PLS TAKE THIS AS THE RANDOM TAGS I USUALLY ALWAYS ATTACH TO THE BOTTOM WHEN I’M NOT BUSY 😔💜

your final sentence will be addressed ‘cause there’s a playlist i’ve already begun making that takes you through all the stages in liar, liar

[mileven11forever]

hi! ive been seeing ur posts around a bit and just wanted to ask you a question which honestly isnt related to the show plot because even though i do ship byler i believe mileven is gonna be cannon because a suger mega mainstream show isnt likely to throw away their main ship for an unexpected gay ship which imo would make sense with all the queercoding and would just be sumn new but yknow its unlikely. so my wish for s5 is some serious and good growth for mileven as a couple but back to my question as i mentioned earlier there is quite a bit of queercoding and ig what u could call 'proof' and while i agree some of the byler proof thrown around are stretches and reaches most of it seems pretty plausible which does mean there is a chance that the people working on that show purposely put in those aspects and parallels but for what? (possible queerbait which ick!) and another thing with will and his love arc it seems kinda unfair ik its the 80s and in reality it wouldve matched wills situation but in the end it is a super popular fiction show in 2020s and it does have the liberty to provide some sort of solace to will like everyone else in the show gets some kind of romance but the tortured gay guy should be happy with the acceptance? kinda ouch and on topic of queer characters i personally think robin has one of the most beautiful coming out scenes in tv history but with vickie they did bad to her character like they have barely 5 mins of screen time tgther and theyre basically the same person w the brain and mouth parallel so impo the writers and show producers have sort of messed up with the queer characters(s5 could redeem everything but i have a feeling it rlly wont) plus i mean making will love mike was such a choice like he couldve like anyone else the show has time and time again had clear chances to just either not make will have a thing for mike or get him to confess and or move on and introduce a new guy for him and have a chance of a happy ending but they had to employ the overused gay guy loves his straight best friend trope and drag onto the last season where theres already the battle to the death going on so even if they do get a new guy there will be no satisfying development to their bond. and then practically use his feelings to encourage mike which is just cruel and is kinda harmful for many queer people like i remember just sobbing in my grandmas living room because how horrible that scene made me feel so i just want ur opnions on this as u seem like some1 passionate about the show and an ally. (sorry if its kinda long this my first time ever interacting w anyone on tumblr im rlly unsure how to go about these things)

Yeah, definitely, I think I understand what you mean. Queerbaiting sucks, but I don't personally think that's what this show is doing. I think a lot of the hints people are claiming as Byler evidence is just based on their interpretation, and not what the creators intended it to be seen as. We honestly can't know what they intended without them confirming it, so it's hard to know one way or the other. I don't believe a lot of the evidence for Byler personally, and it just doesn't make sense narratively for the show like you mentioned. I don't know, it's complicated. If anyone else wants to share their thoughts on this, feel free to leave them in the comments. :)

[possessionisamyth]

went through ur resident evil tags, saw everything and felt for the fandom part big time

what was ur experience with it like? what could u possibly NOT like about it? pour ur heart out 🙏

Every old fandom that blows up suddenly with newcomers age ranged between preteens to young 20 somethings is going to be insufferable. You get the "fandom veterans" who've been in it since the first game dropped being "well actually" about every damn thing AND the newer fans deciding to change how the narrative functions to fit into what's currently popular and modern. It's why a lot of the infighting is occurring.

I'm a newer fan, but I am older than most of the fans that have recently gotten into RE these last few years so I'm in this weird spot. I've already stated in past posts I don't give a fuck what the directors or voice actors intended to do with the characters because if the game or movie doesn't show it, then they failed in executing their goals. Leon's VA can say whatever he wants about his Cleon intentions, but since their dialogue nor the execution of it didn't ring as romantic then guess what! It's not romantic! He just has a ship preference! The directors said Death Island was supposed to be Jill's comeback, but guess who gets most of the lines? Leon! Some comeback right? Guess who FAILED in executing their intentions so it doesn't count as canon. Those guys!

I also don't care about what information is found in old game faq magazines from the early 2000s that "prove" one backstory or another. Is it interesting to now how the fandom behaved when certain games and movies dropped and their responses to it? Yes! Is it cool to look at interviews from past VA's, face claims, mocap actors, directors, and writers to understand their inspiration when it comes to creating those stories? Absolutely! Is it fun to have this knowledge because you like the media and there's a lot of fan made stuff to sift through already? Of course! Are you an asshole when you start lauding any of this information as canon without being able to point out exactly where it happens in the game I'm playing or movie I'm watching?

Yes.

Yes, you're an asshole.

I've fumbled with my own takes and interpretations. Nobody's perfect. I get information wrong sometimes and end up doubling down when I should step away. We've all done it. Sometimes the block button hits you before you can apologize, and you just gotta live with it. I interpret things differently in and out of the moment. Everyone does. Why else would there be a whole subset of people who market Piers as this really important character for shipping reasons but then decide to magically absolve him of the very real and dangerous power he had over an amnesiac Chris in RE6? Why else would there be a lack of people giving Ethan the same smoke they give Mia for not viewing Eveline as a child but a thing that needed to be killed? Why else would there be people who treat Leon like a poorly written woman character by giving him a pussy and making him a crybaby bottom who needs to be babysat and comforted and gets pregnant by Chris or Krauser, but there's also strange lack of any trans woman narratives for him despite many artists or authors being trans themselves? Different interpretations is why! :) (Side note: I love trans man Leon narratives. Most of you do not write him the way he is once you've given him a pussy tho.)

I haven't left the fandom. Like with all of my media interests, after the initial boom where it consumes me is gone, I just go to my little corner and make things I like with the hope I run into a few people who also like it. I'm still in the tags looking for news updates, finding art that I like, and skimming past other people's perspectives on the story. I'm also going to the biohazard event in USJ either this month or next month.

I don't know if you wanted a vent post with like a numbered list of issues I have with the fandom. Since you've read through my RE stuff, you've probably seen me touch on all my issues with fanon in passing at least once or twice. If you're looking for something more specific, you'll have to clarify tho. Thanks for the message!

[izzyisafreak]

what do u want to happen in OFMD season 2? 👀

I have so many thoughts, thank you for asking! Here's a probably incomplete list of things I want to happen:

1) Lucius being alive, literally don't care how or why but bonus points if it's funny, and bonus bonus if he's hiding on the ship and that becomes part of a major plotline

2) Would love to see Izzy slowly come to understand that he really fucked up with Ed, and see him try to fix it

3) a scary Kraken the scariness of which mainly stems from him completely losing any remaining sense of self-preservation, thereby leading the crew into dangerous situations without plans (this is the behavior that really kicks Izzy into gear, lord knows he does not vibe with casual disregard of self-preservation)

Just to ramble about that point for a bit, I can see the Kraken being a scary presence on the ship, especially around the others, but bonus points if they make it clear that he's only putting it on in public (i.e. Ed crying alone last season). He had gotten just a glimpse of being able to have what his mother and the world told him he'd never be able to have, fancy things, Nice Things, and whether Izzy understands it or not, I think the way Ed interpreted their convo was through that lens. What was he thinking, thinking he could have that kind of life. That he could try to be a nicer person. He sees the Kraken in himself and he's terrified of it. But now he has convinced himself it's the only thing he's allowed to be. Honestly i don't think Izzy was intending to do anything more than bring Blackbeard the strategist, the brilliant sailor he admired, back. The Kraken doesn't have self preservation, because deep down, Blackbeard doesnt want to live if he's living that way. So i feel like that's going to get the remaining crew of the Revenge into trouble. and as Izzy said "I'm not dying, not for that ponce and not for you." So I see Izzy coming to realize that this is not what he wanted and coming up with some kind of plan to fix it. This might inherently involve some character redemption for Izzy but i really would love for him to stay a grumpy grumpy bastard at the same time. This brings me to

4) Izzy still an angry little man but we get to see his whole antagonistic vibe used in ways that are actually helpful for everyone else. Would be very fun to see him get along with the rest of them, but in the way where he's reluctantly grumbling the whole time and they're all like 'and this is our angry guy that we've adopted, if you look at us the wrong way, he'll probably kill you 😊'

Back to the Ed situation, to combine my earlier hopes into a hope that relies on 1 and 2

5) Izzy (and like the entire remaining Revenge crew except Ed) discovers Lucius in the walls but only AFTER he's already started to realize he needs to do something to help Ed. Then everyone gets to team up on some crazy plan to like, go get Stede or something idk

6) First Badminton brother style, Ed sees Lucius as a ghost and it's both sad and hilarious. Ghost!Lucius is basically the voice of Ed's inner conscience, letting us as the audience hear Ed's internal conflict without him having to voice it himself.

7) speaking of the Badminton brothers, i want there to be a triplet. Then after Stede somehow accidentally kills him in some ridiculous way, I want there to be another badminton, some other family member, inexplicably played by the same actor but now with no canon explanation. I want this to continue in the same inevitable pattern of them dying and another one showing up (always the same actor) until the end of the show. Endless Badmintons. I think it would be absolutely hilarious

8) Jim gets to have some murder attempts, as a treat, mainly of Blackbeard and Izzy, mostly in the early part of the season. Would love it if Izzy is very very aware of the danger they pose whereas Blackbeard comically somehow doesn't notice every single time (if he did that'd be bad for Jim probably so better for him not to notice, also funnier too)

9) would absolutely love to see Izzy duel someone but like in a context where we're rooting for him and he gets to look deadly competent and very very cool. Bonus points if it helps redeem him in the eyes of Stede and/or the crew

10) a slowburn love story for Izzy, like it would not be resolved or even Near Resolved by the end of season 2. I'm pretty biased toward an eventual Pete/Izzy/Lucius because 1) i think it'd be cute and 2) i would die for actual polyam representation, that would be so cool. But I'd take anything, I just want him to start healing

Though to be clear, I don't want it to be the romance that heals him, that's why I want it to be slowburn. I want him to be an active participant in his own healing, would love to see clear signs that he is Trying. He's still a bastard, but he's a bastard who will sit and watch the talent show without complaining. Would love to see moments where he snaps at someone, starts to walk away, stops and grimaces at himself, turns back and through gritted teeth attempts to rephrase whatever he said in a nicer way. Then the fact that he is trying, is getting better in his own way is what opens him up to have more meaningful relationships with other people in the crew.

11) Lots more backstory for the rest of the crew + Izzy. Whether that be through literal flashbacks or just mentions of what they did/where they came from before the events of the show, I would love to get more info about everyone.

12) would love to see Black Pete go through some kind of development re: his what seems to be compulsive lying or strong need to boast about things and the way he idolizes Blackbeard. I think the latter part is going to fizzle out as soon as he finds out Blackbeard tried to murder Lucius. But it would be interesting if someone (I'm biased toward Izzy lol) just kinda confronted him on it and were like, dude why do you do that? You don't need to try to impress people all the time.

I'd like it to be Izzy because I love Izzy but also because I think he'd be like, if you want people to respect you, then just work on being a fucking great pirate. Learn how to sail, how to swordfight. Fuck, if you agree to take it seriously, I'll teach you. Don't make me regret this. That could be a season 3 plotline for all i care i just think it would be fun and would help them both. I want to see Black Pete become truly competent in his own right, get to the point where he can be like, i did this really cool thing and it was badass, and he really did do it, and people really do believe him.

13) during the early season aftermath when it's still just the few remaining crew on the revenge, I want Frenchie to pull off a really cool con, fuckery style, but in a similar vein to what he did on the rich people ship, and i want it to get them out of a situation where they otherwise could have died, and I want everyone to be very impressed, especially Izzy

can you tell i like Izzy, he's in like 90% of my bullet points lmao

14) i want to find out where in god's name the rest of Blackbeard's crew went and where his ship is, it's so funny that he literally just left his ship somewhere

15) more subtitled Olivia, that bit killed me I would love more of that

16) oluwande and jim. More please, i love them. That is all. But also Jim having to reveal more and more about themselves over time and they hate it but it fills oluwande with glee so they slowly start offering more and more information of their own free will

17) i think the whole point of the end of last season was that stede and Mary would never see each other again but also hear me out it would be hilarious if Mary met Ed, like, the 'the love of your life is BLACKBEARD?!" potential is fantastic also Mary is awesome and i love her and would love to see more of her

18) post reunion, we see everyone eat breakfast lunch or dinner several times and each time the meals get more and more ridiculous and elaborate with no explanation and a grinning Roach in the background. Also more doctor Roach. More Roach in general ("come back! it's just a dream!" absolute top tier comedy, i need more)

19) oh and duh i want stede and ed to reunite, however they decide to do it is fine, a little angst would be fun for sure but definitely a happy ending with a really sweet kiss would be great :)

And given that i have almost 20 points here I'm gonna stop for now lmao if i think of any more big ones maybe I'll add on more! thank you for coming to my ted talk and thank you for asking!!

[onewomancitadel]

i genuinely think that that last ask you got showcases PERFECTLY how fandom has gotten too close to the creators of their shows. im not saying its necessarily a bad thing, but like the assumption that whats good for the Story thats being told MUST be what is "good" for the fandom (ie what the fandom wants to see) is so...yeah there are definitely creators who knew that what would be a good ending for their story would be what fans wanted most and purposely spited their fans (sobbing in s/pn fan rn lmao) but like... ultimately a story being told is always at the whims of the storyteller, not the audience.

anyway neo fan 🤝 cinder fan: people want my fave dead for hurting their ship even though narratively it makes no sense and would provide no catharsis/genuine development of the story for them to be violently murdered/redemption via death'd.

love u seraphina i finally got a day off again tomorrow so im gonna read more skimming eye and try to get into my drawing headspace bc i wanna draw cinder cradling jaune for you <3

Yes, the anon ask in question. I just want to clarify for other people reading your ask and my response here, I don't believe that anon intended it in the sense that they agree with the conclusion that fandom catharsis is predicated upon the fandom getting exactly what they want. Obviously what we discussed there and now here is that popular notion. I also think, given that it's a popular notion, people are not at fault for believing it, so I hold no ill will (even if the anon asker in question did mean it in the way they agree with it, or the ask was a gotcha of some sort). It's still worthwhile to talk about.

I should note that it can be really hard to tell the agenda of an anonymous asker, for good or ill. I know myself, having sent anons, there have sometimes been misunderstandings. I usually try to assume the better, though sometimes that is a task and a half and I want a fucking medal for it. On the upside, when you get a really good anon and I get to write something interesting (even if it's someone ticking me off), the experience can overall be very positive. So if someone has an issue with me and sends an anon ask, I'm still usually happy to answer it.

I draw the line at people not reading what I say and wasting my time or me not having personal interest in responding to something. It's otherwise a lot of fun. I love being a full-time diva.

Back to the question at hand: the intimate relationship between fan, work, and author is a bit weird to me overall. It gets weirder when the work acts as personal pleaser or personal insult. I mean, storytellers have outright come and said they've changed story direction based on Redditors figuring out the story, or because they don't want to give an obvious ending, or they don't want to give fans what they want purely on the basis of not wanting to give fans what they want... it is totally bizarre.

Then in the reverse, we get the sense of ownership - rather, entitlement - fans have over the way a story should be told, and that the authors should be directly addressing them. I don't think ownership over a story is necessarily bad... copyright has completely transformed the way we think of our relationship to stories... it's entitlement and personal insult that's more the issue. I love R/WBY. I love the way I interpret R/WBY. I like writing about it. My emotional response to belongs to me. No matter what happens, what I invested was meaningful. But that doesn't mean I control the creators. In fact, I think that in itself is the death of art... isn't art a doorway to other minds and worlds?

To speak frankly, I don't necessarily know what Cinder's redemption in canon is going to be characterised like - I can only draw that from other redemptions and make attempts at guessing the overall tonal feeling.

I have some idea of one storybeat we might hit (confrontation between Jaune and Cinder over the Relic of Choice). That's the last Relic and will be when some of the cast returns to Vale, well after Vacuo. I don't know what subsequent development is going to look like. Volume 8 was essentially the Cinder Volume when Ruby had the Ruby Volume of Volume 6. I expect that means things will be lighter in Volume 9, unless Volume 9 involves Jaune development in respect to Cinder. At the rate the story goes, I think we may not get more Cinder interiority for some time. Then again, I'm basing this off of the V4/V5 -> end of V7/V8 development pattern.

I'm not exactly busting to see Volume 9 in this respect - I want to see how they characterise katabasis for sure, and I really like the show lol - but I know we're still a long way off from when we get a definite answer for her redemption, and I don't know what it's going to look like in the meantime.

I hope to be surprised in a positive way. I was seriously shocked they went as far as they did with her (in a good way) in V8. I never would have expected they'd go so far as to make direct cinematic parallel with the Byronic hero painting of Byronic hero paintings with her.

anyway neo fan 🤝 cinder fan: people want my fave dead for hurting their ship even though narratively it makes no sense and would provide no catharsis/genuine development of the story for them to be violently murdered/redemption via death'd.

I laughed aloud, truly. Even if you're arguing from the point of catharsis, I don't think the case is that it is cathartic (in either the tragic or satisfying sense), and then to further that I don't think fans who avidly want her dead would, er, feel satisfied. To do so, we'd need to rewrite the story rather early on.

I didn't get into it in that post or other posts, but I have sort of gestured at the idea that Cinder is more personally offensive as a villain because she killed Pyrrha and not the other characters she has killed, despite the Pyrrha kill arguably being more 'just'. That's interesting! I obviously think Pyrrha is meant to be the symbolic representation of Cinder's misdeeds up to that point (and overall is in the entire story), that's why Jaune's tied to her. So it's doing its job.

It's just that Ironwood is more excusable for point-blank executing an unarmed councillor than the natural result of combat between Huntresses (and the final fight of the Vytal Festival, really). Or like, it was totally out of character or something. That's what I mean about what you're willing to extend towards the character and your perspective. Even seeing that act through Winter and Harriet's eyes doesn't convey the proper perspective conflict to people who are willing to overlook everything Ironwood does altogether. Wasp nest! Wasp nest! I kicked it!

The interesting thing about Cinder's redemption arc is the context it takes place in. Ironwood's corruption arc, chiefly, but we've also got the loaded tragic context of Pyrrha. It's not that I think 'revenge bad' is the ultimate takeaway. The ultimate takeaway is much more complicated than that, and if you validate Cinder's perspective - as I have said over and over - then she was right. She was right to kill Pyrrha. It really is kill or be killed.

The ultimate takeaway involves a much more complex upheaval of the relationship of the characters... and the ideals of the Huntsmen and Huntresses... and everything. That's why it's interesting. Part of the issue with the 'Cinder should die' statement is that the loaded thematic gun in the Maiden power which Cinder carries is waiting to be fired, and when you overhaul/redeem through her, you overhaul/redeem the story by extension. Things mean things!

It's not just coming from a place of, 'Me like Cinder me no want Cinder die', it's coming from a place of serious narrative consideration. Lol

So the more interesting question is how do you answer Pyrrha's tragedy in an interesting way? R/WBY is not a tragedy overall. Pyrrha's sacrifice in the story and the symbolic things her death represents (the death of innocence, the death of childhood) are very interesting. That these are pertinent themes in Cinder's own story is suspicious.

Pyrrha's death means something, Cinder's life could mean something. Come on!!! Life, death, and rebirth!!

Is it 'fair' that Pyrrha doesn't get that? I've seen this opinion expressed. It's not really about fairness because Pyrrha isn't real. It's a story trying to say something. From death comes rebirth, it's why Pyrrha's Fall Maiden candidacy is linked to Cinder. It's not tragedy all the way down forever. The character who believes that and perpetuates that perspective bringing down tragedy on other characters needs to be proven wrong.

love u seraphina i finally got a day off again tomorrow so im gonna read more skimming eye and try to get into my drawing headspace bc i wanna draw cinder cradling jaune for you <3

Love to you as well! I hope you have a lovely day off and my fic is a nice accompaniment to that! That's so kind of you as well, I hope you have fun drawing. I know the scene you're talking about; that's very choice. (o:

Hope you have a good evening and take care! Thanks for your ask. (:

[officialleotolstoy]

Oh Dolokhov/Hélène Brainrot We’re Really In It Now, aka Dolokhov/Hélène playlist annotations!

I stole several songs from a playlist my friends have and I’m not gonna put those on this list, I won’t pretend I came up with those

The ship playlists (since they aren’t for canon couples) are very much based on my headcanons. We don’t get to see them interact literally ever so I’ve just extrapolated what I can. Several of these songs are at least alluding to sex, I don’t really think they actually slept together for various reasons I can enumerate if someone asks, but it’s more about the vibes of the song.

Casual Affair - Panic! At The Disco

It’s literally in the title. Bestie how much more explanation do you need? I don’t even like this song but it’s got the right energy

Those Nights - Bastille

“Aren’t we all just looking for a little bit of hope these days? Looking for somebody you can wake up with?”

Being drawn to each other because of mutual loneliness is a Thing in my interpretation of their relationship, and this hits the nail on the head.

But It’s Better If You Do - Panic! At The Disco

“Praying for love and paying in naïveté”

Again, mutual loneliness and desperation for anything resembling love. Also the “isn’t this exactly where you like me” bit fits because they won’t admit to liking each other outside of their weird intimate moments.

Hurricane - Panic! At The Disco

“Drop our anchors in a storm”

The circumstances of their lives arent super fun at the moment so they find refuge in each other but in a very weird kind of unhealthy way! “We are a hurricane” sort of alludes to knowing that you’re causing problems/your relationship isn’t great.

Almost (Sweet Music) - Hozier

“I’m almost me again, she’s almost you”

It’s about not really being In Love but kind of convincing yourself you are because it makes you feel better in the circumstances. I don’t think either of them were fully into their relationship for various reasons. Not as in they didn’t want the other, more that they were both too aware it would never work for long.

Hall & Oates - Satchmode

“I want to be in love again, with you”

This one’s about wanting the idea of love and companionship more than you actually like the other person, which I feel like kind of fits. This song is framed as one person in love with the other and one hesitating, but i think this works for both of them to hesitate.

Feel Something - Jaymes Young

“Touch me, someone, I’m too young to feel so numb”

The I have tried like six times and I can’t word why I think this song works. I don’t even like it, I skip it every time, but I think it’s got something to do with loneliness and desperation for love driving them to look for it in places they wouldn’t normally? Who knows. Send me an ask if u do.

Another Place - Bastille

“Don’t make promises to me that you’re gonna break”

They could never actually be together for SO many reasons and I think they’re both pretty aware of that. They have no desire to pretend that their relationship is anything other than what it is (“we only ever wanted one thing from this”).

When You Were Young - The Killers

“You sit there in your heartache, waiting on some beautiful boy to save you”

I do not think Hélène expected Dolokhkov to save her from anything except maybe monotony and loneliness, but this song slaps and if I can stretch the lyrics to work, I will

broken - lovelytheband

“I could be lonely with you”

Almost every song on here (including this one) is just. We’re messed up and I know we won’t really find love in each other but we might find solace for a while and be less lonely so uhhhhh wanna kiss me or what

Bleed Magic - I DONT KNOW HOW BUT THEY FOUND ME

“You stand up, stand up, before I drag you down”

They are NOT good for each other! Toxic relationships uwu

Sweater Weather - The Neighbourhood

I believe in bi4bi Hélène/Dolokhov

Enemy Fire - Bea Miller

“Sweet words from a serpent’s tongue”

This song is kinda complicated and parts of it don’t fit but the energy of “everything sucks including you but at least we can hide from the suckiness together” is sorta there. Originally I just added it for the soldier vibes because I was testing out songs but I realized i can fit some of the lyrics so on the playlist it goes

Angel of the Small Death and the Codeine Scene - Hozier

“Her sweetened breath and her tongue so mean”

They are horrible and cold to each other as a love language. This song is essentially just “Wow my evil scary gf is so hot” and you’re right Fyodor. She is.

Shut Up and Dance - WALK THE MOON

I won’t lie this one’s mostly a joke, I just think the vibes of telling someone to shut up as (maybe because) you’re falling in love with them is Dolokhov/Hélène energy. Ignore all the parts about wanting to be with her forever and her being his destiny that is not why I added it.

Lone Ranger - Rachel Platten

“I’m just gonna leave, ‘cause baby I’m a lone ranger”

I do not think Dolokhov was intending to stay with her forever at all. Very rude of him. However, she probably also knew it wouldn’t last forever, she’s not stupid.

House of Memories - Panic! At The Disco

“Promise me a place in your house of memories”

This is very much post-duel, their relationship has fizzled out but it was pretty important (do I mean emotionally or to the plot? I’ll never tell) and deserves to be remembered.

American Beauty/American Psycho - Fall Out Boy

“I’m the best worst thing that hasn’t happened to you yet”

SO MANY of these lyrics are so good for them like. Hélène’s beautiful Dolokhov’s a psycho... “you take the full truth and you pour some out” can you imagine them being open and honest with each other? Yeah, me neither. “We were pity sex” They were just sad and lonely! That was what allowed anything to happen at all in my head (not sex but bear with me it’s not my fault those are the lyrics). “All those dirty thoughts of me, they were never yours to keep” because Hélène is married to someone else, they really have no right to think of each other that way.

Sk8er Boi - Avril Lavigne

“He wasn’t good enough for her”

UNIRONICALLY THIS SONG. Hélène’s complaints about Dolokhov staying with them are just the quoted lyric. “They had a problem with his baggy clothes” yeah Dolokhov’s not as rich and bougie and the rest of them and he’s certainly rough around the edges. And then the skater boy ending with a successful music career vs Dolokhov ending with a successful military career and a great reputation and both the women in the songs having sad endings...I’m not wrong.

Headfirst Slide Into Cooperstown On A Bad Bet - Fall Out Boy

“Does your husband know the way that the sunshine gleams from your wedding band?”

The affair vibes. The AFFAIR VIBES. And the concept of “I will never end up like him [the husband]/ behind my back I already am” in reference to using Hélène and deciding he hates her right after deciding she’s hot...okay! I see you kinning Pierre, Dolokhov. You ARE being just like her husband :/

You Give Love A Bad Name - Bon Jovi

“Shot through the heart and you’re to blame”

This is just Dolokhov’s massive I Hate Women monologue condensed. Stop blaming beautiful women for YOUR attraction to them maybe 🔫

Death Valley - Fall Out Boy

“Don’t take love off the table yet”

This is not a table sex joke this is not a table sex joke this is not a table sex joke this is n-

I didnt add it for that reason it was about a vibe but then. I realized. Now the original reason doesn’t even matter.

Nobody Puts Baby In The Corner - Fall Out Boy

“I’ll be your best kept secret and your biggest mistake”

Tell me the quoted lyric does not SCREAM Hélène/Dolokhov. You can’t. Also “I’ll weigh you down I’ll watch you choke/You look so good in blue” really captures hatred as a love language.

This is Love - Air Traffic Controller

Ok I stole this from my friends’ playlist but I did want to explain it because it’s not JUST Dolokhov and Hélène in my mind. The whole jealous fool second verse gives me Pierre around the duel energy as well

Bad Boy - Cascada

“Be my weekend lover but don’t be my friend”

Bernie Sanders voice I am once again asking you to hear me out about the unironic meme songs on my War and Peace character playlists. It’s got the refusal to admit that she actually likes hanging out with him down. The line “after some time you just pushed me aside” referring to Dolokhov teasing Pierre about their affair because he got bored. “I dont need you in my life again”...YEAH I’m fairly sure they dont interact in canon again after that.

Hayloft - Mother Mother

“My daddy’s got a gun”

This song started playing on accident once when I was listening to this playlist and I was like huh. It fits though. The gun thing is twofold: 1) Though he is not her father, Pierre does have a gun in the duel and 2) I think Vassily would happily shoot Dolokhov for his relationships with Vassily’s kids. It’s also just the general forbidden love vibes mixed with the violence vibes.

affection - BETWEEN FRIENDS

“I’m looking for affection in all the wrong places and we’ll keep falling on each other to fill the empty spaces”

Have I been clear enough about my thesis that their relationship is based in mutual loneliness? Also, I like the acknowledgment that this is in fact the wrong place. I think they’re both very aware of that.

Walk Away - Franz Ferdinand

“Yes I’m cold but not as cold as you are”

This song is for them post-duel. Especially the “I cannot stand to see those eyes as apologies may rise/I must be strong, stay an unbeliever” because 1) I hear the word eyes, I think of Dolokhov and 2) I think she’s too smart to believe any apology he would give her, she knows he doesn’t really mean it. The song kinda reads as someone trying to convince themselves they’re happy that the relationship is over, which I think is definitely what happens for both of them.

Van Horn - Saint Motel

“Tell me do you hate me? Or do you wanna date me?”

Obsessed with the dynamic of “I like you but that’s embarrassing for both of us I’m gonna act like I hate you instead”

[snkpolls]

SnK Chapter 130 Results

The chapter poll closed with 1775 responses. This month’s poll results were brought to you by u/staraves, Crunchwrap, Luna, Momtaku and Giovata! Thank you to everyone for your support!

RATE THE CHAPTER

Maybe it was finally getting Eren’s POV, or maybe it was finally seeing the rumbling in nine glorious double page spreads. Either way “Dawn for Humanity” was very well received with close to 70% giving it the highest possible rating, marking this the most acclaimed chapter since chapter 123.

Beautifully drawn and written. I like the teasing of Eren's PoV

Good to see some Eren and Historia (finally!!) but the lack of answers is really hurting my heart, cmon yama!!

Epic chapter, amazing artwork. And astonishingly, with 5-6-7 chapters left i still don't know where this is going.

Definitely in my top ten best chapters. The ending was gloriously horrifying to read. Also, we finally got some Historia content, which is a big plus.

Cool as hell chapter.

I feel like this chapter wasn’t that great. It kind of gave way to more speculation without giving many concrete answers. The things that it DID answer felt like stating the obvious.

Tease me more, daddy Isayama

This chapter most likely is the best i've ever seen. So many answers and sooo many questions left behind. This chapter directs us to think about the previous chapters and obviously ISAYAMA'S THOUGHTS. That thing makes me happy. I'm very grateful.

Death is on its way, ladies and gents. Also the end is almost here. What the fuck is going on? I just want some answers about  E V E R Y T H I N G (especially about Eren's psyche).

Is there a singular word for the feeling of a mosquito bite?

  WHICH OF THE FOLLOWING WAS YOUR FAVORITE MOMENT?

“The revelation of Eren’s freaky final boss form” was our favorite moment (22.7%) followed by “Eren’s POV finally! Sort of?” (15.8%) and “The rumbling! At last!” (13.4%). “Historia and Eren’s tense discussion on the farm” came in fourth (11.6%).

Fuck yes! Erens back!

Our Queen has finally returned!

The whole chapter was building up to the reveal of Eren's titan form, and I enjoyed it.

Finally back at our one and only true hero Eren.

SWIMMER TITANS ARE NOW THE GOLD MEDALIST FOR THE SWIMMING CATEGORY IN OLYMPICS 2020 special edition

FINNALY HISU POV, even if it’s just a flashback. Honestly I’m just happy to see her again, becuase she’s my favorite character, and even if the flashback gives more questions than answers.

loved zeke-eren bro talk

everyone who thought that Floch was lying in charter 125 are 🤡🤡🤡

reiner tiddies

  WHO WAS THIS CHAPTER'S MVP?

“The colossal synchronized swim team” made an impressive showing (28.5%) but their majestic moves across the ocean were not enough to topple Eren (53.6%) for chapter MVP. Historia (8.1%), Zeke (5%), and Annie (3.5%) also received some love.

EREN IS THE GOAT

Eren is the worst boy in the world.

EREN JAEGER GENOCIDAL MANIAC

I really missed Historia, so it was nice to see her.

can the rumbling start a synchronized aquatic dance?

  WHAT DOES THE CHAPTER TITLE "DAWN FOR HUMANITY" REFER TO?

I thought of it as some sort of "End of the world" titling.

Dunno; but it doesn't really work if the rest of the world gets rumbled, does it?

I want to see the japanese title to decide

Eren wants to kill “animals” to give a new life to “humanity”

A dawn, or a beginning of a new day, has arrived. Whether this new day is a good or a bad one for humanity, we do not yet know. Everything is still possible, but once this day is over, the world as we know it is no longer here, for better or worse.

A new age for humanity is incoming. The story will end as a tragedy with Eren achieving his goal.

Dawn means the start of the day. So I think the start of the rumbling will be the start of humanity for this world. I think we started to see this with the world fleet being there to try stop eren. I believe every country is helping people flee regardless of race. Maybe I'm just too idealistic.

Ce chapitre fait reference au fait qu’eren est pret a tout pour sauver ses amis

Eren will achieve his goal (end the cycle of hatred)

Hope for humanity outside the walls. Dawn for me is something like hope, even if today was a bad day, tomorrow, after dawn, things might get better. Maybe the Warriors-Paradis alliance will somehow reach Eren and stop the Rumbling?

dunno but got the vibes of ‘it’s darkest before the dawn’ might be a tip for a change coming

Eren has now officially started eradicating the world and also it's dark ideas against people on paradise and conquering freedom for his people and that is why this moment onwards is "the dawn of humanity "

Dawn for Eldians to be exact. Dusk for Marleyans.

Finally defeating Eren, ending the curse of Ymir and freeing everyone from the shadow of Titan powers.

Dawn of Terror? Dawn of "What The FUCK Is That??" Dawning that the remaining places of humanity are to be trampled?

It could refer to a ""dawn"" for the alliance, who intend for neither side of the conflict to be eradicated, as they believe everyone is part of ""humanity"". Despite their deliberation at the beginning of the chapter, the fact that they're finally setting sail to stop Eren is testament that they've not lost their hope in the pursuit of this ideal, hence they can be interpreted to be the ""dawn"".

Eldians in Paradis Island being free from the wrath of outsiders and being avenged

I think it refers to a new beginning a new start for the eldians living on the island or it can be used as an ironic way that the humanity outside the walls is going to end so it's complete destruction hence the beginning of the new cycle

The Rumbling & Historia's child, humanity's destruction and its rebirth

Continuation of "End's Eve" as this is the dawn of the day where humanity fights for its continued existence

"Dawn" refers to Humanity's realisation of many things. Eg: how Eldia is not a weak nation, how the Rumbling wasn't a lie, how people are people and they are all the same - wanting to live and shedding the same blood no matter what nationality they have. "Humanity" refers to those still alive and realizing these things.

Dawn of the final day - 24 hours remain

  WHAT ARE THE FUTURE IMPLICATIONS OF ANNIE DECIDING SHE'S TIRED OF FIGHTING AND NO LONGER WANTS TO STOP EREN?

Despite learning that her hometown is doomed, just over half of respondents feel confident Annie will stay the course and continue to work with the alliance. Among the rest of responses, 27.4% think this will trigger Annie’s exodus, selecting “Annie will leave the alliance and try to be with her father,” 16.9% believe this will cause Annie to do something stupid resulting in her death, and lastly 4% of the fandom believe this bad news will trigger Annie’s homicidal instincts causing her to switch sides and join Eren.

Annie saying she didn't want to have to be prepared to fight mikasa, Connie, armin, jean, Reiner and eren again made me feel sad for her ;-;

I just wanna say that it wouldn't make any sense for Isayana to bring Annie back and then write her out so it's obvious she will continue in the alliance lol (but I don't really agree with any of the options offered, I think she will decide by herself to stay)

Poor Annie's breakdown made me feel terrible for her. I still think she wants to leave but I think there are chances of the Warriors and/or Armin convincing her to stay and fight. As one of the nine shifters, she kinda has the responsibility to fight, even if she doesn't want to, and I get completely why she doesn't want to, poor thing. I have a sneaky suspicion that she might choose Porco's way out and we might yet see a new holder of the Female Titan power. :(

  WHAT WILL BE THE FATES OF THE ELDIANS IN LIBERIO, SPECIFICALLY THE WARRIORS' FAMILIES?

When asked about the residents of Liberio and the fate of the Warriors’ families, a combined 58% believe that they are alive for the moment selecting that they were evacuated (39.3%) or else managed to escape (18.4%). Close to 30% aren’t so optimistic, believing Liberio is flattened and they are dead. We also had plenty of write in responses:

They are going to die, but I can see Annie meeting her father and die together in each others arm by the rumbling. It's sad I know, but it would be a fitting end for both of them :(

They are probably arrive. Either they overcame the Marleyan authorities that tried to surpress, or The Rumbling avoided Liberio entirely. I just doubt they would kill off Mr. Leonhardt offscreen.

They may have started to fight the Marleyans and then ended up flattened by the titans since they didn't escape earlier.

They took a ship to the south and we will meet them including Reiner's family  and Mr. Leonhart.

Am I supposed to feel sorry for these people? I don't. The Warriors don't deserve happy endings for everything they have done.

Bands of survivors have made it out but Annie will meet her dad when he is dead or dying

some died while revolting, some are alive, annie's dad is wounded

They're currently fineish because Eren didn't go where Hange was expecting, hence why all their estimations have been off

I mean, they must be alive somehow. It seemed  that there were only soldiers in Liberio and the others evacuated so I'm hopeful that at least Annie's father survived

I want to have hope ;-;

I just want Annie to see her father again, and for Reiner to get what he wants.

What if the city Eren attacked isn't Liberio? I feel like it's too important to be flattened just like that (thematical resonance + too many side-characters like Eren's own grandfather are there) and we're being misled about the place Eren is attacking.

  HOW DID YOU FEEL ABOUT HISTORIA'S STANCE ON THE RUMBLING?

Many of us had expectations about Historia going into this chapter. Her initially disagreeing outright with the rumbling but seemingly giving in was a surprise to 8.4% who thought she would have been all for it all along, and 19.9% who never expected her to agree with it at all. 6.4% of you expected her to do the opposite of what is implied, with agreeing at first but changing her mind in the conversation, while 23.3% reported expecting the exact turn of events. However, a huge 41.5% of you aren’t taking everything at face value and do not believe Historia does or has ever supported the rumbling.

  DO YOU BELIEVE EREN IS THE FATHER?

After almost 2 years of the fandom fighting over the identity of Historia’s baby daddy, this chapter has finally definitively proven that… we still know nothing. Nonetheless, the narrowly winning belief (37%) is that Eren is the father, closely followed by those who believe he is not the father (34.4%). Some are unsure what to make of the situation (18.2%), and some of you don’t care enough to speculate (10.4%).

there is a TON of hints, him being the father makes prefect sense.

i will bet on my freedom that eren is the father

Historia x Eren ftw!

Eren being the father would be the most meaningful for both the story, as well as for Eren and Historia and their chemistry together if you ask me, though I can accept otherwise.

Whoever disagrees eren is the father doesn't read the manga seriously

I have not any positive thoughts about Eren-Historia's flashback. Just pain, I feel pain for her. I don't get the point to destroy her character like that.

I really hope Eren isn’t the father — it just doesn’t seem right.

I don't believe Eren is the father since it will contradict what he said to Zeke: "I'm only left with 4 years"

Sorry shippers, I don't think we'll ever get a straight answer about who's the father. But I kinda prefer it that way, because then we'll each get to decide what we thinks is correct.

IF YOU DONT STOP THIS I WANNA MAKE BABIES WITH YOU

Still don't care about who's the father

Who is the father?

  HOW HAVE YOUR FEELINGS ON THIS CHANGED DUE TO THIS CHAPTER?

35% went into the chapter thinking Eren was not the father and 30% believing he was, with this chapter doing nothing to change their minds. For those who were affected, this chapter influenced 14.2% to join the team #DaddyEren and 5.6% to burn their membership card. The remaining 15% don’t care enough to speculate.

If Eren is the father, I think it's possible Historia wanted his baby to keep a part of him with her after the rumbling is over, or perhaps it was an attempt to make him want to come back when he's done or even not commit genocide.

why does everyone keep saying Eren is the Father confirmed? There is literally no evidence to support that, and it actually contradicts Erens statement when Zeke discusses Mikasas feelings towards him.

I just want Eren to be the father

Historia's pregnancy smacks of her own plan but I'm not sure Eren is on board with it.

I want confirmation on the father cause if it's not eren ima be pissed off

don't care who the father is, whole world is ending.

I can't stand the mystery surrounding Historia's pregnancy anymore, this is worse than serum bowl.

WHO THE FUCK IS THE FATHER

  SO THEN WHAT'S THE REAL DEAL WITH HISTORIA'S PREGNANCY?

“What’s the deal with Historia’s pregnancy?” Jerry Seinfeld asks. But we cannot answer – we can only sustain ourselves on memes and ship wars. Despite Eren and Historia’s somewhat uneasy conversation, a solid third of you are still pretty sure that Eren is the baby’s father. A little over a fifth of you think she did the dirty with Farmer-kun instead. And another fifth is convinced something else is going on (watermelon baby?), but aren’t sure what. Some of you scream to the sky, sick of all the drama. And a few of you wouldn’t rule out a baby created through PATHS. It might be Ymir’s doing! No, not that Ymir. THAT Ymir.

Historia is playing 5d chess I just know it. I just don't know how yet

Why'd Historia act like that if Eren wasn't the father?

ymir is the father

Eren has to be the father for the good dev of eren & historia characters

I really hope the pregnancy thing is just a red herring, but it wouldn't be the first-time Isayama appealed to fan-service if not.

If I see more speculation on whether Eren is the father I'm gonna puke. I mean how about focus on the real story? Like how the world is about to be destroyed??

We need more Historia. We literally need her POV for the story to make sense right now. I can't believe that with ""5% of the plot"" left Isayama is *still* pulling this all this time? There *has* to be more.

I always knew Mikasa was the father

  WHY DO YOU THINK HISTORIA IS PROPOSING A PREGNANCY?

Despite a majority of respondents believing the pregnancy is authentic, there is no consensus as to why Historia would propose it. The most popular answer when asked was “I don’t know” (32.2%). The remainder of the fandom is split between Historia proposing the pregnancy in support of Eren (23.1%), as part of an alternative plan (21%) or as an act of defiance against Eren (17.6%). Only a small percentage (6.1%) believe she actually wants a child.

What the hell is the pregnancy for? It doesnt make any sense for Historia to suggest that all of a sudden

How did getting eren and historia's conversation make things more confusing😔Like what went through historia's mind when she thought of having a baby i-

What if the "what if I have a child" scene with Historia actually happened EARLIER than the rest of the conversation? It would explain why they switched places, and if Eren really is the father, would explain why he feels he has such a say in Historia's child's future ("even if you agree, I don't" ) , and why when he spoke about the MPs he said "WE have two options: fight or run". It would also give him a  motivation to oppose his friends, since they are trying to stop him.

I don't see his conversation with Historia in romantic light. She was scared of him and Eren was trying to manipulate her with her own words about being ""the worst girl on the world"". We still miss some important parts of their conversation, but if she agreed to help him because he reminded her how ""the worst girl"" she was, then I would be very disappointed. I saw her as strong woman and I hope she will not turn to be a mild sheep who isn't brave enough to follow Ymir's wish and ""live her life with pride"" (or ""live sticking her chest out"").

I have no idea for which purpose Historia want to become pregnant, but I'm glad that I was right that she decide it for herself and doesn't get forced at all!

Historia has a trick up her sleeve and I can't wait to see what it is.

  WE LEARNED WHAT ZEKE REALLY TOLD EREN ABOUT THE ACKERBOND. ARE YOU SATISFIED WITH EVERYTHING WE HAVE LEARNED ABOUT THE ACKERMAN CLAN?

75% of the fandom wants more resolution to the Ackermysteries with 38.4% wanting MOAR and 32.3% wanting at least a little more. Only 22.3% are satisfied with the ackercrumbs we’ve been tossed and 7% have no opinion.

love guru zook

ackerman bond means LOVE!!!!!!!!!!!! sweet for all ackerman related shippers ohhhh

I'm satisfied to see yet another example of people trying to pin eren's BS onto zeke (with the ackerman theories) be proven completely wrong

Mikasa's charachter wouldve been a lot more interesting if her ackerman genes had an effect on her decision making and her trying to overcome them would be a lot more intriguing to see. Instead it turned out to be some lovey dovey pancake bullshit. I mean what would Zeke even know about Mikasa??

WHAT IS UP WITH HISTORIAS PREGNANCY AND ACKERMANS BLOOD AHHHHH

I think the fact that the Ackermans can access the Paths without being shifters is going to be super relevant. My pet theory is that Mikasa will be able to cross into the Paths dimension to kill Eren and truly free Ymir Fritz, but let's see how that goes.

  HOW ACCURATE WAS ZEKE'S ASSESSMENT OF MIKASA'S FEELINGS TOWARD EREN?

One of the few areas of agreement in this chapter was with Zeke’s assessment of Mikasa’s feelings towards Eren. Close to 80% think that despite having never met Mikasa in person, Zeke correctly understands that Mikasa’s concern for Eren has little to do with genetics and everything to do with reasons of the heart. However, the majority of people who took the option of writing in their answer cited both as a factor in Mikasa’s bond.

Eren, when your sadistic and bloodthirsty big bro can see how much Mikasa loves you, you probably should take it seriously lol

Zeke. Is. Big. Bro

He's a lying liar who lies.

usually when panels sway to the right, they are true, so I believe this is the case.

Did anybody honestly not already know this? We learned nothing new from this as far as I'm concerned.

Mikasa really cares for Eren but the Ackerman genes amplify her love for him.

Everybody's emotional attachments have some basis in biology. It doesn't make them any less real or meaningful

we learn Zeke ships eremika 🤔unexpected but naice

The ackerman blood does boost her physical abilities but i believe it doesn't affect her mentally (she probably has ptsd and seperation anxiety)

What is between Eren and Mikasa?There is something we still Dont know.I wish for more Mikasa....

I think the bond itself is clearly related to her trauma but the intensity of it probably has more to do with her Ackerman genes

Both ? Even tho Ackerman genes could have a big part in it

I think Mikasa loves Eren but it's not JUST romantic or JUST familial.

Her devotion is strong on its own- but her Ackerman abilities definitely have played a role in her saving his ass all these years.

Very accurate, he is Love Master Zook.

Only  a fool believe that shit regarding Ackerman bonds and so on. [...] The hate speech I believe is some kind of Eren pathetic attempt to release her of her feelings towards himself, just in case the worst scenario is coming up in not too far future.

The Ackerman instincts amplified her love towards Eren.

Zeke was right [...] As much as Mikasa being ready to snap titans necks in two for Eren is due to her love for him, Eren being willing to go through with a world genocide to prevent Historia's sacrifice definitely results from his love for her.

  HOW DID YOU FEEL ABOUT THE PLACEMENT OF FLASHBACKS DURING THIS CHAPTER?

The majority of the fandom really enjoyed the inception-like flashbacks, but 1/5th just found it confusing as all hell. A sixth of the fandom is just fed up with Isayama blue-balling us. We’ve been in this relationship 10+ years, Yams, it’s time for you to give it up!

Loved the interwoven flashbacks, and made sense considering a lot of the "unknown" conversations(Eren with Yelena, Floch, Historia....) all tie into each other. Made sense to them like this, and plus there is still some mystery from his talk with Historia.

E-H convo should've been shown months ago; now is not the time for flashbacks.

Just Yams trolling the shippers

The confusing flashbacks also reflect Eren's state of mind. The placement was well done.

I don't mind it, but i feel Isayama was, to a certain degree, struggling to work all of this information organically into the story, so he was forced to choose this flashback method to get it out there.

The juxtaposition is very purposeful, while I don’t necessarily like what it implies, it is indeed impactful.

The way the flashbacks were placed would look amazing in the anime, but in manga format it looks a lot more confusing!

People might say this is Isayama being mysterious and showing us everything but revealing nothing as he always does, and yeah and if this was 10 chapters ago I might see that as a positive, but this late into the series it feels like it was just a waste of a chapter.

They were good because they connected with each-other; though I had to reread the chapter several times to distinguish who was talking because it flipped so much.

These kinds of chapters are slightly annoying in the moment, but are more than worth it in the long run.

The Historia flashbacks are confusing af

  WHAT IS THE MEANING BEHIND EREN IMPLYING HE "WANTED THIS", REGARDING THE FUTURE OF THE RUMBLING?

Continuing Eren’s ongoing theme of the question of free will and determinism, this chapter presented us with the possibility that Eren wanted everything that has happened from the start. Depending on your interpretation, of course. The majority of respondents to this question (54.7%) believe that Eren has been convincing himself there was no other possible future due to seeing said future play out in front of his very eyes, and 17.1% somewhat similarly believe Eren did not want this in the conventional sense, and he is an unreliable narrator. A smaller 12% believe this is confirmation that Eren’s vengeful nature caused this, closely followed by 9.5% of you who just think he is a lunatic.

Despite him talking as if this future was fated to happen he still seems aware enough that his own decisions still led to this outcome. From his perspective  all of this was meant to happen because he already saw his future memories, but he doesnt deny that the path he took was still by his own will.

Eren said from the start he would, "destroy them all." He hated being a slave. I think he *does want this. He wants whatever will guarantee freedom.

Both future can't be changed AND Eren is a fucking lunatic

Even if the future could be changed Eren preferred the full rumbling

He literally had no option from the very beginning , his actions is definitely justified .

it's probably all the attack titan's will, not his.

he's trying to fool himself into thinking he never changed

Eren has accepted that the future cannot be changed, and has realized that the unchangeable future is the future that he has always wanted

Eren is so close-minded & immature

I've given up trying to understand Eren's logic. It's just too bizarre. I will wait until the story is finished to form any opinion about him.

Eren was bored in his original universe and wanted humanity to have a threat so he made the aot universe via Ymir and became that threat himself.

Even if a significant part of Eren wants to eradicate his enemies out of rage/revenge, really deep down it’s been shown he wishes there was another solution but right now he doesn’t want to admit he’s surrendered to his destiny. So Isayama’s going to come back to this by having Eren admit to himself he isn’t really free/this isn't what he wants, which will be the culmination of his character arc (what will he do then?…).

Eren kinda forgot about the mothers

  THIS BURST OF PANELS SHOWS A VARIETY OF SCENES FROM EREN'S POV, BUT SOME SCENES APPEAR TO BE FROM A DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVE OR ENTIRELY NEW SCENES. WHAT DOES THIS MEAN?

Nearly 45% of the people who voted, thought it was a deus ex machina move from Founding Titan by Proxy, which granted Eren a glimpse at all Eldians’ memories. Almost a third think that Eren was actually able to control their memories. 14% of all voters are just “wtf…? I dunno” at all the Pathsnanigans.

I don't know and I don't like it. Hope it isn't another pathsfuckery while all I want in life is KRUEGER'S POV.

Eren's path shit also implies the story has always been bending to that moment too. From the pigs, to even Dina from that Bert shard. If it's ever revealed he orchestrated Carla's death to stimulate Grisha and Eren's hatred, the whole demonisation of RBA gets turned on his head.

I don't like the idea that Eren controlled the Smiling Titan but it's starting to feel more and more likely...

The second one except it WILL come up again cause it’s fucking Isayama like tf do you expect lmao

The new POV scenes are definitely intentional but I hope the explanation isn't some magical PATHS stuff where he orchestrated characters (like Dina's) actions or is suddenly an all-seeing almighty being. Grisha was enough pls.

DUDE, THIS MEANS THAT BIRD HAS P A T H S!

dumb answer choice

FT/Ymir lets Eren see the memories of all Eldians. It will come up again. I don't get some of the angles/perspectives though.

It's possible some of these things haven't happened yet, or that Eren has access to the memories of more shifters somehow. For example, Berthold might be a memory Annie or Reiner have and Eren will receive if he eats one of them while they try to stop him.

I have absolutely no idea what the deal is with the Falco and Bertolt memories but I'm sure they're not inconsistency errors considering the care that went into showing that the Mikasa/Grisha/Levi etc. panels are clearly from Eren's POV. I expect answers really soon (and no, I do not think he controlled Dina’s titan to kill Carla, that would be pure character assassination). Hange's panel looks like it's from the future, as well as Mikasa's unfamous 'see you later'. The geese are also interesting but I have no mindblowing theories about them unfortunately..

Excited to see from where Hange without glasses memories from though.

Eren is the air, the trees, the birbs, everything

Marcel is more like to come back from the dead before I ever understand half the shit inside Eren’s head.

If Eren somehow got his mother killed that'll be the ultimate bruh moment

  THIS CHAPTER SHOWED US ANOTHER MEMORY OF FEZ-KUN, FINDING HIMSELF IN TROUBLE AGAIN. WHAT DO YOU THINK IS THE MEANING BEHIND HIS HIDDEN STORY?

The mystery of the Fez persists once again, with this being the tenth chapter since he was first shown. Though by a small margin, the consensus is that the purpose of his story is to reaffirm Eren’s determination to wipe out the world at 44.8%, with 33.4% of respondents believing he will be a tie to Eren’s compassion and remorse for what he is doing, and 17.1% believing it highlights Eren’s inherent hypocrisy for caring for him even though he will die by his actions later. Many write-in options expressed confusion at who this kid is.

Eren believes that suffering and oppression of minorities will never end just by small acts of kindness and simular "passive" acts, like what Levi did, it does not provide a long term solution or prevent Fez-kun'sfrom furder torments, which is why Eren feels like the extreme solution of the rumbling is his only option

Eren gave a mission to Fez-kun

Eren using another kid to get his way without caring about his life. What else is new.

He's the "even someone on the street" part of Kruger's advice to love someone to break the cycle of tragedy.

He’s showing that little boy he has to fight to survive, like he did with Mikasa when they were kids.

I think he found himself in trouble again (he looks to be bruised on the cheek in 120) and Eren will come to his rescue. However I think Eren will not just save him by beating up or killing the Marleyans, but inspiring the Fez kid to take action and "fight" just like he did with Mikasa. This arc has had a lot of focus on the almost inhumane level of violence Eren showed as a kid when killing those kidnappers, so I can see that being for the purpose of a direct parallel where Eren pressured the kid with the fez to stand up for himself.

I think Eren saved Fez-kun of those guys, but then he will kill him later, showing his own hypocrisy (those guys can't do bad to a child but I can).

I expect his shard(s) to contrast the other previously unknown panel from 120: Historia’s shard was revealed to be yet another instance of Eren manipulating a friend by putting his desires above her own, thus robbing her of her free-will. I hope that Fez-kun symbolizes the "beauty in a cruel world"

It show that Eren just have an other plan and not just kill everyone for no reason???? Lest not be that blind :) what esle u want to understund thats an option too? you want isayama to told u?

maybe eren intends for some people to escape when he announced the rumbling which allows people to prepare themselves, idk.

Eren will save their family and he told Fez to lead his family to a certain location that the rumbling won't reach?

What are all these crappy options? He represents Eren’s journey to changing his viewpoint about everyone being an enemy, as he told Reiner.

Just thought he was part of the collage of events, no further meaning.

Who’s Fez-kun

  SWIMMING TITANS?

88% of you welcome your Swimming Titan overlords, but 12% aren’t so convinced - there’s a pretty even chance it’s because the image is just too absurd, too terrifying, or a pants-wetting combination of both.

SWIMMING TITANS

swimming titans

Seeing those colossal titans was crazy

The panel of the titan swimming underneath that ship haunts me in my dreams.

HELL YEAH FUCKING SWIMMING TITANS

  WHEN THE MILITARY SIGHTS ERENSAURUS AT THE END, RATHER THAN CALLING IT THE FOUNDING TITAN OR EREN JAEGER, THEY RECOGNISE IT AS THE ATTACK TITAN. WHY?

Despite the threat of Eren Jaeger previously being referred to by name or as “the Founding Titan”, this chapter encapsulated the horror of the allied forces as they recognised it as the Attack Titan. The plurality (40.3%) is that this was just for the purpose of Isayama being able to drop a “Shingeki no Kyojin” in this climactic chapter, though a close second option (34%) is that there is historical information to distinguish the Attack Titan from the others. 15.2% of you believe the Attack Titan is the Titan Bogeyman for Marleyans, and 10.4% attribute the naming to the fact that it’s attacking them, duh.

I think the Maryleans/World Forces knew it was the Attack Titan bc of the Eldians in Marley (like Annie's dad) warning them ahead of time. I think once they realized The Rumbling was happening, they asked for more deets from the folks who heard Eren's message in the Path's Realm.

I wonder why the rest of the world was only  using Mikasa ships instead of various ships lol

IT CAN'T BE STOPPED ANYMORE

  NOW THAT WE FINALLY GOT TO SEE EREN'S SPINE-CHILLING (BADUM-TSS) FORM, WHAT DID YOU THINK?

This manga has turned into a horror show, and y’all seem to be loving it, according to over fifty percent. Thirty percent are aghast at the sight before them, and nearly a tenth of you don’t really know what to think of the Grim Reaper titan yet. Some of you wanted something more fully formed, but this creepy crawly is freaky enough, isn’t it? Let’s just be glad none of us live in Marley right now.

My jaw dropped when I saw Eren’s titan form. Horrific.

I love Erensaurus a lot. This chapter gave the same level of anxiety that Zeke's attack in Shiganshina gave me. Good

YEAH EREN IS SCARY AS FUCK I LOVE IT MORE FREEDOM MORE FREEDOM MORE FREEDOM

Eren's titan looks a little like the earth devil

Did Eren pick the design of his new Titan or did Ymir just give it to him?

Really interested in where it is going especially because Eren's Titan got lips which could be an indicator for it to have the ability to speak

Eren’s Founding Titan form looks like something out of Silent Hill

I'm not saying anything about Eren's titan. What even the actual fuck, Yams

Oh lawd he comin

  WHY IS EREN'S CURRENT TITAN FORM A SKELETON WITH NO FLESH?

Eren is looking awfully spooky right now. That’s a good sign, isn’t it? I guess looking like a death metal album cover is better than looking like whatever Rod Reiss was supposed to be. 34.9% figure that as this is probably the largest titan ever, it’s just too big for flesh. It’s not like PATHS sand is infinite, after all. 34.6% think that the form is incomplete because of the missing titan powers; this is only a third of his potential scariness! 23% think there’s no real reason he looks like this. Not an in-story reason anyway. Finally, 7.6% think Eren is still not done forming this devilish beast.

Eren's upper skeleton body thing looks like wings of freedom...

The reason Eren's body was like this, if he was muscular, he would radiate a lot of heat, so the Allience's couldn't reach him. But now, no muscle, no heat. They can reach easily.

Eren's form is creepy as hell! I also think he might be dead/dying/the titan now.

Seriously, how the fuck does Eren's Titan move?

When a shifter generates a titan body, they need to have a special task or purpose in mind. Is Eren's titan meant to be a bridge between Paradis Island and the continent?

  WHAT IS ISAYAMA TRYING TO SAY WITH THE PUPPET-LIKE MOTIF OF EREN'S TITAN?

Many have noticed the puppet-like strings connecting Eren’s torso and head to his stegosaurus spikes in the final panel (though not in the first shot we get of Eren -- we’ll just ignore that), but what does it mean? Him being a slave to himself (38%) just edged out him being a slave to fate (36.7%), with a slim minority (3.3%) believing Ymir could be the true puppeteer. Of course, there are the 21.9% of you who are remaining steadfast in the belief that Eren is NOT a slave, he is FREE.

He is a slave to the future memories and instead of trying to find a different way, he is convincing himself that this is what he wants from the start to compensate for how little freedom he has.

He's trying to justify to himself that he isn't a slave

Eren is a slave to that sweet sweet feeling of self-righteous rage.

Ymir might be acting through Eren.

I think eren has become a vessel for ymir and it's ymirs will that we're hearing.

  WHERE IS EREN'S HUMAN BODY MOST LIKELY RESIDING?

The results for this are a mixed bag, with the three most popular answers extremely close in votes. It’s most agreed upon (29.1%) that Eren has no human form, and has merged with the Titan on some level, with a close second (28.8%) being him being separated from the Titan but not in the conventional sense, and using the Warhammer Titan power to operate it from the ocean. 27.9% of you believe he is in the standard position of the nape, and only 14.2% of you believe the head of the Attack Titan could be his true location.

So, does Eren now only have his head left or was he fully healed thanks to Ymir?

where is Eren (No,not his titan)? There is no nape on that thing, just bone

I NEED TO KNOW HOW EREN IS TRANSPORTING HIMSELF

  THE CHAPTER ENDS WITH CHILD EREN'S DETERMINATION TO "DESTROY THEM" OVERLAPPING WITH ADULT EREN COMMANDING THE RUMBLING. WHICH STATEMENT IS THE MOST ACCURATE REGARDING THIS COMPARISON?

This curious panelling choice ends the chapter, giving us a peek at Eren’s inner monologue – but in true Isayama fashion it’s not clear exactly what it means. 45.6% believe it shows that Eren hasn’t fundamentally changed the way he views the world, his will and titan powers giving him the means to influence it. 26.4% think it’s a reminder of Eren’s tragic tendency to believe that peace cannot exist without the complete elimination of an opposing force. 16.8% think it demonstrates Eren’s willing or unwilling continuation of the cycle of hatred and revenge. Finally, 9.1% think there’s a hint here that Eren’s childhood self was cursed with thoughts from his future mind.

ALL OF THE ABOVE

All of the above, minus the P A T H S.

I hate eren do the same thing as what he had been through

It's Eren's tendency to lose himself to the desire for vengeance, which in the mange is always depicted as leading to a catastrophe in the end.

His childhood trauma comes back to him when he sees a loved one die / about to die and feels the powerlessness of having been unable to do anything because of being weak. Then pain and anger return for this reason

It's a parallel showing his determination to fight back against those who would deny he and his comrades their freedom.

It is once again Eren reassuring himself he's doing what's right, by telling himself that the cycle of hatred is what's causing this and that he needs to break it

The thoughts are child Eren, simply overlapping with the current situation. It may not be adult Eren’s thoughts.

THIS BITCH CRAZY.

I just want to say that the history is repeating its self . What we thought it was the past it's actually the future

He is using this memory of his mother being eaten to motivate himself, like a main drive. It's not the first time. Anger/Rage was always the main drive that he used to keep fighting/seeking for freedom

This is already similar to some of the options presented, but I like the idea that this is showing deep down he is driven by his childlike rage, and as much as he tries to convince himself it's for his friends, he really just wants to revel in violence because he's broken and he thinks wiping everyone out is the only way he will be at peace.

  THIS CHAPTER ALSO PRESENTED US WITH TWO ALMOST DICHOTOMIC MOTIVATIONS FOR EREN, BETWEEN LOVE FOR HIS FRIENDS AND HATE FOR THE ENEMY, BUT WHICH DO YOU BELIEVE IS THE STRONGER DRIVING FORCE?

The two most powerful and conflicting emotions driving Eren right now have the fanbase somewhat split over what pushes him further. It seems that most are optimistic about Eren’s prime motivation being the wellbeing of his friends at 59.7%. Meanwhile 40.3% believe that Eren’s love for his friends has been eclipsed by the roiling hatred and thirst for vengeance within him. Even at this point in the story, it’s hard to be absolutely certain – safe to say Eren is a real menace when he feels this strongly about anything.

I feel like I finally fully understand Eren's mindset, even though there is probably still more to his POV. He just wants his friends to be happy and live long lives, so he had to push them away especially after Sasha's death.

This chapter Eren can't disentangle love from fear/hate/loss due to what happened to his mother, which is why his feelings about his friends now manifest so destructively.

Eren's memory chain went from remembering his friends smiling, to Sasha's death and Fez-kun being beat up, and eventually to his mother's death and his vow to kill all titans, showing that deep down he knows his motivation to protect his friends is bullshit and that his "enemies" are mostly innocents, but he keeps moving forward due to hatred and revenge.

Eren has never healed his trauma. It was "eating" him slowly and turned him into this he hated the most - a devilish monster.

I think the chapter settled very well that revenge surpass even his wish of protect his friends

The transition to Eren's pov and the fact we didn't learn anything new beside some basic confirmations, is really strange. And if Eren ends killing the friends he wanted to protect, he will be a complete disappointment. I really am afraid of SnK's ending.

"I want my friends to live long happy lives" he says after treating them like shit, breaking their spirit, and partially ruining their home island with millions of titans. I hope he doesn't act surprised when they show up to stop him (assuming they can catch up of course).

I don't believe the word "animals" align with Eren's current perspective, nor how he sees his "enemies". He holds the same ideals as he did as a child, but realises the nuance of his enemies and how people on both sides are ultimately the same. He just believes this radical action is the only necessary way to end an unstoppable inter-generational conflict in his lifetime so these problems aren't handed down to future generations anymore.

he's being driven both by hatred and love, but right now his rage is winning and he's using the safety of his friends and Eldia as an excuse to appease his conscience.

  ON A SCALE FROM "SECRET PLAN" TO "KILL 'EM ALL", WHERE DO YOU STAND ON EREN'S TRUE INTENTIONS?

This chapter all but confirmed that Eren indeed plans to wipe out the entire outside world for most of the fandom. The majority are skewed towards the opinion of Eren definitely rumbling everything, with less and less respondents holding onto hope that Eren has an alternate plan.

Eren wants this rumbling and he's ready to sacrifice others to get what he wants, even his friends.

I gotta say, I thought Eren would've had a real plan that wasn't just massacring everyone else on the planet. I was already against the plan, but I suspected he'd walk the other side of the ocean and then announce to the world that the existence of titans was no more and destroy all the titans as proof, and all the shifters would just be normal people again.

His goal is to wipe the titans out of this world, and not to flatten it.

I support the rumbling, cause Marley deserved this by trying to eliminate Paradis, but at the same time there are so many good people there(including eldians themselves) that haven't done anything wrong. Military and leaders of marley should be eliminated, but not the poor people that had no choice.

This hateful world is needed to be purged and I support Eren for this. And when Rumbling is over that beast piece of sh** must die by Levi's hand.

I thought eren had a secret plan for the rumbling but after getting his pov this chapter looks like he really is going for it

Somehow, I can't shake off the feeling that we still haven't seen 100% of Eren's plan, there is still some twist waiting. I am not trying to justify Eren's current actions, it's more like ""if there is something that will throw this whole scenario upside down it better come up soon, because right now IT DOESN'T LOOK GOOD"".

I want to believe thtat Eren has a secret plan in the rumbling but the chapter says that this is what he wanted, he had always been like this, he was always “free” sadly, he’s enslaved by his beliefs of freedom that he resorts to these drastic measures.

I think that this chapter confirms two things: one, the Rumbling is Eren's true plan [...] BUT two, there is "something beyond that hell", which is the "scenery" Eren says he saw in ch. 121. I think it's the endgame after the Rumbling is stopped (no way is it going to be completed), and it's what caused both Grisha and Historia to go along with his plan in the end even though they didn't agree with it and thought it was awful. Eren's "everything is still ahead" and the weird cut in Historia's flashback are too... strange and seem to point to this being a game changer and the final plot point of the series.

If the rumble will succeed, then I've spent 7 chapters seeing characters do nothing to accomplish nothing. I don't wanna feel my time wasted.

I unironically want Eren to kill everyone outside the walls. Nuff said.

  WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THE REPEATED BIRD IMAGERY?

Birds are a focal point of this chapter, with the combination of a four-panel tracking of a soaring seagull and a flash of a memory of some nearby geese. The majority of respondents (62.5%) believe the birds simply tie into the theme of, and likely Eren’s motivation of freedom. In a distant second (20.9%) is the answer that it relates to the idea of everyone being connected under the same sky, a fitting motif amidst this chapter’s exploration of the conflict as well as unity of different groups. 12.7% of you are hopping on board the “Eren is a bird now” train, and 4% of you just really don’t like birds.

The two birds from the Paths panels appear in episode 1 of the anime iirc, not sure about the manga though.

Eren is bird confirmed thank  <°^°>

I like the Bird Theory that says he’s transferring his consciousness to a bird. yeah it sounds a bit odd but it’s interesting and I’m willing to accept anything at this point

The birds are secret surveillance cameras

I like birds

idk man this shit is confusing as hell.as for falco thing i think eren has become the bird. anything can happen at this point.

Eren is the Eagle we see in the chapter 91 that Falco says to fly away lmao

  THIS CHAPTER HAD SOME AMAZING ART, SHOWCASED IN THE MANY DOUBLE SPREADS (EXACTLY 9... OH GOD WHAT DOES IT MEAN ISAYAMA??) WHICH WAS YOUR FAVORITE DOUBLE SPREAD?

Whether it was the break back in May, or Isayama’s dedication to highlighting this chapter’s importance, the art has definitely taken a step up and blown us all away. Though it is very split, the final double spread showcasing the commencing of the rumbling garnered the most votes (18.2%). At second (15.7%) was the imposing silhouettes of colossal titans rising from the ocean, and at a very close third (15.5%) was the very next spread, of these titans wiping out the battleships as casually as if they were wading through seaweed. If there’s one thing to make of this from what the winners have in common, we have all definitely been waiting to see the rumbling for a while.

Isayama's improvement as an artist it's inspirational.

the art is god tier

Those Rumbling pages are so gorgeous they make me wanna say "Kill them all, Eren ! Destroy the fucking world !"

Mappa has their work cut out for themselves

MAPPA's fucked lol I hope they're up to the task.

That Attack Titan spread has the single GREATEST bit of shading in this entire manga.

Solid Art, phenomenal design and usage of double spreads

I just wanted to add that this is visually one of the most beautiful chapters I've seen in a while. The colossals, holy shit. I can't wait to see this animated. All of those double-page spreads were pretty fantastic but I have to say there's nothing quite like the chill that runs down your spine when you see all those colossals emerging from the smoke and the mist, where you see for the first time how huge and terrible they are (and also when you realise the first line of defense is already down). I had legit goosebumps.

  CHAPTER 130 MARKS THE END OF A VOLUME, WHICH HAS BEEN FILLED WITH ALLIANCE-FOCUSED CHAPTERS. WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS NOW THAT WE'VE FINALLY RETURNED TO EREN?

After six consecutive chapters focusing on the alliance with no Eren, the majority of you (57.6%) are relieved to finally move beyond the alliance, though have enjoyed the recent chapters, with 20.4% being completely over the alliance. 7.4% say they were originally sceptical but the chapters did well to make the alliance likeable to them, and 14.6% are open to more chapters just focused on the alliance.

Please for the love of God more of this and less of the alliance, the alliance was so rushed and as it's continued it hasn't been developed much further beyond plot convenience. The less of that I have to read before I get to read amazing stuff like 130 the better

i wanted more on the alliance, not flashbacks smh

it was something enjoyable after a while. Especially 126 made me grimace all over the volume till 130 came up. Not saying I was waiting for Eren but it was so cheesy.

Eren chapters are written worse than Alliance ones

This chapter single handedly made up for the below average, cringe-inducing chapters 126-129 Alliance bullshit. I have faith Isayama will create a very satisfying ending for this series now.

This chapter was legit a great way to end the volume off, it truly feels like its really the beginning of the end

  DESCRIBE THIS CHAPTER IN ONE WORD

The top 5 write-ins are below, followed by the average chapter score for each description. This months’ average chapter score was 4.59.

Amazing [4.89]

Epic [4.84]

Eren/Ereh [4.69]

Rumbling [4.46]

Confusing [3.88]

Honorable mention: Ragnarok

We’d also like to mention that there were a lot of write-ins related to genitals and coitus… seems like y’all were really hyped up by that first fanlation >.>

  WHAT ARE YOU MOST HOPING TO SEE NEXT CHAPTER?

Despite this chapter theoretically giving us everything we had hoped for in a while, the responses show that we still want to have WAY MORE answers (34.6%), MORE Historia (16.9%) and MORE rumbling action (14.5%). We’d also like to know where on earth Zeke is and if Floch is going to be the little troublemaker that we know and have strong feelings about. Will the boat make it to Odiha? Will Levi do a thing? Stay tuned!

There's still some mystery that have yet to answer and I want answers

Where the fuck is Zeke

WHERE. IS. LEVI.

i want more eren, historia and zeke. They're interesting. I don't care about the alliance.

"Zekey-dekey-doo, where are you?" ...I'm so done with you guys.

need update on zeke and historia's situation.

I want it to end soon #TeamEren

I expect in the next chapter something more around the alliance and maybe (hopefully) Floch's comeback!

Enough of Hisu, she is just a side character.

Want more Rumbling

All I can say is, I'm beyond anxious to see how the series ends, and it's eating me up inside.

  WHERE DO YOU PRIMARILY DISCUSS THE SERIES?

Most of our lovely respondents are rambunctious Redditors as usual, followed by a fair few from the flock on Twitter, distinguished Discorders, and discussors who want for nothing. Then there are some ravishing real-lifers, titillating Tumblrites, ...aaaand the rest (you’re all great). We’re still side-eyeing you Snapchatters though.

  ADDITIONAL THOUGHTS ON THE CHAPTER?

Honestly I just wanna let it out, but not on google Poll for obvious reasons

Not about the chapter... but you guys always come up with funny answers that I feel compelled to chose even if it’s not really what I think. I love to answer this. Thank you!

Zeke the relationship expert, huh?

This chapter went through far too many dodgy translations for its own good, and even the official typeset had one big mistake in it even though it conveyed the mood of the convo between Eren and Historia far better than all the others.

this is all so confusing I miss erwin

I don't want genocide to be how this ends.  I believe Isayama doesn't intend a story this complex to send a message that genocide is great.  Considering some of the mindscrews he's already pulled via Paths, I'm hoping the best mindscrew is yet to come.

Reiner was a snacc

Historia the Antifascist Queen

This is the best chapter

this series is so great man

This whole chapter was a certified Bruh moment (in a good way)

This whole chapter was about Eren dehumanising. And he killed his mom. I wouldn't be surprised if he'll eventually want to kill all Eldians and his friends either.

Loved everything except for Historian's forced reluctant pregnancy.

Here's to 3 more weeks

I hope Eren doesn’t love anyone from the series.

I feel like Isayama is still increasing the pressure to help his final plot twist, I’m still lost as I really don’t agree with Eren’s actions while I see the fandom going crazy over him. Maybe I missed something, maybe I’m wrong, maybe I don’t fully understand Eren. This chapter felt good, I don’t hate the Alliance because they’re part of what I think is the right choice for humanity, but we all honestly wanted to know Eren’s thoughts or a bit of it, as we didn’t see him for a while. English isn’t my first language I’m sorry in advance, loved your poll

I honestly have no idea what's going to happen and the whole time I was reading it I was internally screaming.

Ok I know Ymir (the lesbian) has been dead for years but I miss her so much. She was the dad. Forget Farmer-kun, forget Eren, it was all Ymir.

okay no offense but where’s Levi ☹️

One big tease of erens pov and who the father is

One of the best chapter I ever read! Love it!

Didn't expect the Eren POV but welcomed it anyway. We now have confirmation he wanted everything that happened to happen and even the implication he orchestrated the death of his own mother. That's very tasty

Eren's pov has been hidden for too long and right now I don't think the payoff is worth it

eren exhibits bird behavior & he killed his mom 😕

Eren is a bird confirmed or some shit

Eren later takes Ymir's place in Paths as a sacrifice for many years to fix everything, learning everything he needs by traveling around as, say, birds, as needed to send to his past self to guarantee "that scenery"

Eren is in control of more than we previously thought and this shows evidence of a timeloop scenario

Eren can see the future and can probably manipulate the pure titans at different points in time like the Founder does. It's also likely he's gonna fuse with more shifters to visit other pieces of memory.

Eren is able to use the full power of the FT, that why he can see not only his own memories, but also the memories of other Eldians. All of them are connected to him after all.

He will turn into a bird in the end

So exited that we finally got to see Eren in his Founding Titan-like form!!!! Can’t wait for next month (AoT fan from Japan)

Enjoyed the chapter due to a return to debating the morality of the Rumbling, and seeing it in progress. Also tend to enjoy interaction between Eren and Historia. However, I think the chapter is slightly let down by being cryptic. It's hard to tell what is going on with Eren due to how scenes from this issue and others can be interpreted.

nah mate do people actually read this?

This chapter marks something that has changed everyone's thoughts. Not just about Eren, but Annie, Historia, Zeke, etc. We heard them speak differently, and got a few answers to our questions. We got to see that Annie does indeed have emotions. That Historia did not want this. That Annie never really wanted to kill, nor does she want to anymore. That Zeke actually cared for Eren. That the father is most likely farmer-kun. It's one of the best chapters we've had. Each chapter we get, we get closer to the end of this wonderful story. I can't wait to see what Isayama has planned for in the final chapters. Truly hoping for the best!

reiner's tits dammit

Despite the devastation, I now feel like there is meaning hidden beneath the madness

Creepy and interesting chapter. The official translation confirms further that Eren is going to destroy the world. I’m hoping that the next volume shifts focus to Reiner a little more. I’m also excited for more loose ends to be cleared up.

Damn, only 5 more to go before the end of the greatest story of all time

Enjoyed it but I’m really hoping for some more insight into what’s going on with both eren and historia, I’m not a huge fan of the pregnancy subplot

eren just wants to see if marleyans are made of cake

Eren makes the most amazing villain ever. Will go down as one of my favorite characters ever if the story ends how I hope it will.

Everyone forgets Historia saw her dad’s memories without eating him, without being a shifter, and without touching Eren. We’re still waiting for the payoff...

Fantastic chapter, though it felt really short

Floch was Eren's lieutenant all along, he was his representative, and his actions are therefore Eren's responsability all the same. Get fucked those who didn't want to believe that Eren would consciously choose Floch, believe in him or to set things up for Eren in Paradis.

I'd like it if the Ackerbond was not as supernatural as it was claimed before. Not because of EreMika, MikaHisu would be much better than both options of this chapter. Now we know that Levi or Kenny's loyalty were real, and it warms my heart. Also, my bastard wasn't lying! He knew about the plan.

It confirmed everything we already knew: Historia didn't support Eren's plan, Ackerman weren't slaves, Mikasa's feelings for Eren doesn't have to do with the fact she's an Ackerman and the fandom is stupid for still believing Eren is the father despite him literally telling Zeke that he can't answer Mikasa's feelings, because he only has 4 years left to live.

My heart was beating so hard during Eren and Historia's conversation because I just couldn't believe we were actually seeing her again, it had been 2 years since we got anything this relevant from her and I also just really wanted Isayama to get on with it and tell us who the damm father was so that we could finally move on to other things. I still don't believe it's Eren, but I'm done with that theory, man. No more teasing, please. Two years is far more than enough.

Chapters like this one, which perfectly captures the culmination of Eren's entire journey, make me glad to be alive at this moment in time to experience Isayama's masterpiece. I'm not ready for this story to end in just one more volume.

The ending of this story will not be a gentle tapping of the brakes but a screeching halt followed by hydroplaning and crashing into a ditch

What if the rumbling is all one big sex reveal party for Historia's baby and the Colossal Titans are arranging all the corpses into a female symbol or something.

For 8 months I have been waiting for Eren Jaeger. My favorite fictional character ever. He comes back in best way possible, wow.

Great chapter, too bad half of this dumb fandom misunderstood it and are falsely claiming it confirmed Eren as the father. *facepalm*

Obligatory mention that eren is a manipulative bastard and is a little too far gone in his goal

Ambiguity: The chapter. More questions than answers, no way this ends in 4 chapters. Overall we are all going "Wuh?" like Historia after this chapter.

We are being fucked with.

I cry, eren has been one of my favourite characters in the AoT universe

I didn't think it was possible for Eren to get any worse, but he always manages to surprise me.

I don't care about eremika or erehisu. I just need my rivaere (: haha

i don't care for the alliance and the ship-baiting was making me weary. I just want more eren, zeke and historia. They're the interesting ones.

‏I don't know what the end will be but i know it will be sad ending!..We all suffer and I mean the world of AOT and the fans who read manga... I will accept all probabilities and the death of heroes, but please do not make Mikasa kill Eren..I mean after all this love that will kill him .. I read many analyzes of the possibility of this happening and I see it as a very bad and irrational end..It is not logical at all..If you did it, the AOT would be one of the worst deeds and to the landfill..Isayama If you have suffered a lot in your life and childhood, we have also suffered in our lives, but please do not bring this suffering into the AOT world

I dont want this to end @ isayama

I hated what direction this story was taking, now I really hate it.

I just feel Isayama hasn't answered so much stuff yet and has also raised the stakes so high that I can't possibly imagine how the story will end. I believe Mikasa's slowly been established as the character who will defeat Eren, but I have no idea how she'll do it... But at least there were beautiful Mikannie crumbs, so I'm happy af and hope they'll have more scenes together now that Annie's about to give up (I mean, there are parallels™ everywhere when it comes to our wonderful lost girls...)

I just hope it's building up to a really good ending.

i just wanna know what's gona happen next man this shit be driving me crazy

I love everything! I hope floch dies though

I love you eren

I need answers!!!

I need Zook back

I really hope this series doesn’t end with a message like ���genocide is necessary for peace” I hope someone stops Eren

I really loved the art and double spreads, and seeing Eren's POV after a while

I think it's the 2nd best chapter we've gotten this arc. The 1st being 123. I loved it. I also think it's putting to rest the secret plan theories regarding Eren. I've made my final prediction for the series. I think it's a tragedy that will end in Eren destroying the world & manipulating everyone's memories except for Historia & Mikasa & a new age for humanity will begin.

I'm so glad my girl's back, but I'm confused as hell. There's definitly more to her meeting with Eren and her choosing to be pregnant, we'll see. Also Zook being a love conselor and having a Ackerman phd was hilarious, I love him even more. Erefloch canon.

If he wanted to protect his friends why didn’t he just forge some Marleyan passport/citizenships for them, god wtf

If you think about it we actually didn’t learn anything that wasn’t already heavily implied

im shook

Isayama gave more than i wanted my heart can't take it.

it was very good thank you for asking

It's finally moving forward (as isayama likes to say)

It’s a good chapter but I still with doubts.

JUST DO IT EREN

Just wanna see ZEKE

Kiyoger Theory!!!!!

l'm glad we got to see a bit from Eren's POV. But I still need more answers ;_; why choose rumbling, Eren??? not looking for justification for his actions here but i just want to know /why/ he did it. Still feel like theres a missing link somewhere tbh.. I just hope the ending of snk wont be a disaster like game of thrones where Daenerys' switch came out of nowhere. At this point I just want the series to end asap, the tension build up is killing me lol.

Leaks for 131 when?

Let’s get rrready to RUMBLEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!

Loved seeing the rumbling but I wish we could have gotten more character driven moments

Loved this chapter! I'm glad we finally got to learn more of Eren's POV and finally learn what was Historia's role in all of this (or at least beginning to learn her involvement in the plan). Seeing him initiate the Rumbling was epic. The destruction is about to begin!

my brain is too small to understand some of these theories

Now we know that Eren and Floch just pretending to follow Zeke's plan ever since from the beginning but I want to gain more explanations of Eren's secret plan

Oddly placed Eren flashback, but I'll take it

Something's up. I'm still not convinced we can take any of this at face value.

So many flashbacks were a bit hard to follow, but it really seems like the series is gonna end soon and I’m a bit nervous about how well any ending will play out

thank you Isayama for this masterpiece

THE ART IS JUST AMAZING but for me its so short 😭😭😭

That Eren with mid long hair is baby

the alliance has come together way too fast and theyve only really had 1 dispute so far. there needs to be more conflict to make it more realisitic. I think annie saying that they won't be able to/don't want to kill eren is foreshadowing this.

the Art is amazing but flashback scenes were a little mess

The chapter was full of messy memories, so it symbolized Eren's brain well :)

I think that now I understand Eren better. I used to believe he had some secret plan, but the true was always there - Eren is not any master mind. His plan was simple - destroy the whole world. The trauma he had after losing his mother has never been healed. It was always in him, growing bigger and bigger. He still cares about his friends, but he is also lying to himself saying that ""he is doing the rumbling  because he wants to see them having long, happy life"". He is doing it because his hatred to the ones who are responsible for Carla's death took control over his heart. Eren is adult, young man but deep down he is still the same, hurt crying child who bears painful memories of losing his mother.  

The cycle of war and hatred is saddening. This ain't something fictional, it's something we have always been observing from the earliest human consciousness :(

We all got a big storm comin

We are NOT ready for this shit

we need annie to live longer pls

Well here’s our proof eren is actually going through with the rumbling.

What it would feel like to be Eren right now

what kind of eva BULLSHIT

what the hell is going ON

Where is Floch

where is LEVI

Wheres zeke?

Yams, you're so diabolic. You  just want to make the real-life's rumbling with all that "confusing' ship tease xD

Yooooo, we need more explanation about maybe, everything? But amazing and bomb ass chapter though

[jpaulfontan]

Clinging to the

Promises of God

You remain in control In the middle of the war You guard my soul I take great comfort in knowing God’s in control, Don’t you? Hello! You’ve found the Senior Adult Sunday school class for Corinth Baptist Church in Singleton, Ms. The title of our lesson for today is:

Clinging to the

Promises of God

This will be the 2nd in a

5-session series under the general heading of; Facing Adversity.

We’ll be drawing Scripture from the 27th chapter of the Book of Acts.

You know, there are more than 7,000 promises from God to us written in His Word. One of the 1st things that came to my mind when I read that was the question: ”Why? I mean, why would God make so many promises to humanity?” The overriding answer to that would be that He wants for us to simply………….. trust Him. So, how can we know that this Bronze-Age book, the Bible, is really God’s word to us? That would be because the Bible proves itself. I don’t know of another book ever written that declares future events with unerring accuracy. Over 25% of the Bible is prophetic. Peter wrote in 2nd Peter 1:19-21; 19. So we have the

prophetic word

strongly confirmed.

You will do well to

pay attention to it,

as to a lamp shining

in a dismal place,

until the day dawns

and the morning star

rises in your hearts.

20. First of all,

you should know this:

No prophecy of Scripture

comes from one’s own

interpretation,

21. because no prophecy

ever came by the will of man;

instead, men spoke

from God as they were

moved by the Holy Spirit. God spoke through men the words of prophecy. But, can we really believe the prophesies, or the promises of God to us? Well, if many of the prophecies actually did come to pass when and where they were foretold, I’d say that was confirmation that the words of the Bible are true. To this day, we remember what happened on Palm Sunday. Jesus fulfilled the prophecy that He would come into Jerusalem riding on a donkey and be hailed as the King of the Jews. But did you know that He did this on exactly the day that Daniel had prophesied he would? Daniel made the prediction more than 500 years before it happened. Think about it. 500 years before it happened, a man wrote down the prophecy that the Messiah would enter Jerusalem riding on a donkey. AND, he predicted the exact day it would happen. That’s just one prophecy that was fulfilled exactly as it had been predicted. Anyone can go onto the internet, search for fulfilled prophecies, and discover that there are many, many of them. Many more are yet to be fulfilled; but they will be because so many of them have already proven the fact that the Bible is completely accurate. If the prophecies are true, certainly the promises are as well. And if the promises are true, then why wouldn’t we trust God completely? In today’s lesson we’ll be learning of Paul’s shipwreck as he is being taken to Rome. Paul demonstrates his unshakable faith and trust in God through this harrowing situation.

Section 1: Acts 27:21-24; 21. Since many were going without food, Paul stood up among them and said, “You men should have followed my advice not to sail from Crete and sustain this damage and loss. 22. Now I urge you to take courage, because there will be no loss of any of your lives, but only of the ship. 23. For this night an angel of the God I belong to and serve stood by me, 24. and said, ‘Don’t be afraid, Paul. You must stand before Caesar. And, look! God has graciously given you all those who are sailing with you.’ Finally, after two years of

being under arrest in

Caesarea, Paul was, at last

on his way to Rome.

But these folks

weren't on a sleek

catamaran zipping over

the waves and making

short work of a voyage

from Caesarea Maritime

to Rome.

Instead, they were

transferring from one

large, slow moving,

grain vessel to

another painstakingly

making their way

to their

destination.

It's late autumn and

their progress was

being hindered by

unfavorable winds.

The captain of the

vessel they were on

had intended to sail

west from Cnidus,

but instead had been

forced to sail

southwest toward

Crete.

They had sailed around

the southern coast of

Crete and landed at the

port of Fair Heavens.

The Roman Centurion

that was in charge of

the prisoners had

decided that this

would not be a good

place to hold up for

the winter; and the

captain of the grain

ship they were traveling

on said he was

confident that he could

make the crossing to

Italy.

The problem was that it

was late fall.

At this time of the year,

that region of the

Mediterranean experienced

seasonal storms called

Euroclydon, (U Rock Lee Don).

Like the American Nor'easter,

these storms were fierce and

could last for many days.

Paul had been warned in his

spirit to try to dissuade

the centurion and the captain

from attempting the crossing,

but didn't prevail.

Now they found themselves

in the midst of one of these

terrible storms.

The ship was being battered

and the 276 passengers and

crew were wrestling with

the very real fear that

they might not survive.

It was at this time that

Paul stood up and told them

that they should have

listened to him.

He didn't say that as an

"I told you so" but rather

that they might now

believe the words coming

out of his mouth.

He told them to take courage

because he had been informed

by an angel that though

the ship they were on was

going to be lost, none of

them were going to die.

Because they were all

aware of Paul's warning

not to leave Fair Heavens,

what he was now saying to

them carried the

weight of credibility.

Now, last week I pointed

out that Nero had ordered

the Christians in Rome

to be killed.

In the telling of that

episode, I voiced my

opinion that Paul had

probably not had the

opportunity to stand

before Caesar.

But in verse 24 of our

lesson for today,

the angel talking to

Paul on that storm-tossed

ship, told him that he

must stand before Caesar.

I don't know it he ever

actually did, the Bible

doesn't tell me one way or

the other.

But I want to make something

perfectly clear here.

Like an onion,

the Scriptures and God's

Truth comes to all of

us in layers.

When God so chooses for

each of us to discover

something deeper in His

Word, He'll peel back

another layer for us.

Who knows?

Maybe, some day, God will

show me in His Word,

of by His Spirit,

that Paul did, in fact,

have the opportunity to

stand before Nero.

Now, back to the Scripture

of today's lesson.

The message that Paul relayed

to the others on the ship

was a reassurance that they

were all going to survive

this terrible storm.

And it's the idea that

leads us into the next section.

It's entitled....

Section 2: Encourage Others to Trust in God. Acts 27:30-38;

30. Some sailors tried to escape from the ship; they had let down the skiff into the sea, pretending that they were going to put out anchors from the bow. 31. Paul said to the centurion and the soldiers, “Unless these men stay in the ship, you cannot be saved.” 32. Then the soldiers cut the ropes holding the skiff and let it drop away.

33. When it was about daylight, Paul urged them all to take food, saying, “Today is the fourteenth day that you have been waiting and going without food, having eaten nothing. 34. Therefore I urge you to take some food. For this has to do with your survival, since none of you will lose a hair from your head.” 35. After he said these things and had taken some bread, he gave thanks to God in the presence of all of them, and when he broke it, he began to eat. 36. They all became encouraged and took food themselves. 37. In all there were 276 of us on the ship. 38. When they had eaten enough, they began to lighten the ship by throwing the grain overboard into the sea.

So, there again,

we see that they were

indeed on a ship

capable of carrying

over 250 passengers

and its very large

cargo of grain.

These weren't the

little boats

used by the fishermen

on the Sea of Galilee.

They were large,

sturdy wooden sailing ships

capable of

handling rough seas.

Before studying for

this lesson,

I just didn't know

what to make of

verse 30.

The author of

the lesson brought

out something interesting.

Verse 30 says that

"some sailors tried to

escape from the ship by

pretending they were

taking a skiff to put

out anchors."

These sailors were

trying to abandon ship.

From what I can see here,

Paul didn't tell the soldiers

what he knew the sailors

were really doing.

Instead, he just stopped

them from doing it by

warning the soldiers.

What the author of

today's lesson pointed out

was that these sailors

most likely were not

believers nor worshippers

of the God you and I

place our faith in.

For them,

salvation from their

gods had not come and

they had chosen to flee.

It would be tempting,

he goes on, to look down

our self-righteous noses

at them.

But the truth is that

all of us are prone to

a lack of faith during

times of trial and

difficulty.

But the thing is that

our God has proven His

faithfulness over and

over again.

When the Hebrews

cried out to God

from their bondage

in Egypt,

God sent Moses.

When Peter denied

Jesus, just as He said

he would,

Jesus was gracious and

restored him.

The Scriptures are full

of examples of this truth.

In our own lives,

over and over again,

all of us can point

to times when God

has proven Himself

trustworthy.

Even though we

know God is faithful,

Christians can struggle

to act in faith

in the moment,

especially in extremely

difficult situations.

When we're facing trying

times, right along with

unbelievers,

these are opportunities

for us to encourage them

to look outside of

themselves for hope to the only One

who can give it and

back it up.

This was what Paul

was doing onboard that

doomed ship that day.

Even though he was

a prisoner,

he rose above his

position and became

a fearless leader and

a beacon of hope for

everyone on-board.

The others on the ship

could see his confidence

in God.

When the rest of them

had lost their faith,

Paul was able to point

them to his God.

Section 3: Recognize the Fulfillment of What God Has Promised. Acts 27:39-44; 39. When daylight came, they did not recognize the land but sighted a bay with a beach. They planned to run the ship ashore if they could. 40. After casting off the anchors, they left them in the sea, at the same time loosening the ropes that held the rudders. Then they hoisted the foresail to the wind and headed for the beach. 41. But they struck a sandbar and ran the ship aground. The bow jammed fast and remained immovable, while the stern began to break up by the pounding of the waves.

42. The soldiers’ plan was to kill the prisoners so that no one could swim away and escape. 43. But the centurion kept them from carrying out their plan because he wanted to save Paul, so he ordered those who could swim to jump overboard first and get to land. 44. The rest were to follow, some on planks and some on debris from the ship. In this way, everyone safely reached the shore.

God’s angel had promised Paul that every one of the people on that ship were going to survive, even though they were going to lose the ship. Paul had told this to those on the ship. We serve a mighty God who says what He means, and means what He says. As the day broke, land was sighted, but they didn’t know where they were; they didn’t recognize it. But they did see a bay with a beach. The storm was still raging, so they decided to ram the ship onto it. But, as they tried sailing to it, they ran aground on a sandbar. They hit it hard and there was no way of getting free of it. The waves were hitting the stern, (the rear of the ship), with such force that they were actually tearing the ship apart. If they stayed on the ship, they’d all perish. The soldiers, knowing that they, themselves would be killed if the prisoners escaped, had already decided to execute them. But their commanding officer, the centurion, stopped them because he wanted to save Paul. He ordered those who could swim to jump overboard and make for the beach. The rest would have to use boards and anything else that would float to get to land. Just as God had promised, everyone made it to safety. Yes, God was in control through it all. He had worked in the heart of the Centurion to preserve the lives of all of the prisoners. The Bible tells us the centurion did this to save Paul’s life. All of the prisoners’ lives were saved because of Paul. Everyone’s lives were in peril as the ship was being torn apart by the waves. But, in breaking the ship apart, God was providing the very thing those who couldn’t swim so desperately needed at that time…… planks. God gave Paul through the angel a specific promise; he would preach the gospel in Rome, and that everyone on the ship would survive the storm. Like Paul and his companions, God doesn’t give us the details of how He’s going to accomplish His promises. One promise that God makes to all of us is; ”We know that all things work together for the good of those who love God, who are called according to His purpose.” God will take all the nuances of our various stories, both the good and the bad, and work them together for our good. That phrase, ”all things,” means just that, every experience in life that we have encountered. So, if you find yourself in a storm, a really difficult time in life, recognize that it won’t last forever. If you’re enduring a season of deep pain and woundedness, realize God’s promise to work all things for good remains true. God comforts us during our seasons of affliction so that He can heal us and we can, in turn, pass that comfort on to others who are suffering, knowing that God always keeps His promises.

God requires His followers to place their trust in Him, not only for the salvation of their souls but also for the care of each of their steps. We must be unwavering in our commitment to

Call upon the Lord when we’re struggling with trusting Him. He’s worthy of our trust, and we must fight to remind ourselves of this truth. Because God’s fulfilled His greatest promise in providing salvation through Jesus, we are now free to live fulfilling the great commission without wavering, even when our work seems futile and the future unsure. We can remain faithful even when we don’t have all the details God has prepared for us in the future. His Word tells us that He has prepared good works for us to do. We can be confident in God’s protection and preservation over His people to complete His mission. Let’s pray: Help us, Lord to cling to your promises

Help us Lord to Trust you and boldly proclaim your truth Help us Lord to Encourage others to trust in you. We know that all things work together for the good of those who love God, who are called according to His purpose.

[littlesailorinthesun]

manifesto no. 790: why nikki/bobo is the best ship

(Author’s note: The title is in jest. It’s just for fun!)

In this essay I will explore the appeal of why Nikki/Bobo is actually the most narratively interesting ship you could choose for Nikki and for Bobo. Note that I don't intend to bash other ships or cause ship wars, because if you know me, you know that I am a multishipper and I support and enjoy ships like Nikkimi. I just want to explain why I personally like Nikbo and why it is the most interesting one to me as it exists in canon. Also note that because of the way I experience "ships", romantic ships and platonic ships have a very blurred and sometimes nonexistent line for me. 

Shared Experiences

Not only do Nikki and Bobo first meet at the very beginning of the story, they spend nearly 100% of Volume 1 together, and all of Nikki's moments in Miraland as she learns about the world and forms impressions are spent with Bobo. Because of this shared time together at the beginning of the game, a lot of base game items and early events also have interaction between them, outside of what you see in the main story. By and large, they spend their happiest moments together. (There are way too many of these moments to list! Thank you, writers, for all the wonderful interactions.)

Of course, they also go through low points together. The rebellion in Chapter 12 was one of the few times they were separated before Bobo's eventual departure, and Nikki refused to leave Royal City with Ace until both Bobo and Momo were back with her. Bobo went from uncontrollable crying in V1:12-2 to feeling entirely certain that Nikki would be able to get them out of the mess by V1:12-7. (After all, she's Nikki's biggest fangirl!) The opposite happens in V1:15-9, when it's Nikki who's crying and Bobo giving her the strength to get up and fight. Despite that this was likely part of Bobo's mission, she makes sure to ask if Nikki's okay after Nidhogg defeats her for the first time. Neither situation actually involves much comforting, but they are both there for each other during those moments. 

Relationship Arc

To me this is what makes the ship very interesting. Nikki and Bobo do not have a static relationship. It's something that morphs and changes and develops as the story goes on. We all know the feeling of discovering that Bobo and Nikki's meeting was not a coincidence at all and that she was actually ordered to befriend Nikki! But beyond this we also know that Bobo realized quickly into her mission that she actually really did like Nikki, which is a driving force in Bobo's storyline. Without her genuine affection for Nikki, I think her story would have actually been very different.

On Nikki's side of things, she had her faith in Bobo tested in V1:19-5 when it was suggested that Bobo might have been putting Nikki in danger on purpose. Of course, this wasn't far from the truth given Bobo's mission, though we don't know if every instance brought up (like Bobo tripping in the League Till outpost) was on purpose. But Nikki is so loyal to Bobo that she refuses to believe that she could have done anything like that. Reflecting on the matter in her dreamweaver The Girl's Decision, she says to herself, "Maybe you have your own difficulties, but I have always believed in you. You are my best friend on the Miraland. Your sincere wishes and dear heart, I have never doubted them." She also realizes then that she did not know how much she would miss Bobo until she was gone, which I think is important for contextualizing some of the earlier chapters.

We see their "low point" in the relationship at the end of Sunflower in Long Night, when the True King, who has been successfully manipulating Bobo for what seems like a while, forbids her from reuniting with Nikki who is actively searching her out. Paralyzed, she listens as Nikki leaves, and wonders to herself if that was the last chance she'd get, to which the True King responds, in the most ominous and chilling line to end a Dreamweaver ever, "You're right. There's no turning back." 

Nikki does eventually find out the truth in Brave New World, but by then she's seen the turmoil Bobo's been going through, and assures her that even if her goals were false, their time together was not, and that her memories were proof of their true and real connection. Their bond of shared experiences was so true that even the lies could not break it - even if it could shake it.

Personally, I just find it more interesting when the ships have, like, literally anything that might stand between them. The deception in this - even if it's a double layered deception where Bobo was only deceiving Nikki because she herself was being deceived - is a fun dynamic to me. They formed their relationship despite the factors that worked against them, Bobo's conflicting motivations and Nikki's being kept in the dark. In a story where many of Nikki's relationships just happen because she ran into them on the street, this is a really refreshing relationship: a dynamic story underlied by a beautifully simple bond.

Mutual Desire to Protect

Both characters are marked by their overwhelming desire to protect each other. It is natural that Nikki wants to protect Bobo. Nikki sees her at her absolute weakest, disappearing right before her eyes in the Cloud Realm due to her uncertain status in the real world. Of course, that's what prompts Nikki to make that promise that the writers will totally make her follow through on, because they would never ignore a plot detail involving a major character: "Bobo... I will find you... I won't leave you anymore, I will face everything with you. Wait for me."

But it's also very important that Bobo wants to protect Nikki just as much. Immediately after leaving Nikki, she's already worried about her, thinking: "Nikki, how are you doing? Are you safe now? Have you found any new clues? I'm sorry I didn't protect you." (This actually reminds me a lot of how Orlando will address Flynn while talking to himself.) She's put in an even more precarious situation because she was meant to involve Nikki in the disputes of the world, which inevitably meant that Nikki was put into danger, over and over.

In my point of view, I think this is why Bobo left. It's canon, as stated in Daymare Fairy Tale, that the gun was what caused her to leave, because it caused her to "wake from her dream" (presumably referring to the good times with Nikki). However, the specifics of this are where I lean into theoryville. I think Bobo did mean to trip in V1:19-4 and that's what caused her to realize her actions crossed a line. A gun was pointed at her - and, presumably, at the nearby Nikki - and she realized she could not protect Nikki and involve her in disputes at the same time. She could not complete her mission. There's another more personal reason she could have decided to leave, and that would be that the sight of a gun pointed at her brought up the trauma from the events surrounding the death of her father. Regardless, I don't think either interpretation - that it was related to endangering Nikki or that it was related to her personal trauma - is wrong, but rather, it is easy to read more into it than what's stated so I thought it was worth mentioning.

Their desire to protect each other continues into Brave New World, both the day and the night sections. Really, these two are basically in an endless "no let me protect u" battle. Bobo breaks through the possession of the True King twice, once in Day and once in Night. Both times, she tells Nikki to run, to leave Miraland and herself, so that at least she can be safe. Both times, Nikki responds by telling her she isn't going anywhere: "No matter what you want to do, I will be with you. [...] I choose to stay here to protect the Miraland and keep everyone's dreams and future, to also keep our precious memories. I will not let you face this all alone. Trust me!" Eventually Bobo does accept this and tells Nikki that she trusts her to protect her. I can't wait for Nikki to make good on that promise and find her!

Personalities, Compatibility, and Character Analysis

I realize I have not touched on why their personalities work together, so here are some thoughts on them as individuals. (I will lean into hypotheticals and headcanons here.)

I see Bobo as someone who indulges too much in escapism. She likes to pretend things are okay when they really, really aren't. We see a bit of this when she refuses to believe Nidhogg could have betrayed Lilith in Chapter 12, and of course it's sort of... the entire thing about why she spends so much time gallivanting around with Nikki. After this she's pretty much forced to understand and accept the realities of the world all at once, and I think this is a major component of her character development. Nikki is both a source of her escapism and the entire reason why it comes crashing down. I think, in a hypothetical post-canon context, Nikki could still be that type of person who could help distract Bobo from things for a while (because god knows that girl needs some comfort).

At the same time, just due to Nikki's nature, she wouldn't let Bobo wallow too much in the past. Nikki believes strongly in moving on and becoming the best version of herself. This is a theme mentioned in her most recent birthday suit, Sparkling Cupcake. More personally, she reflects on it in her dreamweaver. She recognizes that she used to be a passive person and vows to change that in order to better protect the people she loves. So I know she would also do her best to help Bobo, because that's just who Nikki is.

As I think about Nikki's main goals and motivations beyond this, I keep seeing one theme pop up over and over: she places a strong value on happy memories. (Really, I cannot overstate this - she talks about it all the time.) She treasures her memories of Miraland more than anything, so much that she is willing to face its impending destruction, because they mean so much to her. These memories are something crucial she and Bobo already share. It's why I think she would find true happiness with Bobo.

(I will also touch on the obvious things here, albeit briefly: they have shared interests, like cuteness, the color pink, and romance, and they... uh... quite obviously get along.)

Comparison to Nikkimi

Really, like I said, this is not an attempt to bash or put down any ship. Nikkimi is great (and canon), but there are a few things that frustrate me:

Their relationship is largely focused on Kimi, not Nikki. Nikki is the one who comforts and supports Kimi on her journey, and Kimi is not there for most of Nikki's moments of weakness, nor does she accompany her on her journey. Kimi doesn't even know Nikki isn't from Miraland until... the very last stage of Volume 1, 19-SS3.

They get together quickly and stay together with no major interpersonal challenges. While yes, this is definitely ideal in real life, it's just not that narratively interesting.

Concluding Thoughts

If there is anything that marks the earlier chapters, it's Bobo's sadness over still being single. Yet, I love the trope of when someone didn't realize the person they were looking for... was with them the whole time!

Bobo has so many countless lines where she is fangirling over Nikki that it is very easy to read more into that. I think people ship her and Kaja for this reason but oh my god there are just as many if not more where she is Nikki's cheerleader, constantly complimenting her and hyping her up to the people she meets (just open Dreamweaver for this).

And even if you still prefer Nikkimi, Bobo having unrequited feelings for Nikki is also pretty fun.

[impossiblebird]

Another year has passed on Earth; meanwhile Pluto still hasn’t completed a single rotation around the Sun since its discovery, whether it be by Newt or by Clyde William Tombaugh (those americans, they always think they discover everything 🙄). After all, Sonya’s grandmother was right in a way; Newt came back from Pluto just as young as he was when he left. The universe has a funny way to do things. To celebrate, here is one last glimpse behind the scenes of Pluto! 🪐 (or is it?)

- originally, thomas and newt were supposed to have sex on christmas night after sharing their first kiss. but this is your gift, and i know just how much ace thomas means to you and to so many others (and to dylan!), and how much he has come to mean to me as well in a way i didn’t expect, so I scratched the love-making and let thomas and newt decide themselves how to define their love and how to express it to each other, and i think it’s so much better this way 🤍

- you need to know that newt and thomas sharing earbuds and holding hands was directly inspired by your airport fic, like a lot of what i wrote here (but i don’t think it comes as a surprise, does it? i do believe this whole story of mine screams of yours. what can i say, except thank you for inspiring me)

- you may also have noticed that i dropped a specific clue for you to make you guess who i am…it was just way to tempting 😳

- the quote “gravity is matter’s response to loneliness” isn’t mine (sadly), it comes from the movie the half of it. i would definitely recommend it!

- i wrote the shotgun scene while drinking a pumpkin latte, i wrote the scene of thomas and brenda meeting and bantering at the stables while drinking eggnog, i wrote the whole christmas yule ball (until the kiss) while drinking a golden chai latte. it was a journey made of hot drinks!

- the shipwreck in which lizzy’s baby father allegedly died is a real shipwreck, that of the HMS Serpent

- you asked who delivered lizzy’s baby if thomas didn’t, and honestly? i don’t know. let’s imagine that, since the pregnancy went on for longer it happened way more smoothly and harriet, brenda and teresa were able to handle it by themselves!

- Newt positively melts when he sees actual pictures of Pluto for the first time and notices the “heart” on its surface

- i did intend brenda to be understood as trans/nb but i wasn’t sure which one to go with, so i left it to interpretation ✨ i’m so glad you enjoyed that detail!

- i made the conscious decision of writing 2022 in the past tense and 1890 in the present tense. no reason, i just thought it was funny. (and i had a tough time explaining to my beta reader that it wasn’t an error in coherence)

- newt and thomas grow old together. once they get tired of city life and retire from their jobs, they move back to the isaacs estate, turn the music studio back into stables and live a quiet and happy life

- i was extremely happy to get to write for you 💗

🥺 happiest of new years to you, my lovely santa <3

hhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh you knew how much ace thomas meant to me?! honestly that makes me so happy to hear because i thought all their intimate scenes together were PERFECT 💛💛💛 you did an incredible job and i really appreciate you keeping in mind my love for ace thomas even though i know i didn’t mention it on my wish list <3

MY AIRPORT FIC INSPIRED YOU?! oh my god. the idea of anything of mine inspiring such a beautiful and incredible story just blows my mind…. 🥺

A CLUE?! i’ll be on the lookout for that in my next reread then 🫡

thank u for the movie rec!! with such a beautiful line i know i have go check that out asap

that sounds like a LOT of coffee santa 😳 that coffee shop was blessed with the presence of genius ;)

omg it was a REAL ship. a fun fact indeed

okay phew i’m glad they were okay without thomas there <3

AAAAAAAAAAH PLUTOS HEART. i absolutely adore it and i know newt would too. i’ve put a photo of it on the cover of the playlist of songs you suggested for this fic btw 💛

TRANS OR NB BRENDA WAS INTENDED OMFG

YOUR MIND 🤯 galaxy brain fr <3 that’s completely amazing and i am once again in Awe

THEY GO BACK TO THE ESTATE AND LIVE HAPPILY EVER AFTER OMG 😭😭😭

stop do you want to make me cry MORE?! i’m so glad you were my santa and it makes me unbelievably happy to hear that YOU were happy to write for me 😭💛 i cannot thank you enough for such a beautiful story, and for going the extra mile to leave me these messages in my inbox <3 *mwah* i adore you

[tumblunni]

Srsly do u guys all remember how in that first scene of riku getting jealous of sora having new friends how theres a bit where riku is like "YEAH DONT WORRY U R SAFE I AM HERE, I'LL TOTALLY SAVE THE DAY" and then he gets all pissy when he sees sora has the keyblade and "doesnt need protecting anymore"?? And how a lot of his teasing of sora and boasting that he's better than sora always seems to be framed along those lines of 'i'm boasting that i can protect you and i'm teasing you that you need to be protected'. And after his whole redemption he really does just constantly motivate himself by nothing else but protecting sora, and even fuckin BROKE THE LAWS OF REALITY and did whatever that thing is with him becoming sora's Dream Eater just from Sheer Drive To Protect The Sora. And seriously this was during a keyblade mastery test where they were supposed to be competing with each other, the thing riku always used to do as his weird way of showing affection. Now he threw away his chances of winning to try and help sora, and for once i actually agrer with Yen Sid when he said thats why Riku deserved to pass the test! (Tho also srsly wtf sora loses because some outside force wrecked the whole thing and tried to kidnap him??)

OH OH OH and also all the little ways of subtleness in the prologue where Riku's rivalry always kinda has a get-out clause? Like how he says he'll date kairi if you lose the race but then he takes it back. And he offers you infinate rematches for every challenge he gives you. And if you say no to a rematch he actually seems to be worried he genuinely pissed you off and is like 'no wait i didnt mean it'. And when you do the sparring match with him you lose instantly if you fall in the water, even though ring outs werent mentioned as a rule and the same thing doesnt happen when you fight any of the other friends near other bodies of water. I liked to interpret that as maybe Riku stops the fight and dives in to save sora if he sees him go under?

Oh and all the parts in the game where sora remembers riku's teasing voice as an actual motivational thing! Like, theres times it seems like sora wants to make riku proud rather than hating him for being his rival, and times where it seems like thats what riku wants too. And they still have a bit of a teasing dynamic in later games after riku's redemption but there its all more openly affectionate and more clear that riku is teasing sora when he's sad to try and distract him, cos he's awkward being honest aboyt his real feelings. And man there's the kh2 ending where sora tries to do it back at him!! But he says 'haha im better than you, you cant copy my awesomeness LOL PSYCHE THE BEST THING ABOUT ME IS MY BEST FRIEND' and then they fuckin lay down to die together and talk about how this is an okay way to die because at least theyre together AAAAAAaaaaAAAA

If it aint intended to be a ship then man these writers accidentally made something way better than their intentional one. Honestly id have a lot of repsect for them if they recognised its fandom popularity and made it canon? I mean they brought back Organization 13 from the dead and the last kh3 trailer had Ansem The Wise being called out for his bullshit so im pretty sure they did indeed pay attention to people's reactions to kh2...

But ehh even if its unlikely theyll do it (or pull off a good story arc for kairi finally getting to join the fight at the last second) i guess we still have the novelizations that ship soriku super hard. Them finally getting translated was such a great gift to the fandom! Shame theyre really expensive tho.

[mycorinth]

Clinging to the Promises of God

You remain in control In the middle of the war You guard my soul I take great comfort in knowing God’s in control, Don’t you? Hello! You’ve found the Senior Adult Sunday school class for Corinth Baptist Church in Singleton, Ms. The title of our lesson for today is:

Clinging to the

Promises of God

This will be the 2nd in a

5-session series under the general heading of; Facing Adversity.

We’ll be drawing Scripture from the 27th chapter of the Book of Acts.

You know, there are more than 7,000 promises from God to us written in His Word. One of the 1st things that came to my mind when I read that was the question: ”Why? I mean, why would God make so many promises to humanity?” The overriding answer to that would be that He wants for us to simply………….. trust Him. So, how can we know that this Bronze-Age book, the Bible, is really God’s word to us? That would be because the Bible proves itself. I don’t know of another book ever written that declares future events with unerring accuracy. Over 25% of the Bible is prophetic. Peter wrote in 2nd Peter 1:19-21; 19. So we have the

prophetic word

strongly confirmed.

You will do well to

pay attention to it,

as to a lamp shining

in a dismal place,

until the day dawns

and the morning star

rises in your hearts.

20. First of all,

you should know this:

No prophecy of Scripture

comes from one’s own

interpretation,

21. because no prophecy

ever came by the will of man;

instead, men spoke

from God as they were

moved by the Holy Spirit. God spoke through men the words of prophecy. But, can we really believe the prophesies, or the promises of God to us? Well, if many of the prophecies actually did come to pass when and where they were foretold, I’d say that was confirmation that the words of the Bible are true. To this day, we remember what happened on Palm Sunday. Jesus fulfilled the prophecy that He would come into Jerusalem riding on a donkey and be hailed as the King of the Jews. But did you know that He did this on exactly the day that Daniel had prophesied he would? Daniel made the prediction more than 500 years before it happened. Think about it. 500 years before it happened, a man wrote down the prophecy that the Messiah would enter Jerusalem riding on a donkey. AND, he predicted the exact day it would happen. That’s just one prophecy that was fulfilled exactly as it had been predicted. Anyone can go onto the internet, search for fulfilled prophecies, and discover that there are many, many of them. Many more are yet to be fulfilled; but they will be because so many of them have already proven the fact that the Bible is completely accurate. If the prophecies are true, certainly the promises are as well. And if the promises are true, then why wouldn’t we trust God completely? In today’s lesson we’ll be learning of Paul’s shipwreck as he is being taken to Rome. Paul demonstrates his unshakable faith and trust in God through this harrowing situation.

Section 1: Acts 27:21-24; 21. Since many were going without food, Paul stood up among them and said, “You men should have followed my advice not to sail from Crete and sustain this damage and loss. 22. Now I urge you to take courage, because there will be no loss of any of your lives, but only of the ship. 23. For this night an angel of the God I belong to and serve stood by me, 24. and said, ‘Don’t be afraid, Paul. You must stand before Caesar. And, look! God has graciously given you all those who are sailing with you.’ Finally, after two years of

being under arrest in

Caesarea, Paul was, at last

on his way to Rome.

But these folks

weren't on a sleek

catamaran zipping over

the waves and making

short work of a voyage

from Caesarea Maritime

to Rome.

Instead, they were

transferring from one

large, slow moving,

grain vessel to

another painstakingly

making their way

to their

destination.

It's late autumn and

their progress was

being hindered by

unfavorable winds.

The captain of the

vessel they were on

had intended to sail

west from Cnidus,

but instead had been

forced to sail

southwest toward

Crete.

They had sailed around

the southern coast of

Crete and landed at the

port of Fair Heavens.

The Roman Centurion

that was in charge of

the prisoners had

decided that this

would not be a good

place to hold up for

the winter; and the

captain of the grain

ship they were traveling

on said he was

confident that he could

make the crossing to

Italy.

The problem was that it

was late fall.

At this time of the year,

that region of the

Mediterranean experienced

seasonal storms called

Euroclydon, (U Rock Lee Don).

Like the American Nor'easter,

these storms were fierce and

could last for many days.

Paul had been warned in his

spirit to try to dissuade

the centurion and the captain

from attempting the crossing,

but didn't prevail.

Now they found themselves

in the midst of one of these

terrible storms.

The ship was being battered

and the 276 passengers and

crew were wrestling with

the very real fear that

they might not survive.

It was at this time that

Paul stood up and told them

that they should have

listened to him.

He didn't say that as an

"I told you so" but rather

that they might now

believe the words coming

out of his mouth.

He told them to take courage

because he had been informed

by an angel that though

the ship they were on was

going to be lost, none of

them were going to die.

Because they were all

aware of Paul's warning

not to leave Fair Heavens,

what he was now saying to

them carried the

weight of credibility.

Now, last week I pointed

out that Nero had ordered

the Christians in Rome

to be killed.

In the telling of that

episode, I voiced my

opinion that Paul had

probably not had the

opportunity to stand

before Caesar.

But in verse 24 of our

lesson for today,

the angel talking to

Paul on that storm-tossed

ship, told him that he

must stand before Caesar.

I don't know it he ever

actually did, the Bible

doesn't tell me one way or

the other.

But I want to make something

perfectly clear here.

Like an onion,

the Scriptures and God's

Truth comes to all of

us in layers.

When God so chooses for

each of us to discover

something deeper in His

Word, He'll peel back

another layer for us.

Who knows?

Maybe, some day, God will

show me in His Word,

of by His Spirit,

that Paul did, in fact,

have the opportunity to

stand before Nero.

Now, back to the Scripture

of today's lesson.

The message that Paul relayed

to the others on the ship

was a reassurance that they

were all going to survive

this terrible storm.

And it's the idea that

leads us into the next section.

It's entitled....

Section 2: Encourage Others to Trust in God. Acts 27:30-38;

30. Some sailors tried to escape from the ship; they had let down the skiff into the sea, pretending that they were going to put out anchors from the bow. 31. Paul said to the centurion and the soldiers, “Unless these men stay in the ship, you cannot be saved.” 32. Then the soldiers cut the ropes holding the skiff and let it drop away.

33. When it was about daylight, Paul urged them all to take food, saying, “Today is the fourteenth day that you have been waiting and going without food, having eaten nothing. 34. Therefore I urge you to take some food. For this has to do with your survival, since none of you will lose a hair from your head.” 35. After he said these things and had taken some bread, he gave thanks to God in the presence of all of them, and when he broke it, he began to eat. 36. They all became encouraged and took food themselves. 37. In all there were 276 of us on the ship. 38. When they had eaten enough, they began to lighten the ship by throwing the grain overboard into the sea.

So, there again,

we see that they were

indeed on a ship

capable of carrying

over 250 passengers

and its very large

cargo of grain.

These weren't the

little boats

used by the fishermen

on the Sea of Galilee.

They were large,

sturdy wooden sailing ships

capable of

handling rough seas.

Before studying for

this lesson,

I just didn't know

what to make of

verse 30.

The author of

the lesson brought

out something interesting.

Verse 30 says that

"some sailors tried to

escape from the ship by

pretending they were

taking a skiff to put

out anchors."

These sailors were

trying to abandon ship.

From what I can see here,

Paul didn't tell the soldiers

what he knew the sailors

were really doing.

Instead, he just stopped

them from doing it by

warning the soldiers.

What the author of

today's lesson pointed out

was that these sailors

most likely were not

believers nor worshippers

of the God you and I

place our faith in.

For them,

salvation from their

gods had not come and

they had chosen to flee.

It would be tempting,

he goes on, to look down

our self-righteous noses

at them.

But the truth is that

all of us are prone to

a lack of faith during

times of trial and

difficulty.

But the thing is that

our God has proven His

faithfulness over and

over again.

When the Hebrews

cried out to God

from their bondage

in Egypt,

God sent Moses.

When Peter denied

Jesus, just as He said

he would,

Jesus was gracious and

restored him.

The Scriptures are full

of examples of this truth.

In our own lives,

over and over again,

all of us can point

to times when God

has proven Himself

trustworthy.

Even though we

know God is faithful,

Christians can struggle

to act in faith

in the moment,

especially in extremely

difficult situations.

When we're facing trying

times, right along with

unbelievers,

these are opportunities

for us to encourage them

to look outside of

themselves for hope to the only One

who can give it and

back it up.

This was what Paul

was doing onboard that

doomed ship that day.

Even though he was

a prisoner,

he rose above his

position and became

a fearless leader and

a beacon of hope for

everyone on-board.

The others on the ship

could see his confidence

in God.

When the rest of them

had lost their faith,

Paul was able to point

them to his God.

Section 3: Recognize the Fulfillment of What God Has Promised. Acts 27:39-44; 39. When daylight came, they did not recognize the land but sighted a bay with a beach. They planned to run the ship ashore if they could. 40. After casting off the anchors, they left them in the sea, at the same time loosening the ropes that held the rudders. Then they hoisted the foresail to the wind and headed for the beach. 41. But they struck a sandbar and ran the ship aground. The bow jammed fast and remained immovable, while the stern began to break up by the pounding of the waves.

42. The soldiers’ plan was to kill the prisoners so that no one could swim away and escape. 43. But the centurion kept them from carrying out their plan because he wanted to save Paul, so he ordered those who could swim to jump overboard first and get to land. 44. The rest were to follow, some on planks and some on debris from the ship. In this way, everyone safely reached the shore.

God’s angel had promised Paul that every one of the people on that ship were going to survive, even though they were going to lose the ship. Paul had told this to those on the ship. We serve a mighty God who says what He means, and means what He says. As the day broke, land was sighted, but they didn’t know where they were; they didn’t recognize it. But they did see a bay with a beach. The storm was still raging, so they decided to ram the ship onto it. But, as they tried sailing to it, they ran aground on a sandbar. They hit it hard and there was no way of getting free of it. The waves were hitting the stern, (the rear of the ship), with such force that they were actually tearing the ship apart. If they stayed on the ship, they’d all perish. The soldiers, knowing that they, themselves would be killed if the prisoners escaped, had already decided to execute them. But their commanding officer, the centurion, stopped them because he wanted to save Paul. He ordered those who could swim to jump overboard and make for the beach. The rest would have to use boards and anything else that would float to get to land. Just as God had promised, everyone made it to safety. Yes, God was in control through it all. He had worked in the heart of the Centurion to preserve the lives of all of the prisoners. The Bible tells us the centurion did this to save Paul’s life. All of the prisoners’ lives were saved because of Paul. Everyone’s lives were in peril as the ship was being torn apart by the waves. But, in breaking the ship apart, God was providing the very thing those who couldn’t swim so desperately needed at that time…… planks. God gave Paul through the angel a specific promise; he would preach the gospel in Rome, and that everyone on the ship would survive the storm. Like Paul and his companions, God doesn’t give us the details of how He’s going to accomplish His promises. One promise that God makes to all of us is; ”We know that all things work together for the good of those who love God, who are called according to His purpose.” God will take all the nuances of our various stories, both the good and the bad, and work them together for our good. That phrase, ”all things,” means just that, every experience in life that we have encountered. So, if you find yourself in a storm, a really difficult time in life, recognize that it won’t last forever. If you’re enduring a season of deep pain and woundedness, realize God’s promise to work all things for good remains true. God comforts us during our seasons of affliction so that He can heal us and we can, in turn, pass that comfort on to others who are suffering, knowing that God always keeps His promises.

God requires His followers to place their trust in Him, not only for the salvation of their souls but also for the care of each of their steps. We must be unwavering in our commitment to

Call upon the Lord when we’re struggling with trusting Him. He’s worthy of our trust, and we must fight to remind ourselves of this truth. Because God’s fulfilled His greatest promise in providing salvation through Jesus, we are now free to live fulfilling the great commission without wavering, even when our work seems futile and the future unsure. We can remain faithful even when we don’t have all the details God has prepared for us in the future. His Word tells us that He has prepared good works for us to do. We can be confident in God’s protection and preservation over His people to complete His mission. Let’s pray: Help us, Lord to cling to your promises

Help us Lord to Trust you and boldly proclaim your truth Help us Lord to Encourage others to trust in you. We know that all things work together for the good of those who love God, who are called according to His purpose.

[jokocraft]

[long meta] the hidden depths of voltron S1 E6

part 1: lance’s literal awakening and keith’s metaphorical one 

(if you already know where I’m going with this, you might find part 2: an entire subtextual plot in S1 E6? - in this same post - more interesting)

I’ve been rewatching season 1, and I got to episode 5 with the bonding moment and was like yeahh but then I got to the beginning of E6, with everyone waiting for lance to be released from the healing pod, and I was like wait. I never really thought twice about the scene before, but this time around I was like...hold the phone. 

what is keith’s reasoning for being impatient in this scene, anyway? like, if everyone else can wait a few ticks for lance to wake up, why can’t you? 

is this just your Personality, to be an impatient nuisance sometimes, haha queue comedic intro? well, while keith is often impatient, it’s usually during situations involving life or death decisions. and since lance isn’t about to die, and the timing of his release from the pod doesn’t put anyone else’s life at risk...

since i trust the vld writers enough at this point (at least with keith, i guess...?) to not make characters do shit for no good reason, i don’t think keith was being impatient for the hell of it, especially to do with someone he’s made a point of *Shrug* Not Really caring about -- that is, until shit went down in E5 and keith dropped that pretense like it was hot and didn’t hesitate to initiate the famed bonding moment.

my point here about this scene in E6, is that it’s directly linked to E5′s bonding moment, like 100%. maybe you’re like DUH OBVIOUSLY - and you’d be right, cause it’s obvious to me now and I was probably just being really slow on the uptake - but nevertheless, i don’t think we should hang up the the phone there...

i think that - well, with the “cradled you in my arms” line, we all kind of know - that keith took that bonding seriously to some extent. but to what extent? just seriously enough to be annoyed with lance’s response? personally, I think keith took it seriously enough that he truly believed a major shift had occurred between them - a shift, if my thoughts here are on the right track, he’d probably been hoping for (perhaps only subconsciously) since this scene: 

it’s from the tail end of S1E2, after they successfully form voltron for the first time. i referred to this frame as “first time keith realizes that lance is actually kind of cool”. the way I interpreted this was that now, keith can no longer see lance as >insert stereotypes here< and predictable, but rather as someone interesting and possibly full of surprises and definitely worth paying attention to after all. but in this episode, keith’s still too closed off emotionally to acknowledge at maybe his new perspective of lance is making him wish things between them were different - not so they could be BFFs like lance and hunk are, but something else....something he can’t yet put into words (space ranger partners). 

god they r all 3 uber-dorks okay

anyway

back to E6, I’m now imagining that keith has spent the last 24 hours secretly relishing the idea that he’s finally (for the first time in his life??) got himself a friend that is both a peer and someone that he feels instinctually closer to compared to other peers. (shiro is of course someone he feels instinctually closer to, but he is not quite a peer in age or maturity. the stuff can you do with a mentor/idol is definitely not the same stuff you can do with another shitting teenager like yourself).

buuuut we all know keith’s about to be disappointed when reality rears its ugly head and lance says some bullshit to allura again. “classic”. and so, from keith’s perspective, the reality is this: despite any shift between them that lance definitely felt (he saw it with his own eyes dammit), lance must have nevertheless interpreted it in a way did not put them the same page. fukin sux

poor keith. don’t we all hate when we hype something up in our minds and it turns out we were totally off the fucking mark all along? I imagine right now that he’s busy mentally burying his disappointment six feet deep. (note to remember for later: you can also see in the image above that shiro has the highest tolerance for lance’s shit.)

((((((( also eye-narrow worthy, but....perhaps...meaningless........hm: 

when coran presents the ticker when the topic of ticks vs seconds comes up, hunk and pidge come over to look instantly. allura is shown walking over to the group moments later at 22:00 into the episode. shiro is shown watching from where he stands a few feet away. and keith is just ... ... ... absent from this exchange for 4 seconds before he’s briefly shown finally walking into the frame at 22:04. for four whole seconds he was just...what? staring, I guess? at lance, waiting, probably feeling determined to Be There when lance woke up. but not so determined that he’d risk someone calling him out for it. (but shiro is likely an exception for him: shiro doesn’t have his back turned, and so keith must trust him not to raise an eyebrow if keith kinda wanted to, you now, Be There.) )))))))

anywaaaaaay

we know that burying disappointment not so simple as pushing it away and never feeling it again. because like keith, when present reality doesn’t match our perceived reality, we’re like, “wtf? where did i go wrong? how did i misinterpret this? was I delusional?” and sometimes we’re like, “no, fuck you reality, I was not delusional, not this time, I was not wrong.” And voila, here you see keith in all that frustration: he’s planted himself as much in lance’s line of sight as he can without just straight up taking the yellow mouse’s seat right in front of the bowl of goo. keith clearly intends to be acknowledged. or at the very least, to glean some clue from lance’s behavior as to why he’s being Capital-I Ignored. 

keith stays quiet during the conversation at the table until lance make a quip about the mice besting them all, and keith makes his salt known:

BITCH WHAT HTE FUCK? DID U NOT SEE HOW VALIANT I WAS PROTECTING YOUR ASS? I WAS THE SHIT! NOW STOP SPOONFEEDING THOSE FUCKING MICE I SWEAR TO

lance goes onto totally dismiss what keith did and this is....honestly not what keith expected

lance isn’t even making a dumb joke, he’s just being an asshole, plain and simple. keith now is like *softly* bitch what the fuck. “We had a bonding moment. I cradled you in my arms!” keith says, trying to look indignant, because alternative emotions are supposed be buried six feet deep.

but it’s no use, he’s stonewalled and subject-changed. and while we the audience know that the overly-defensive tone of lance’s stonewalling practically confirms that he remembers, we can only hope that lance realizes this too and is able to feel a pinch of salty relief. 

it’s my conclusion that the whole point of these beginning scenes is not just to have some character interaction and a bit of thrown-in development, but to provide legit exposition and rising action to the fully-fledged subtextual plot of ep6. Read part 2 below, an elaboration of what I mean by this. 

part 2: an entire subtextual plot in S1 E6? 

(apologies to anyone else may have posted similar conclusions and I just totally missed them)

so here i get into are more circumstantial stuff. maybe my reasoning is clouded by ship-goggles, or maybe it’s the opposite, when armed with the interpretation lens that season 3 is all but dreamworks-signed confirmation that Keith and Lance’s relationship is intended to be something more than BFF friendship, and always has been, and everything about their relationship from S1E1 to S3E7 is very deliberate in order to make their future endgame as believable, nuanced, and in depth as is possible for a younger audience show. 

assuming that this interpretation of S3 is not totally mistaken, then I contend that S1E6, in its entirety, is a far more momentous step in their relationship than all previous S1 episodes combined, including the bonding moment. 

basically, hunk wants to fulfill his promise to save his girlfriend shay, but allura decides a new incoming distress beacon needs to be looked into first. they arrive, and very unlike shay’s introduction (S1E5), characterized by dull colors, distrust, and caution....

E6′s introduction to rolo and nyma is characterized by brightness colors, camaraderie, and repose. some quality irony here. tbh, It’s a fantastic way of fLipPing The ScrIPT if you ask me Hunk.

also I suppose it should be mentioned that shay is meant to be noted for her tattered clothes, androgyny, and lack of traditional beauty (but we aren’t fooled, shay is perfect) while rolo and nyma are clearly typed to be MUTHAFUCKIN SEX BEASTS. nyma is very overtly feminine and rolo is equally masculine.

as expected, lance swoons and does his gig. even says “Name’s Lance” which uh, de ja vu anyone ahem episode uno?  as the episode progresses, it becomes clear that lance is going hella overboard, b/c even shiro (who, remember, has the highest tolerance for lance’s shit) is like for the love of fuck-

that night, there’s a bonfire, and rolo starts getting into his backstory. it’s worth noting that that besides space parents shiro and allura, keith is the only other paladin there listening. anyway rolo mentions sendak, immediately acknowledging him as a major threat. the point of that: considering just earlier in the episode, keith mentioned sendak’s threat to lance and lance promptly didn’t give a shit.....

even from profile view, keith’s expression in this frame ^ is distinctly similar to his expression from before (last frame from part 1), e.g. wide eyes revealing vulnerability, small frown, etc. i would take a gander that this is the moment that keith decides to...let things play out, rather than support hunk’s suspicions. 

(why? maybe because he sees lance being a dipshit and if hunk’s right, and these people are liars and cheats, then lance is going to get what he deserves. but, i admit, such a theory has no basis in canon.) 

meanwhile lance is being a dipshit and lets nyma inside the castle while the others aren’t looking. she plays him like a fiddle to get to the lions specifically, and at this point, the keen viewer is really starting to wonder why he’s being so dumb. 

and this is important: I do not believe the writers were making him dumb because that’s his Personality. Just like keith’s impatience with the healing pod, there’s gotta be a reason behind his behavior beyond “that’s just how he is, that’s just what’s happening right now, don’t look into it too hard”. 

I believe - going off of lance’s highly defensive refusal to acknowledge the bonding moment with keith earlier - he’s in a rather delicate emotional state right now, whether he consciously realizes it or not.

regardless of what keith might believe at this point, I think the reality is that lance sure as hell did remember. and although lance’s interpretation was probably different, it was different in the opposite way keith probably imagined (i.e. an even more dramatic and sentimental interpretation than keith’s). but the real divide between them at the beginning of E6 is their reactions to their own interpretations of the bonding moment: 

keith reaction: omg a real friend?? for me?? maybe jesus does love me

lance reaction: lies jesus lies i have never had a gay thot in my entire life nope

one of the big reasons I’m fairly confident I’m not just making lance’s reaction up totally with ship-goggles is because of this slap-in-the-face parallel: 

of ALL the things that could have been done, nyma is cradling lance in her arms, the very thing lance wants to deny even to himself ever happened with a certain someone else. 

if you’re followin my theory, i think it could go like this: 

because of the bonding moment, keith’s mind promoted his relationship with lance from we’re-both-in-voltron to F IS FOR FRIENDS, but i think from what can be seen of lance’s vastly exaggerated womanizing behaivor all E6, lance’s mind promoted his relationship with keith from grumpy-voltron-frenemy to ... 

...

...

... something he can’t yet bring himself to put into words (space ranger partners, italicized coughcough)

honestly, the frame of lance in nyma’s arms is a little depressing when put in context with the beginning of the episode. what is lance thinking, in this moment? or trying not to think about? is he telling himself on repeat: this is what I want, this is what I wanted, this is how it’s supposed to go, this is who it’s supposed to be -- he’s 100% blushing when she asks him to take her on a ride around moon, holding him like this. 

this post is cancelled if keith’s explicitly mentioned cradling is somehow not intended to be totally parallel to this scene right here with lance blushing. 

(sorry little baby cuban, but it is not mindless bromance that is in your future.)

immediately after this, lance seems to check back into reality, and shows some resistance to nyma’s request. but then: 

TRIGGERED

chances are, nyma made an educated guess that lance - like any hopeless romantic douche (psa i still love lance with my whole soul) - would react stupidly and competitively when threatened to be bested by another suitor. but there is a smidgen of possibility that she’s smart as FUCK (which there’s plenty of evidence of) and she knew that there could be only ONE1 reason lance could be overcompensating so obsessively. and out of other TeenPaladins, keith’s the hottest. i wouldn’t put it past this chick to put 2 and 2 and 5 together to get 69 and be correct. 

bonus: she mentions how the minerals of the kinetic spring “reflect off the water, making a rainbow”. Also, I’m almost certain someone has pointed this out before, but I guess I’ll do it again - the bisexual flag colors are pink, lavender, and blue, and this background..!.............but that’s just whiteboard conspiracy silliness, surely.    surely. 

necessary? i think not

((((((( also on a related note, i’ve watched this clip below like eight times because I have a feeling that this sequence is some kind of subtle parallel or reference to something as well. on the surface, lance appears to be surprised and blush when nyma rests her head against his armpit side and starts laughing.

it just caught me off guard like, why would this bit be included? we already know that lance is infatuated with her, so what’s the point? why waste time and frames to keep making the same point? ... oR is there some other point that’s trying to be made and I am blind to see it? right now I can’t come up with anything, but if you have any ideas, definitely let me know. )))))))

meanwhile...

keith stap.

and so lance’s massive fuck up comes to a peak, and he’s so desperate for this thing with nyma to work (so desperate to prove to himself that nothing’s changed, he’s still the same, a beautiful girl is still what he wants, what he needs) that for one sad moment he’s actually willing to believe nyma’s a dominatrix before he’s willing to believe that she’d been playing him all along...

(how can I be mad at this boy?) 

the others start the pursuit to save lance, and i think that it’s clever how keith was given the spotlight in the blue lion’s recovery via navigating the asteroid belt. that pursuit scene was very flexible in its requirements for how it needed to go, technically keith’s role doing that was interchangeable, and so the whole sequence could have been designed in a way to cater to another lion’s strengths. but. 

“This kid can flat-out fly,” says rolo. the title of this episode is “Taking Flight”. why would the title of this episode, in which, tbh, keith hardly does anything for a majority of it, be dedicated to this relatively predictable space car chase?

A: because it enables keith to say that he got is lion back. I saved your ass AGAIN and this time you can’t deny it! 

and because of this experience, lance now has come to understand (to at least some extent) that there’s no point in wishing that he’d had his Magical Moment of Connection™ with some cool and pretty girl like he’d always imagined.

maybe, very very deep down, he’s begun to realize that the moment was only magical in the first place because it was with keith. 

keith, who keeps coming through for him when it matters most. 

the episode comes full circle, and - going along with my theory so far - the real conflict has been resolved. One might argue all that this “subtext” was just a subplot to the main plot of learning their lesson with the bounty hunters and always listening to hunk because he’s right and shay is 1000% more pure than rolo and nyma combined, tattered clothes be damned. 

Or like me, one could argue that all that non-subtextual stuff (not counting the interspersed, juxtaposed scenes of Overarching Plot, Starring Your Hosts Haggar and Zarkon) was just an external plot chalk full of thematic parallels tailor-made to accommodate the true purpose of the episode: for lance and keith to come to terms with each other in the aftermath of the subtle but major shift that’s occurred between them. 

lance took a big step in this one episode by going from total denial to verbal acceptance (for everyone to hear) of a bonding moment, in fact, existing.

and keith did good by accepting lance as he is and choosing not to continue resenting him for how he first reacted. its safe to say that keith progressed in character even more than lance, which I think is why he wins the focus of the episode title, because what he learned was that if he wants a deeper friendship with lance, fate’s not going to hand it to him in a healing pod. he has to do his part developing it. he has to work for it. 

knowing keith, that’s a pretty tall order. but at least this time, keith got to Be There for lance after all.

Here is a follow up post: link