#literally not even kidding but my attachment to Rick is so deep

[skinnypaleangryperson]

I don't know if it's just me, but are they gradually dumbing down Rick's character for the sake of keeping the show popular?

I got extreme Peter Griffin vibes from this episode, and I feel like in general he's a lot less sharp and cool gritty and witty and "unconventional" the way that he was the first couple of seasons. He wasn't an easy character to "swallow" in a lot of ways so to speak, and I feel like he's gradually getting dumber, more cloudy around the edges, less sharp and more conventional and shallow with a lot of the things that he says. He feels extremely typical sometimes this season-like more of the character that people would watch because the character doesn't challenge their headspace in any kind of way, and is someone that encourages their complacent drunk dead personality.

The character used to say things that was really unpopular, or at the very least would occasionally say things that would make people uncomfortable (just things like "if you know how you're going to die because of how boring your life is then you're not even alive" and just things that challenged at the boring drunk complacent status quo that most American sitcom characters are), was an extreme breath of fresh air in terms of how sharp he was and how he wasn't afraid to challenge everything even if it was just in a TV show character kind of way, and it's one of the things that stuck out about me about him the most, especially as someone who is mentally ill and feels detached from most of American culture.

I might just be in a bad mood, but I genuinely feel like Rick feels less sharp and "unconventional"and is starting to feel increasingly more dumb, dopey and easy to swallow as a character.

I still love him and I always will, and sometimes I find it endearing, but this episode in particular felt like he was just being a dumb genuine and boring drunk (really just in terms of the scene with Beth, but considering that the episodes are only about 22 minutes, there isn't a lot of elbow room to work with, especially considering most of this episode was summer screen time).

The only reason why I care so much is because of Rick is one of the very few characters I've ever been genuinely connected with, so I'm just worried that Rick as a character is going down to gradual slippery slope of just becoming an American extremely overly dumbed it down product. The show was so gritty and real and raw and a lot of ways for the first three to four seasons and kept that touch up to season 6, but this season just feels like they're gradually going into "American Dad" type feeling territory, and I'm vaguely worried a little bit about my connection to the show. Especially as someone that does not connect to things easily or ever at all really. And partially because everything is so dumbed down and doesn't seem to have any and genuine philosophy behind it except of being another brainless thing for people to consume to pass the time.

[ruewrote]

𝑠𝑒𝑙𝑓𝑖𝑠ℎ.

PAIRING: carl grimes x fem!reader WARNINGS: strong language GENRE: angst SONG INSPIRATION: selfish by madison beer WORD COUNT: 556 PARTS: one two

navigation | inbox

ever since the group had gotten settled into alexandria you and carl had definitely drifted from each other. he’d deliberately go off with the other kids. even when you had tried to make plans with him, he blew them off.

once he had changed schedules for his supply runs, that’s when you really had stopped trying. 

that didn’t stop you from still watching over him and his family, you often went over and helped rick with judith and he was incredibly appreciative and for sure had brought up that he noticed the drastic change to yours and his son’s friendship.

three months ago today you had finally found this wonderful place. you should be over the moon, filled with joy even. it never came.

you sat with your knees pressed to your chest, tears running down your cheeks - playing with the friendship bracelet that was still attached to your wrist which was a gift from him back when you guys were at the prison, it was now worn out but of course you kept it.

footsteps were heard walking toward you, so you quickly wiped your eyes and covered up the band. looking up and were met with the last person you wanted to see.

your eyes were back to being glued to the ground, sat in the same way as you were before as he sat beside you. a what was once comforting silence now awkward surrounding the two of you.

tears stung in your eyes as you glanced over at him, “i hate you.” your voice shook as the tears started to fall. his own filling with regret.

“i hate that you think you can just walk over here and act like everything’s perfectly fine between us when it’s clearly not!” carl sat and listened to what you had to say - what was well overdue.

“you’re selfish. y-you abandoned me when i needed you the most,” the lump in your throat only getting worse as you spoke.

his eyes locked onto your own, “i never left. i’ve been right here.”

his empty words made you scoff and roll your eyes, making it seem like he hadn’t made such an effort to be as far away from you as possible.

you stood up abruptly - looking down at him. “i can’t believe you, you will sit there and lie to me after you know you did literally everything to not see or be near me. god even your dad thought it was weird that we weren’t around each other.”

“so don’t you fucking dare try and tell me you were there for me when you clearly weren’t.” he only got angrier.

“you were too goddamn clingy y/n, you were never not latched to my side, you needed to grow the fuck up.”

the pain flooded throughout your body, his words dug deep into your heart. he tried to reach out and hold you and apologise, but it was too late. you pulled away from his touch, the words coming out of his mouth sounded distant and muffled. that’s all he thought of you? all that time?

your steps staggered backwards, carl walked closer to you still trying to explain himself, you started to walk away from him but not before you ripped the bracelet off your arm and threw it at him.

© ruewrote.

[iphido]

no i will never be over how making jasico canon wouldve made both of their character arcs so much more satisfying .

jason was obvs intended to be percy's foil (and apparently the main protag of hoo?). whether or not rick pulled it off is subjective but NARRATIVELY i think jason is a much better foil to nico bc percy is on another level lbr. jason isn't a good foil for percy because jason doesnt have anything percy WANTS. percy has everything he could possibly want. he has annabeth and his mom and their growing family. the only thing percy wants at this point — what he’s always wanted —is to be a normal teenager, free from the gods and their schemes. percy only does what he does in HOO because hera put him there. hes there bc he HAS to be. jason on the other hand would probably do everything even without hera's brainwashing bc he's chained by his sense of duty and justice. as a soldier, as a roman, as the son of Jupiter. percy comes off as static in HOO because he doesnt have a real purpose there ? neither does annabeth imo. they dont have real arcs.

nico and jason on the other hand... THEIR ARCS ARE PERFECT PARALLELS OF EACH OTHER. ‘Nico had talked about not belonging anywhere. At least Nico was free of attachments. He could go wherever he chose.’, putting my entire fist in my mouth rn cuz this is a canon quote (hoh, jason LVIII). the epitome of roman masculinity, the Golden Boy, vs the outcast that is literally cloaked in darkness. the top of the demigod ladder vs the bottom. jason was groomed to be this perfect model leader but throughout heroes of olympus he's incapacitated and knocked out and rendered useless, numerous times. meanwhile nico is underestimated and scorned yet he's vital to not one but TWO wars, and he's also capable as hell. like he survives TARTARUS on his own. he survives captivity. he's outed by a love god to someone he barely considers an acquaintance. he leads a group of STRANGERS to the house of hades. he brings a huge fucking statue across the globe and earns the respect of a roman praetor.

ITS JUST SO INTERESTING HOW EACH OF THEM HAS WHAT THE OTHER COVETS SO DESPERATELY. jason has physical perfection and acceptance by his peers, but he lacks direction and purpose. nico lacks the former, but he knows who he is, though he dislikes—even reviles—who that person is. nico knows his place and when/where he’s needed. nico has a family but jason doesnt. nico has hades’ love and, for a time, the love of his mother. jason has neither. zeus never gave two shits about jason. he pledged jason to hera before he was even born to placate her. the only 'mothers' jason had were an alcoholic starlet fallen from grace, a harsh wolf goddess who trained him to be a child soldier before he could even read, and his patron goddess who manipulates him to her own end. both of their older sisters joined the hunters — and while bianca did it to be rid of nico, i bet a million dollars that if thalia knew jason was alive during TTC, she wouldve become the prophecy kid if it meant she could be with him. nico  has hazel who cares for and defends him. he can see her whenever he wants. jason sees thalia like once a year. nico has the strength to scorn those who scorn him right back, but jason bears the weight of everyone’s expectations like atlas, and he just cant let go.

nico and jason complete each other. they just do. two boys who are on opposite extremes of the demigod world, looking to each other for answers. for love and acceptance. they see the worst and the best in each other. it’s about someone shattering your expectations and revealing something even more precious inside. IT’S ABOUT THE VAST, PROFOUND EMPTINESS INSIDE YOU. A DEEP SENSE OF LACKING THAT’S BECOME JUST A PART OF YOUR STATE OF BEING AT THIS POINT. AND SOMEONE COMES ALONG — NOT WITH THE INTENTION TO MEND OR FILL THAT HOLE — BUT TO STARE RIGHT INTO THAT CHASM AND NOT CARE. TO TELL YOU THAT THE HOLE DOESN’T MATTER. THE HOLE MEANS NOTHING, BECAUSE I LOVE YOU.

[sour-n-salty-citrus]

Do you have any hopes for the season finale? I saw in another ask, you described the dynamic between rick and morty this season as "very weak, distant, and downright frankly boring" and I completely agree with you! I hope that, because this is most we'll see rick and morty interacting this season, it'll have at least a few moments of what makes their dynamic so interesting to watch.

(Ok i started airing my grievances with this season, which ended up being... long, so skip this paragraph (starting at / / /) to get to my thoughts on the finale)

Oh gosh I remember that ask (I think-). And yeah, maybe I'm being a bit overly critical. I'll probably look back on this season with retrospect, and a kinder, fonder view. Ik androgynousblackbox (think thats right) made a great point about it being the season FOR rickorty shippers. And sure, I agree on some bits, like Rick acting all pissy and partying the way you would if your ex got with someone new in the planetina ep. Overall though, i think my problem lies in that I was enjoying more individual moments than episodes themselves, especially the middle three. For example- Amortycan Grickfitti. Like, I really liked the idea of the Ship getting on a crazy adventure with Summer and Morty (and Chutback). I like the idea of a Beth-Jerry-Rick adventure. But put together, it's just kinda... meh? You know? I liked the first half of the Thanksgiving special... but it kinda dragged on after that. I get that they want to give other characters (particularly female ones) more attention, which is completely understandable and i encourage it(!) but I can't help but find it underwhelming. Like, Summer in the voltron ep was like- girl how are you STILL vying for Rick's attention! He's the worst! Haven't we done this already? (I will say though I ADORE how far Beth has come, props to her for continuing to seeing through her dad's BS. I was worried the character would relapse into a more typical s1/s2 Beth, and I'm glad she didn't). Some of these plots, funnily enough, seem more fitting of the comics (they actually had a voltron parody already). Fun and entertaining for two or three-something issues, not so much a 22 minute episode. i think most of my complaints come from the dynamic between our titular characters- ok, I know I'm very biased (I mean you can see it), but I came to the show primarily for their relationship. It doesn't even feel drama-fueled, just that they kinda... can't be arsed. I'm torn because on the one hand, they're unhealthily codependent and this separation is probably a good thing, but on the other... it doesn't feel natural? I'm not sure if that's the right word- it's like, season 4 had them practically joint at the hip, but all that's suddenly flung out the window. It just kinda feels like this "i got better things to do" vibe from both of them and its strange. The only time they both got a solo adventure (I'm classifying "solo" as an adventure where they spent a significantly large portion of time together, without the other family members) was in the sperm ep and Thanksgiving ep. And, well, in the Thanksgiving ep Morty felt like a side character in his own show, and the sperm ep... um. Yeah. I don't think it's AS bad as people were saying, but I was cringing the whole time (the second hand embarrassment for Morty was so strong I had to turn off the episode multiple times and return to it. It's just like- godammit MORTY). And I think there's good reason those two seemed to be the most disliked episodes overall. They're the ones RaM spend the most time together and it's... meh. Meh? Meh. I don't mean to say the season overall is bad (it has loads of good points, and its amazing for Smith family as a whole) just that if we're talking specifically about the dynamic between these two? Yeah, I wouldn't recommend a single episode from this season so far to use as an example of their relationship.

/ / /

There's one thing this season has been pretty good at, though. And it's showing us what happens when Rick is alone.

And that brings me to the finale.

"Who is Rick without Morty?"

Well... we already know the answer to that. Pathetic. Sad. Lonely.

This season has been phenomenal in humbling Rick. (And trust me I'm happy for it- every time someone beats the crap outta this shitty old man I'm like YES!!! IT'S WHAT HE DESERVES!). Ep 1 had his "nemesis" clearly besting him, ep 2 had Beth making constant digs (love her) and overall pointing out his extreme callousness and cruelty towards even himself(ves). Ep 3- when Morty shows interest in a girl and ditches him (like seriously it's not like he's moving out, chill) he immediately goes on a bender and develops a deep attachment to the first person he can (wearing yellow, funnily enough). Ep 4, he devotes himself to becoming an "honest man" for his new child, only for it to instantly be taken away from him. Ep 5 highlights how RICK is the asshole for making fun of and taking advantage of someone well-meaning and honest, if "simple", and how literally not cool that is. Ep 6 has his crazy rivalry with the president, and they both get smacked down a couple pegs for that. Ep 7 shows what happens when he allows himself to get carried away, and that he can end up driving everyone else away in the process (lucky they still wanted to save his ass when he needed them). And episode 8? Hooooo boy. Episode. 8. We see a direct parallel in Birdperson with Morty, and the whole "Rick and [insert] 100 years!" Rick has few people he cares about, arguably only one or two that he truly devotes himself to, but when he does, boy does he go HARD. We see younger Rick, optimistic, energetic, friendly and hopeful. And we see all of that crushed in minutes. Rick is desperate for a companion, someone to see the stars with. He needs someone there, someone he can trust and rely on to stay. Someone like Morty. So without Morty, who is Rick?

No one.

And the thing is, Morty doesn't need Rick anymore. Not like Rick needs him. In season 1, Morty was this bright-eyed kid who was new to the cosmos and the multiverse, who needed his grandpa there with him as they explored all these places together. But that's not him anymore. That's not them.

The promo has Morty using the portal gun to go somewhere w/o Rick's permission (i like to think it's boob world lol). It doesn't matter to me as much where he's going, as much as he's doing it alone. He doesn't just not need Rick there, he doesn't want him.

(Also correct me if im wrong but I've missed that sweet portal gun so much. I think the last ep was like- the first time this season we saw it).

Morty's response to Rick? "Replace me!". And wow. Wow. WOW. Morty doesn't give a FUCK! I think Rick thinks that because he's so smart, that he can offer so much, that Morty will come crawling back, and I don't think he will.

Hopes for the finale! Hmm. I mean, I definitely hope "evil" Morty makes a reappearance, haha. I think we all do tbh ;). I want to see some Morty development too, this season has been very Rick-centric (not that there's anything wrong with that!) so I wanna see what's in store for Our Boy. I really hope we get to see the Citadel again, and see the state it's in, but I doubt it. We know something super big is in store, it's just a question of what? Other hopes I have is some Summer + Beth action (please let them team up Im BEGGING) and Jerry too ahaha. I'd love if some other side characters made an appearance as well. Oh- I'm definitely expecting a dramatic cliffhanger at the end of the first half leading to the second half, with the kind of angsty music that leads into the credits (pls that shit is so good (OH WAIT imagine if it was like, for the damaged coda, but like- the chopin version or smth so it could be more subtle maybe bruhhhh)). Ok haha, maybe that's asking too much, the writers made it clear in the story train ep that they weren't gonna do that big dramatic showdown (... unless 👀). Oh, I'd also love some Premium Angst too, like someone getting kidnapped/nearly dying (like ACTUALLY nearly dying). These stakes better be so damn high I could spear a man on them! OH, also I remember androgynousblackbox (is that right? I hope it is) mentioned something along the lines that they could be driving Rick and Morty apart this season in order to have them come back together stronger than ever in an explosive finale, which, I'm strongly hoping for myself.

Thanks if you made it this far! If you have any thoughts on or hopes of your own for the finale please feel free to share! :D

[naytile]

Send Me a Character - (requested by @martincart)

[Andross]

·       First impression

As a kid, I remember playing Star Fox Adventures first, and then reading all of the comics, and THEN playing Star Fox 64, and THEN the rest of the games as I anxiously awaited them to come out, so... That was something. When I was a kid I thought his character design was really weird. I didn’t “get” him, lmao, mainly because SFAdv barely explained Andross...  And in Star Fox 64, he was a lot scarier. “Darth Vader?” (RIP Rick May). 

·       Impression now

I could probably write a thesis on Andross if I wanted to. Andross is... .... ... He’s a real piece of work. For that reason, I think he’s one of the best villains in the series, if not the best from a characterization point of view. He is the one that’s the closest to Earth to me, therefore the most disturbing. (Yeah, he’s a floating monkey-head in most iterations, but hear me out here)! Andross is a murderous dictator, a demagogue, a misogynist. We don’t have to worry about body-assimilating robot-bug-aliens IRL, but we do have to worry about those kinds of people and the insane amounts of damage they inflict. Andross has a lot of impact and so I wish more was done with those themes. 

·       Favorite moment – That completely deranged exchange between his “good” half and “evil” half in the Itoh comic gave Andross more depth than literally any videogame in the series ever has. And that’s the tea. 

·       Idea for a story – I have talked about this before, but I have a ton of scene ideas about how Andross spiraled into his madness during his Cornerian Defense Force days. I think his telekinetic and bioengineering experiments were a slippery slope, especially towards his relationships with his coworkers (and one Vixy Reinard). I easily imagine that he was poisoned by his own ego and by the praise showered upon him by the Cornerian leaders as he developed brilliant technologies. They wanted him to keep going. They wanted to keep Corneria the most powerful force in the galaxy with Dr. Andross’s mind at their disposal, even at the expense of his health and safety. They pushed his genius to its limits and Andross reveled in it--that is, until it was too late. Until they turned their backs on him. Until they drew away. Until they called him “dangerous”. Until using him was too much. And suddenly, Dr. Andross was alone... Left to his devices. 

·       Unpopular opinion – Andross is a complicated man. He destroys entire planets, civilizations, and embodies the absolute worst in villains, but if you push the right buttons, he might let you live. It’s tempting to make him a “for the evulz! destroy da galaxy!” 1-D villain (like Nintendo often has, full-stop) but there’s enough material across the history of the series to suggest that he’s driven by emotions gone mad. Drawing from Itoh here, Andross only demonstrated deep attachment to three people: his parents and Vixy. All are dead. And the rest is history.

·       Favorite relationship – Herbert. Oink!

·       Favorite headcanon – I have a lot of deeper, crazier headcanons for Andross, like how he met Vixy as a fellow scientist and the kind of arrogant BS that ensued while he resented James more and more, but here’s one that’s hard to believe: in his Dr. Andross days, well before his life of insanity and pure evil, he was casually known as ‘Andy’ by fellow academics. Now those older Cornerians shudder to think of those early days...

[I hope you enjoyed my ideas for literally the worst monke of all time. 🙊]

[btxtreads]

ANOTHER TAG ASHJHJASD

extra long tag game (aka a tmi that no one particularly cares for)

tagged by @txthearteu​

tagging @markhyucknorenminchenji​ @qtsoobin​ @beomberry​ @txtdiaries​ and other people who wanna do it idk

ONE

tell me the first song that made you stan your current fave group and why did your faves attract you so much?

of course, none other than king943 hSJADJSAJHAS. He’s a little secret I’ll let you all in on: the first person I actually noticed in TXT was,,,,,,, Kang Taehyun hSDHJAHJSDAHSA but he wasn’t my bias. I just thought he was cute (also amused me bc my BTS bias was Taehyung and I found a guy named Taehyun cute), but I didn’t stan them then. I started stanning when I saw ONE DREAM.TXT where they talked to BTS and found them really cute and endearing. Looking into them, they were wild, and chaotic and so fun and also i got rEAAAALLY attached to Soobin. So here I am. There u go, my stanning story.

TWO

rule: answer the ten questions and write your own!

what’s your unrealistic goal for life?

becoming a famous actress or singer hJSHADJSA

if you had known that we would be in a global pandemic, what’s one thing that you would’ve done before things shut down (if they have for you)?

Went to a theme park. I miss going to theme parks 🥺

what’s an unconventional thing that you carry around with you when you go out?

hmmm most of the time i just go out with just my phone and money unless I need to bring a bag due to safety concerns/more items needed. So I’d say nothing unconventional.

favourite type of plushies and why?

God do I seem boring hsahsajjsa but i wasn’t too big on plushies. I had a gigantic teddy bear named Justin when I was a kid (it’s a bear with shades that my brother gave me) and I used to buy plushies whenever I’m in disneyland, it’s all in my sister’s reading lounge. The only plushie in my room now is a Mollang doll wearing like a blue shirt/dress, it’s my favorite rn It’s squishyyyy

favourite song right now?

right now, it’s Work It by Sabrina Carpenter.

something that you’ve always wanted to learn?

Dancing (i literally suck. i have no idea how. no joke), Vocal Lessons (had some lessons briefly for like a year but i stopped and want to take some again), music production, acting, hosting

tell a funny story about yourself (or just something that you’ve witnessed)

ok okok so one time in our class groupchat we were talking about class elections for officers. There were muse votes and some people were saying they want me to be the muse but i didnt want to bc i was busy with work. Then they started saying that they want me to be the muse and this guy that i rejected be the escort. while this is happening, i was simping hard for soobin in another chat. anyways, i got everything mixed up and accidentally sent the soobin simp stuff to the class chat and everyone thought i was simping for the classmate i rejected i was so asHAMED.

headphones or speakers? why?

speakers! idk i just like blastic the music loud.

craving any food right now? what are you craving?

anything with cheese

which music streaming platform do you prefer? why?

spotify since its free for me askjjksad someone pays for my subscription lmaooo

😌✌️

questions from cj to me:

android or apple? why?

APPLE because im loyal 😌 and i guess im just used to it so its easier to use for me + all my gadgets at home are mac

words of affirmation or physical affection? why?

I think there should be a good balance of both. The words will have the ability to give you this sense of comfort and satisfaction and you know just overall a peace of mind when you hear the right words??? and physical affection bc sometimes it’s just better to get a hug or a kiss isntead of talking yk? actions speak louder than words sometimes

bean bag or rocking chair? why?

Honestly, this would depend. If I’m reading a book and feeling very vintage with a hot cup of coffee, definitely a rocking chair. If I’m watching TV and basically just chilling I’d go for Bean Bag. I like maintaining the atmosphere.

do you view a half-filled glass as half-full or half-empty or an in-between? why? (go as deep as you can)

I view it as in-between, because there’s always room for improvement. There’s always things to change, and consider, and make better. There’s no such thing as perfect.

If someone were to grant your wish right now, what would it be and why?

Please stop corona right now and let everyone go back to their daily lives and please let me attend a TXT concert bls im begging on my kNEES

if someone were to give you anything you want right now, what would it be and why? (something that can be held)

Give me Soobin I just want to give him a hug. this is valid i can hold him

favorite season and why

Winter! Even if I’ve never experienced snow or winter before, the whole idea of snow is just really fun and endearing to me. One of my bucketlists is to see snow in real life. I think it has to do with the fact that I’ve always been this person to prefer the cold over heat.

what made you enter tumblr?

I’ve always been here! Just not in kpop tumblr. I’ve since deleted my old accounts and shame  but i came back to write. It’s always been so stress-relieving to me, to write without any expectations on my back because I’m thinking about grades or a competition. Also Soobin simping is a daily thing and I gotta release it somewhere man

are you happy with where you are in life right now? why or why not?

Yes. I may not be the richest or the prettiest, or smartest or whatever, but I have a good family that loves me. I have good friends that support me and I have TXT and BTS to help me cope when things get overwhelming. I have a job that gives me a little bit of income (it’s not too common for college students here to get jobs like in the US, most of them just focus on acads) and all the means to continue my education amidst the pandemic. So really, I’m grateful for where I am now.

to see the boys in real life but for it to happen only once in your lifetime, or to meet the boys via online fan meeting as many times as you can in your lifetime? why?

Why do you have to do me dirty cj,,,,, prolly online. I may not get to hug them or anything but I get to talk to them still. As may times as I want to. And as a girl whose sanity literally just depends on Soobin giggles rn it’ll be very therapeutic to me to see them and talk to them as much as I could, even just through a screen.

QUESTIONS FROM ME TO YOU:

Cinema or Netflix? Why?

Fire or Rain? Why?

What’s the worst experience you’ve had as a KPOP stan?

How do you handle stress?

Favorite Disney Princess and why?

Which fictional character do you say you relate the most to?

How did you get into KPOP?

What kind of merch you got 👀

Would you date a KPOP idol? What would you do if you do date one? (doesnt have to be your bias, just wanna see what y’all would do)

Would you rather be with someone you love but doesn’t love you back or be with someone that loves yu but you don’t love them back? (Or, as the Filipinos would say, Mahal ko o Mahal Ako)

THREE

rule: bold the statements that apply to you, italicize your aspirations, then tag nine people.

AIR ༉⋆͙̈

i have small hands / i love the night sky / i watch animals and birds when i pass them by / i drink herbal tea / i wake to see the dawn / the smell of dust is comforting / i’m valued for being wise / i prefer books to music / i meditate / i find joy in learning new truths from the world around me

FIRE ༉⋆͙̈

i don’t have straight hair / i like to wear ripped jeans and overalls / i play an organized sport / i love dogs / i am not afraid of adventure / i love to talk to strangers / i always try new foods / i enjoy road trips / summer is my favorite season / my radio is always playing

WATER ༉⋆͙̈

i wear bracelets on my wrists / i love the bustle of the city / i have more than one set of piercings / i read poetry / i love the sound of a thunderstorm / i want to travel the world / i sleep past midday most days / i love simply lit dinners and fluorescent signs / i rewatch kids shows out of nostalgia / i see emotions in colors not words

EARTH ༉⋆͙̈

i wear glasses or contacts / i enjoy doing the laundry / i am a vegetarian or vegan / i have an excellent sense of time / my humor is very cheerful / i am a valued advisor to my friends / i believe in true love / i love this chill of mountain air / i’m always listening to music / i am highly trusted by the people in my life

AETHER ༉⋆͙̈

i go without makeup in my daily life / i make my own artwork / i keep on track of my tasks and time / i always know true north / i see beauty in everything / i can always smell flowers / i smile at everyone i pass by / i always fear history repeating itself / i have recovered from a mental disorder / i can love unconditionally

FOUR

PERSONAL

name: -

nickname: rina

birthday: - 

zodiac: gemini

nationality: filipino

languages: english, filipino 

gender: female

sexuality: straight

height: 5′2 like 2 years ago, i probably grew like an inch or two 

BLOG STUFF

inspiration for muse: --

meaning behind my url: bts and txt fanfics to read hasjhsahj

blog established: ,,,,, i cant remember askjjksdjkdsa but the blog is only a few months old!

followers: 384!!! love yall 

FAVORITES

favourite animals: b u n n y y y y y

favourite books: CAMP HALF BLOOD SERIES BY RICK RIORDAN IM ZEUS’ DAUGHTER YALL

favourite colour: black, blue, purple

favourite fictional characters: Percy Jackson, Jaron from Ascendance Trilogy, Chimmy!!! hihi

favourite flower: white roses

favourite scent: coffee

favourite season: winter

RANDOM

average hours of sleep: 3-5 or 8-10.

cats or dogs: dogs because cats scare me

coffee, tea or hot chocolate: coffee!!! especially if it’s iced and sweet

current time: 12:21 AM

dream trip: California. Look I have the visa, pls miss rona. just leave so cali can just let me IN

dream job: actress or singer

hobbies: writing, reading, watching crackvids

hogwarts house: gryffindor

last movie watched: Work It (bc it has sabrina carpenter ahshsahsa i have low standards when we talk about Sabrina)

last song listened to: Helpless - Hamilton OBC

no. of blankets you sleep with: 1

random fact(s): if given the chance again, I would go on a date in high school. Also try to exert more effort in my appearance back then i looked like an honest to god M E S S (tbh i still do but now i have eyebrow liner on) hsajhsajhh

FIVE

10 things I can’t stop listening to (at the moment)

Run Away - TXT

Work It - Sabrina Carpenter

Euphoria - BTS

Song Cry - Yeonjun

Helpless - Hamilton OBC

Satisfied - Hamilton OBC

Journey to the past - Anastasia OBC

Lost in the Woods - Frozen OST

Perfect Song - Sabrina Carpenter

Friends - BTS

[clovis-enthusiast]

Little thought about The Tyrant’s Tomb. [SPOILERS!!!!]

oKAY, so I’m gonna start off by saying that, as usual, Rick Riordan’s writing style never fails to impress and draw me in to keep reading and not stop until I’ve devoured every last word. I was DESPERATE to read this book because it took me longer to get it than usual, and I was trying to go into it spoiler free (aside from reading the snippets that Uncle Rick posted on his Twitter every now and then.) I pretty much managed to do so, and it made the experience that much more emotional for me. I went into The Burning Maze KNOWING that Jason was going to die, but I had absolutely no idea what I’d be facing in this book.

Camp Jupiter

I’m just gonna flat out say it; I was never really all that interested in Camp Jupiter in the beginning. I didn’t like the majority of the characters (aside from Dakota who is my legal son) and the camp structure (though accurate to the Romans) seemed too strict and harsh to me. The ranking systems confused me, and it all in all just did not appeal to me the way Camp Half-Blood does. However, the more I read, the more attached I grew, and although I still MUCH prefer Camp Half-Blood and would choose it in a heartbeat when choosing between the two camps, it still became an interesting place to read about. I ADORE the idea of New Rome and the sharp contrast of silly demigods like the fifth cohort vs. the strict rules and upbringing of the camp.

When Jason died in The Burning Maze and the next book was set to take place surrounding Camp Jupiter, I grew excited. I REALLY wanted to meet more of the demigods of the Roman camp and explore them more (mostly Dakota but I digress.) Although I knew reading about everyone’s reactions to Jason’s death would be hard, I fought through it and was somewhat surprised by the lack of grieving that was presented. I mean, the ENTIRE first few chapters were ALL about Jason’s coffin and Lester and Meg grieving and trying their best to get it to camp but when it actually got there there really wasn’t that much of an uproar. At first I thought that was strange but looking back at it the Romans are brought up to be strong and not let emotions take over them, and people like Hazel have to show absolute strength. Besides the camp was already in mourning over DOZENS of other campers at the time.

That was another thing that sort of bugged me. I was absolutely ITCHING to meet some new characters and granted I got a few, but the majority of the ‘newer’ characters had already been killed and served only as the undead army.

THAT WAS SO FUCKED UP. It was one thing that I think Rick did a really good job with in upping the deep and darkness of the Riordanverse series. Can you imagine fighting your undead comrades and friends?? Like holy shit, that was emotional. I was super worried I spoiled something for myself on Istagram bc I read a post someone made about Jason trying to get the undead Romans to follow him instead or direct them away from camp, but I should have known it wasn’t true since he was literally burned.

Frank

Speaking of burning, I ACTUALLY thought Rick killed Frank off. Up until this book, I hadn’t really realized how much I loved this man. His character is just so well-written and likable and when he sacrificed the wood, I was like NOOOOOOOOO. I was SO grateful he came back in the end because I was sure Rick would never hear the end of THAT one if he allowed it to really happen. On the bright side, my baby boy can now enjoy his life with a little bit more vigor and less fear now that the stick is gone for good.

New Characters

Lavinia Asimov: Okay, Lavinia is a REALLLLLLLY weird character to me. She reminds me a lot of Lou Ellen to be honest, but for some reason, she doesn’t appeal to me as much as Lou Ellen does. (Maybe it’s just because I tend to prefer minor characters) Her rebelliousness seemed a little too... forced at times?? And her whole thing with the dryads and fauns was kinda weird too, but I guess since she likes Poison Ivy, it makes sense. However, she kinda did grow on me, I suppose, and I wouldn’t mind seeing more of her.

Poison Ivy: I REALLY wished we could have met her even just once. Lavinia would not shut up about her and was CONSTANTLY rebelling against the rules in camp just to see her, so I wanna know just what kind of a character she is. I’m sure she would have been very interesting and sassy to have been Lavinia’s love interest lol

Pranjal: He’s a good boy!!! Not quite sure how to pronounce his name properly, but his appearance is adorable and I LOVE the fact that he’s a son of Aesculapius because he’s one of my favorite gods soooo... I really wish we could have seen more of him!! He’s kinda like Clovis in the way that he has like one important part, gets mentioned like two times afterwards and then never again :^/

Aristophanes: he’s a cat,,, i love him,,, 

Harpocrates: This was SO interesting and out of the blue to me having gone in spoiler free!! He’s earned a new spot up in my favorite gods list because of how interesting and mysterious he is. His concept was great and although i was sad to see him sacrificed, I hope that he and Sibyl are together wherever they are bc that was damn cute and made me so emotional afgkjldg why did Apollo have to be such a dick as a god,,,

New names with little to no info: Carl (Roman demigod,) Reza (Roman demigod,) Reginald (faun,) Felipe (faun,) Harold (faun,) Lotoya (dryad,) Buster (unicorn,) Muffin (unicorn,) Whagadoodle (unicorn,) Shirley (unicorn,) Horatio (unicorn,) One Eye (pegasus,) Small Ears (pegasus,) Boost (pandai,) Ida (Roman demigod,) Caelius (Roman demigod,) Thomas (Roman demigod,) Colum (Roman demigod,) and Terrel (Roman demigod)

Lester/Apollo

MY BOY HAS GROWN!!! He’s so human now, and I’m so proud. He doesn’t even second guess sacrificing himself or humiliating himself to save his friends. I just... I have a lot of feelings over his character development. Rick handles him SO well, and I just,,, I love him,,, i am,,, in love with him,, i would date lester papadopoulos

Meg

She’s grown to be such a doll!! I was SUPER annoyed by her in the first books, but now she’s my daughter. I love that she’s actually expressing emotions other than ‘annoying 12 year old’ now. Like I wanna protect her.

Reyna

She was a pretty good character in this book and her leaving the camp was a HUGE surprise to me. I kinda wish she was still praetor because idk Hazel just doesn’t rlly seem as fit for it as Reyna was, and I like Reyna a lot, but idk i guess it’s coolio. I was also glad Rick cleared up all the romance discourse about her too though the way he did it was kinda weird (she literally was using the word ‘ship’ out loud like wh-- and i don’t remember the venus thing at all so maybe i missed it from a different book? idk it came out of nowhere to me)

Ella and Tyson

I actually like Ella a lot now!! I used to find her quite annoying, and her relationship with Tyson felt forced, but now that I had the time to get used to her and figure out her character a little more, I do like her. She sort of treats Tyson weird, but I think towards the end, I fell for their relationship more. Tyson was literally excellent, show-stopping, breath-taking, amazing,,, like YESSS KING I LOVE YOU AND YOU PEANUT BUTTER-SMELLING SELF (that one scene where he just started dancing and apollo didn’t know if it was for the ritual or just bc he felt like it killed me)

Character Deaths

Dakota: I AM NEVER GOING TO GET OVER THIS ONE FOLKS. YOU HAVE NO IDEA HOW MANY TIMES I HAD TO REREAD THE SAME SENTENCE TO MAKE SURE THAT I WASN’T HAVING A NIGHTMARE. I PHYSICALLY CANNOT BELIEVE THAT RICK KILLED HIM OFF. I’M STILL EMOTIONAL OVER IT, AND JUST AJSDHF;AMNJ ‘;  NOOOOOOOOOOO THIS IS THE SECOND SIBLING POLLUX HAS LOST IM GOING TO  S C R E A M  HE WAS ONE OF MY FAVORITE CHARACTERS AND HE DESERVED BETTER DAMN IT I’M LITERALLY IN SHOCK LITERALLY DO NOT TALK TO ME LIKE I’M STILL IN SHOCK FROM CREST’S DEATH IN THE LAST BOOK TBH AND NOW THIS??? NOW I’M SCARED CLOVIS IS GONNA DIE JSDKLFKS the only thing that gives me comfort is that Jason can be with his friend in Elysium now fuckkkk,,, rick why did you do this to me,,, I LITERALLY CANNOT EXPRESS HOW UPSET I AM I WILL  N E V E R  HEAL

Don: Don was sort of a comic relief character in SoN, and it was very sad to see him go. He reminded me a lot of Grover, and his death scene with Lavinia ACTUALLY made me tear up. THIS BOOK MADE ME SO EMOTIONAL GOD DAKOTA AND DON WERE LITERAL BABIES RICK GIVE THEM BACK

Bobby: listen,,, we never even met this kid rlly and i was still super sad when lavinia had to kill him again and hannibal is without him and just ughhh whyyy

Julia’s mother, father, AND foster parents: HOLY SHIT RICK WASN’T THAT KIND OF OVERKILL??? I felt so bad for the poor girl, especially cause she’s like six??? But it’s very sweet that Terminus adopted her. I really liked that.

Jacob: AAHHHAHA this one made me sad too!!!! he was such a minor character, but he reminded me of Damien White and Ethan Nakamura (if he were allowed to actually be a kid,) so I think that’s why I was sort of partial to him. The way he died was SUPER horrid too, so I just,,, im big sad for him (on a good hand, he went down F I G H T I N G)

Mentions of anything relating to Hypnos or his children

Yes, i am keeping track, sue me. Somnus was mentioned one time in this book as one of the gods Apollo briefly considered summoning to his aid, and it is presumed he has some sort of tribute at Camp Jupiter had he not before. You’ll make another appearance someday Clovis, I know it :’^D 

Final Thoughts

I literally CANNOT wait for the next book (which I presume is the last one.) From what it seems, we’re returning to New York, so Camp Half-Blood will be present. I can’t wait to see my babes again, and I’m REALLY hoping more minor characters will be allowed to shine (cough clovis cough) but like i KNOW some will die and just,,, im sad,,, dakota’s death has wrecked me,,, but on the side note, the new book is coming out in my last year of school!!! i’m so excited because this series holds emotional value to me like i’ve literally gone through my high school career with trials of apollo like it was with me the whole time and it’s one of the only things that keeps me going. i just,,, i have no words to express how much this series and all the others mean to me...

thank you so much for keeping me going, uncle rick. i can’t wait to see how this all ends :^) <3 

[meangirlsx]

I recently became aggressively re-addicted to the Percy Jackson series and obviously one of the things it’s known for is being super diverse and having amazing representation. That got me thinking about how much representation I can find for myself in the stories, and even though they’re fictional, I’ve come to the conclusion that I could be the daughter of Percy Jackson and Annabeth Chase.

Physical and mental:

My hair is naturally blonde, wavy, and messy. 

I’ve never known how to describe my eye color because they’re green but in a way I haven’t seen in other people. I’ve decided on “stormy green” because they’re a mix of dark green, a medium sort of sea green, gray, and a bit of blue.

I have a disorder that affects half of my cells, so I’m literally a half-blood.

The disorder also causes the equivalent of ADHD, as well as dyscalculia.

I’m not dyslexic, but I do mix words and letters around sometimes in my head (like, the other day, I tried to write “goat” and it came out as “toga”).

Personality – Annabeth:

I always have a plan. Planning is seriously like My Thing™️.

I read all the time.

I’m super arachnophobic. Like, super super.

I believe I can do anything, not really in a hubris way but more like I don’t give myself any option other than to be able to handle anything, and I believe that if I work hard enough and try hard enough, I can.

I’m always the one who stays calm and takes the lead when problems come up. People turn to me because they know I’ll be fine and in control when everyone else is freaking out, and they know I’ll already have a plan or come up with one quickly.

I’m working on it, but I’ve never been good with being open about my feelings and anger seems to be the one that comes out if I’m trying to hide another emotion.

I always worked hard in school and was always in the top of my class from elementary school all the way through college, where I graduated summa cum laude.

Logic is my go-to way to handle pretty much everything, and I always try to talk my way around a situation.

My go-to hairstyle is a ponytail.

Willpower, determination, stubborn nature, whatever you want to call it, I probably have too much of it. I very, very rarely give up, even when I probably should.

Personality – Percy:

I’ve always felt very at home in the water and never want to get out.

Growing up (and if we’re being really honest, even now), whenever I’ve been on a beach and standing at the edge of the water or in the water, I always felt like I could feel a conversation between me and some unknown man who was trying to look out for me. 

At the same time, I’ve always had this irrational fear of deep water like I’m afraid of sea monsters or other, larger, scary creatures that live in deeper, darker water. It’s like I imagine what else could be there even though I know it’s irrational.

My fatal flaw would very probably be loyalty.

My biggest fear is losing/hurting the people I love, or not being able to save them.

Sometimes my sense of humor can be really stupid, but I’ve learned that when I’m tired and my filter is down, my sarcasm goes way up to the point of shocking people around me.

I am forever the mom friend, worried about everyone, feeling responsible for them and anything that happens, and ready to protect them at a moment’s notice.

I have like a quietly rebellious side that I try not to let get me in trouble but of course sometimes it does, and I don’t like being told what to do.

I’m really perceptive and observant, but sometimes I could win a gold medal in missing the most obvious things.

My moral compass is my guiding force and I strive to be as kind as possible until the situation calls for otherwise.

Personality – both/general:

I’m usually the leader of groups. It comes naturally to me, and I always do my best to lead with compassion, empathy, understanding, strength, and bravery. 

I’m always looking for signs of trouble even when I know there shouldn’t be any.

I’ve always had this urge to go fix/solve/save something/someone. I call it chronic hero syndrome.

Disaster seems to have a knack for finding me.

I’ve always sworn my dad wasn’t really my dad and I’ve always had a complicated relationship with my parents while also loving my mom more than anything.

I’ve always been really into mythology and unreasonably attached to it.

I’m pretty sure this is true for almost everyone, but I’ve always felt like strange things happen to or around me and no one else ever seems to notice, or they come up with some explanation that really doesn’t fit.

I regularly get the feeling I’m being watched or followed when I have no real indication that I am.

My dreams are almost always weird and/or elaborate, but there have been many times where I’ve had strangely specific recurring dreams, a dream that basically came true, or a dream that ended up clearly being a warning.

I don’t know if this is really related but it feels worth mentioning: I get these gut feelings about the future that don’t seem to be based on any consciously perceivable facts.

For example, I’m moving later this year and planned to live with a friend, but for some reason, ever since we agreed to live together, I had a feeling I couldn’t shake that said this girl and I weren't actually going to live together. Now, months later, I just found out that she isn’t going to be able to room with me.

Or, one time when I was still in college, during a week before I went home for a weekend, I got a weird feeling that I should move an envelope I had that was full of money, but I never did. I also had a weird feeling about a door in the house. Over that weekend, someone broke into the house back on campus by kicking in that door I had a bad feeling about, and one of the things they took was my envelope of money.

And it’s that kind of stuff that seems to happen a lot, where I have an unexplainable feeling that ends up being true.

I’ve always been into the idea of fate, but making your own fate at the same time. I don’t really know how to explain it, but like when you put your music on shuffle and skip songs until you get to one you really want to listen to. Like the universe has some kind of force, but we make the decisions.

Honestly I could probably keep going but at this point it’s becoming an essay so I’m going to stop here.

Basically, I am so impressed by the amount of representation Rick includes in these stories and I am so, so grateful for it. We can find ourselves in his characters in ways we never even imagined possible. He latched onto things every kid feels but never really says, and he gave us mirrors and role models we never knew we lacked and needed.

Seriously bless Uncle Rick.

[nickiplague]

Truth Inconceivable - Miguel Rambles ch. 5

Hallo again! I hope you lovelies are having a splendid day! I am here to grace you with another chapter of Truth Inconceivable! (Which, sidenote, I've referred to it as TI a couple times and thoroughly confused my friend because I forgot about there being a rapper named TI so...yeah…) I do hope you enjoy this! It gets a little weird...

Whoops missed the weekend...I am having to watch two little children for a week it is kinda distracting sorry.

I was still awake and I heard something, no someone, shuffling across the floor towards my bed, which had no sheets, no pillow, and a blanket that was attached to the bed.

The shuffling stopped beside my bed and I heard a slight creaking as someone pushed down on the edge of my bed. I could make out the vague form of a darker darkness looming over me and then I heard, “Psst! Dipper… it's me, Miguel. I wanted to tell you that you are super lucky you didn't come two days ago. Because then you would've been put in R2 with Yao.” I could hear him shudder.

“What’s wrong with Yao? He was talking to me in the restroom until Joey stopped him.” Then again, Yao was getting really close to me and asking intrusive questions and Joey was calling him a creeper…

“Dude, before Nick got here he was forcing Rick to play with another rhyming word.” Rhyming word what was he… no way… “Fred tried to keep him away, but Yao got him put in solitary for a couple nights and by then he already did his harm.” Oh my God what is this place… “Now that Nick is there he can protect them, but Yao is scary dangerous I know cuz he got Sonny before I got here.” I couldn't breathe. I apparently dodged a bullet big time.

I took a deep breath, “Are you… saying what I… think you’re saying?” I could barely get the words out it was too horrible to think of. I heard and felt Miguel shift on the side of my bed he seemed agitated. It was honestly very understandable...

“Yeah, the guy is a nympho, addicted to sex, it's the main reason he’s here. He gropes and makes out with the girls every chance he gets,” I remembered him making out in the corner during dinner. “He even convinced a nurse to blow him in the bathroom, she got fired.” What the heck?! “Thankfully he didn't go too far with Sonny before I got in here, but I know he was trying to fuck Rick the night before Nick got here.”

Miguel seemed to realize all at once how horrible this all would be to hear in the middle of the night and shut up. He started to slide off the bed, “Can you tell me about something else? Like who was the girl stomping in her food at dinner?” He chuckled at that.

“Oh oh oh! You mean Stephanie the Stomper? She is soo weird! She eats barely anything because she insists on stomping in her food it’s really messy when we have soup…” I could imagine that, definitely keeping my distance at meals… “She says it’s part of her performance art or something like that? Oh and she is an amazing musician! You’ll see that tomorrow, she can literally play everything in the music room!” He was bouncing on the edge of the bed with how excited he was.

I could see it… I guess so anyway, some of the most amazing artists are supposed a little crazy right? “Is she just talented with instruments or does she sing too?” I bet Mabel would love someone who she could do karaoke with…

Miguel scoffed at me, “She sings, she dances, she acts, she does everything! She’s an art genius!” He kept getting louder and we heard Sonny whisper for him to shut up and go to sleep, so he lowered his voice and continued. “The downside to all this is that she is… kinda crazy? Little ironic for the pyro to be calling someone crazy, I know, but she is eccentric to the extreme.” Mabel is pretty crazy...she may give her a run for her money. “Like she decided to try to ‘become one with her medium’ a couple months ago by trying to eat our paints. Like what the actual fuck?” Nevermind I don't think Mabel could be that crazy if she tried.

All I could see in my mind was her digging out watercolor pans and eating the chunks she extracted… “That… that is pretty disgusting…” I shuddered how could anyone stand that? “What about Eric? Why have you and Sonny been tormenting the guy?” While knowing they were stealing his food in an effort for him to lose weight I was wondering if there was anything else deeper to it.

Miguel was shifting around again and his voice sounded a little guilty, “Well… we thought we’d help him. Snap him into better shape… kinda… Eric got put in here because he wasn't eating anything for a while. He had lost some weight because of it, but it wasn't healthy clearly.” Oh anorexia… I get his logic I guess… “He was supposed to leave after he got into a healthy eating habit, but… he came back after… well after attacking some bullies at his school.” Always has to be some jerkface waiting to torment someone...

“He’s really a nice guy, but...people are cruel. After soo long anyone would snap, especially when they are trying their hardest and others just mock them…” Wow poor Eric… just trying to get in better shape… and people tearing him down for it… “So ever since he came back me and Sonny have been… helping him along… he’s lost weight too! About 15 or so pounds I think, but you gotta remember, muscle weighs more than fat. He is soo much smaller than he used to be!” Miguel went silent for a while.

I realized I was drifting off again and decided to nudge Miguel along, “Well Miguel, as informative as this has been buddy, I feel like I could sleep now.” He slid off the bed and I swear it was the loudest thing ever.

“That was the point man, talk you to sleep. The first night is scary, so it’s nice to make friends.” As he returned to his bed I was struck by the fact that this kid would go out of his way to help another kid that for all he knew was psychotic. I mean, Miguel is psychotic, but he didn't know about me…

Well, there that was! Please remember to review and tell me what you think! I know it's a little clunky and exposition heavy, I actually considered naming it Miguel Spouts Exposition at one point. Anywho, I require your reviews for sustenance! FEED ME! Please!

[loki-of-war]

On the future of TWD

(EDIT: Reposting due to a formatting error)

So I’ve seen a lot of people commenting and sharing their opinions lately on how Chandler’s departure will affect the show, if it will survive this hit or not, for how many seasons more will TWD run, etc, etc. And I decided, now that I’m thinking more rationally (I hope) and I’m able to form understandable sentences, to share my honest thoughts with you lovely people on this entire mess.

Which is as follows: I give the show a minimum lifespan of ten seasons (meaning, the show will end in two more seasons) and a maximum of twelve seasons in total. This is my verdict, feel free to disagree with me.

Now onto explaining why I think this is so:

I can sort of see why old fans who left and people who have never liked Carl or feel lukewarm about him are happy this death is going to happen. But on the other side I'm thinking this kind of mentality is the reason why the show gets away with terrible decisions and why they keep making them over and over, declining in quality. I don't think it's right to condone mediocrity; this is from someone like me who has stayed on the TWD's side so far hoping they'd find the right footing at some point this season  (then, obviously, because why wouldn’t they, my patience and tolerance was rewarded with this haha). And as I mentioned in a previous comment I made on YT, no matter what the public's feelings for Carl are, they won't change the importance of his role in the plot and his fundamental connection to Rick (this latter element has an effect on the whole cast, for better or for worse).

But anyway, Carl's death is going to change the entire mood of the series from now on so it definitely will never be as it once was and I think because of that the story will slowly bleed out. I mean, Carl has been the greatest determinator for every single one of Rick's decisions the entire show, and not only that but what he symbolised as a character, the hope for a better future, is gone now. What do children, sons, daughters, symbolise in every universal story? The next generation, what comes after, that not everything is going to be screwed up forever; especially after seeing how unmerciful TWD's world has proven to be for children and having Carl be the only exception to this 'kids cannot survive this world' rule has sort of become a moot point thanks to the...current circumstances.

Rick's and Lori's speeches to Carl in seasons 2 and 3 respectively justify this way of thinking: that after everyone from their generation (the adults) dies, Carl will have to take the reins and move on. I refuse to believe any writer with common sense would write such important pieces of dialogue just because they felt like it, just because they're emotional words without any other kind of meaning behind them. That is just lazy and awful writing in my opinion. Why write these poignant moments only to have the kid killed long before the end of the series? Why write/do anything if those things are going to be ignored later down the line, nevermind that every piece in a story must connect with the others? Why bother teaching him this morality lessons if they're all going to go to waste anyway; if he will never have a character arc/storyline that is plot relevant where his morals are challenged? (Good on you, whoever made the call, for missing out on possible great storylines for Carl that would have improved viewing and the quality of the show). That doesn't make a bit of sense, unless that what they were looking for was to give the events leading up to his sudden death some twist of irony, and that'd be perfect and all, except that Carl dying was so not part of the plan (the improvisation is so obvious it hurts me in the balls I don't have) and even the way his death was set up was graceless-the bite- and not something one would expect from the same people who made/directed/wrote/produced Season 4. In other words, killing him was basically flipping off the idea of a future in the face, whether they meant to do that or not, and this is bound to turn the overall mood the series to a much grim and darker tone to an already heavy themed and toned series. Many people won't find themselves too content with that heavier tonal change, I think, if the ratings for season 7 are to be trusted.

Ignoring that the conclusion to this was having him die though,  I do have to say the actual set up in the mid season finale itself was beautiful and emotional (Chandler's acting was on point, he was the star of this episode), but the chain of actions leading up to it was lackluster. With lackluster I mean that he is a very important character that has literally been wasted for far too long; if you look at his progression throughout the seasons you'll realize he has not done much from a plot perspective despite being a main character. Therefore, his death feels unsatisfactory and empty because one can't help but feel that he hasn't nearly done as much as he should have. What he did to save his people in the mid season finale was amazing but it wasn't enough to make up for a notorious lack of screen time over full eight seasons, moreover if the motivations that drove him to that point, to that mentality, to that philosophy, don't make sense because his personality has made a one eighty from how he was the previous season with no type of prior explanation as to why that happened.

It may not seem like it but I'm actually a huge fan of angst and favorite-character-slaughter. I love when books, music, movies, videogames, series make me suffer (great examples of this are my undying love for Hannibal the tv show and that my favorite videogames are the ones directed by this one man, life destroyer actually, called Yoko Taro). Perhaps that is another reason why I'm being so critical with the choice to kill Carl (asides from the horrible decision-making and poor writing), because I love being hit in the feels in the best way possible, without holding back any punches, just go straight for the kill and make me cry like a newborn. However, I don't like tragedy when it's done for shock value, or when it's done simple-mindedly. If a favorite character of mine is going down, it has to make sense and they must have had filled out their purpose in the story, reached a state of character development we're all satisfied with so that when they die one can accept it and be happy despite the possible trauma that could ensue after (well, one can't exactly pin point when that happens, when enough is enough, but to have had the character embark on a lot of adventures even without them accomplishing their purpose, is enough to embrace their death). I guess what I'm trying to say with all this is that, while on one hand I would have preferred him outliving everybody else, if they were still so adamant on having him die at some point of the story (as if killing Carl had actually been part of a long term plan and not some last minute decision) they should have developed him first and foremost, and then assign him a proper death in later seasons, most preferably before the last season ends given that him dying before Rick is several different levels of wrong; if he wasn't such a huge part of Rick's character then fine, do it, but putting and end to him is equal to neutralizing Rick for literally years, which is time that both a comic and a tv show cannot afford, so to do it near the end of everything would be a better fit.

And, I don't know, even having Judith fill the void won't be of much help either, because we haven’t and we won't see her grow the same way we did Carl, her relationship with Rick will be vastly different, and so on. Probably this is just me but I'm not really attached to her; Judith so far is to me only a concept and not actually a person (yet). The fact that they keep changing the little baby girls who portray her doesn't really help, that gets me out of the story everytime. She just can't replace Carl, she might take his future storylines but it won't be the same. Besides, by the time she grows up, she’ll already be deep into this world, this is her normal life and probably by that time things will have changed.

So basically, not only in killing Carl they destroyed the image of a future, they have killed a foundational part of the essence that made The Walking Dead be The Walking Dead we all knew and loved, and that will never return. Also, allow me to point out that for those who think that The Walking Dead is about people dying whenever and wherever, and the cruel injustice that is life, I am not going to say that your interpretation is wrong but it is an incomplete one. The audience doesn’t watch TWD only to see tons of MC’s get murdered on a daily basis. Otherwise, why bother with investing time on a plot and just have them all killed at once. The soul of TWD is not about senseless killing and murder and tragedy and sadness. Simplifying it all to ‘this show is about the possibility of anybody dying/gore/zombies/etc’ is a great disservice to the show and the fans. Obviously, I am not neither the writer of the show or Robert Kirkman to claim to know to a T what the central theme of The Walking Dead is, and for full disclosure I have not read the comics. Nonetheless, basing my personal opinion on the tv show alone, I would like to think one of the core themes the show has explored and returns to time and time again is the topic in regards to the essence of human nature, and how in spite of apparent doom and the horrible circumstances we are forced to face, humans will always find the way to move forwards and stay strong, ergo, the message is a positive one, not a negative one, depressing, nihilistic one. And what better character to portray this versatility of human nature, this capacity for change, other than Carl Grimes, a child of transition, a child who was pulled out of his normal childhood and thrown right into the chaos of the apocalypse? A boy who has witnessed inhumane things, horrible things, has killed his mother, his second father figure, has done awful things himself, has always been toeing the line between right and wrong, cruel and kind, because of all the experiences he has had to process in a very short period of time? He was obligated to grow in a decaying world, watching his father and the ones surroundind him make mistakes, learning from them, evolving, seeing close ones die, starving, surviving insane experiences... If someone like that manages to grow in such a hostile environment and still remains true to himself and still has not lost faith in the world and humanity, and keeps close all the meaningful, important things his family and friends told him in the course of his entire life and not only that, but also applies them... What does that mean for you, to you? What does it mean for us? What does it say about human nature that hasn’t been told before or not quite in this manner?

Well, that is the point. I guess we will never get to find out in the Tv Show the answer to those questions. Regrettably.

If, and just if, the show manages to recover from this point onwards, I still have no idea how I'd feel about having the show thrive on the tails of throwing under the bus such a key character with no legitimate reasons behind the choice (don't even get me started on what they've done to poor Chandler). I'll still watch the show but I would be incredibly uncomfortable if that is how it turns out to be.

Finally, I apologize for any grammar mistakes or awkward phrasing you may find, it’s way too late to be doing such a long post and English is not my main language. Please don’t be afraid or feel awkward about replying to this post, even if it’s to hate on it. I really don’t mind having a long conversation about this topic with you all since I’ve literally been dying since Sunday night to discuss it.

Thank you so much for reading!

[ellana-ravenwood]

Dating Daryl Dixon would include...

As I’m broadening my horizon beyond Marvel and DC stuffs, here’s some “The Walking Dead” things ! Daryl Dixon’s relationship headcanons, hope you’ll like it, and if you want more, don’t hesitate to ask yo : 

You can find my masterlist here : @ella-ravenwood-archives

__________________________________________________

How you met, falling in love, and the first “I love you” : 

✶ You were in Atlanta with your family when the zombie outbreak truly started, and barely managed to leave the center of the city in one piece, loosing everyone you ever loved...But at the time, you were too shocked to realize it. 

✶ You ended up in a forrest nearby...and that’s when you met him.

✶ He was hunting with his brother, and at first, thought you were completely nuts. “Zombies ? This gal’s crazy or something”. 

✶ Quickly though, the reality of what’s happening reaches the three of you, and you end up tagging along with them. 

✶ It helps that you know how to fend for yourself, how to shoot a gun/crossbow/bow  with great accuracy (your father used to take you on hunting trips often). You’re pretty sure they would have left you behind if you were completely useless. 

✶ You’re wrong though, it’s not like Daryl to abandon people behind. Not like him at all. And though Merle is a rough man, it’s not actually his thing either, though he’d never admit it. 

✶ When they ask about who taught you to shoot, you talk about your father, and even though you try to hold your tears in...You break down. Finally realizing you lost all your family in Atlanta. 

✶ “What about friends ? / I don’t have friends”, you tell him. He understands. Besides his brother, he has no one. As your tears run freely, he comforts you the best he can. Not good with words. So he awkwardly pats you on your back, until you burry yourself in his arms. And he lets you do it. 

✶ He doesn’t speak much at first. But whenever Merle is away, he’s more open, and conversation always seem to flow easily between the two of you. 

✶ He feels weird. He never felt the way he feels when he’s around you before. It was easy to become your friend. It’s easy to talk to you. He doesn’t mind spending hours just sitting next to you, not saying anything. It’s just weird for him, to get attach so fast to someone he knows since only a few weeks. 

✶ He knows he’s screwed because the weird feelings he’s been having is love when you, him and his brother meet a group of survivors lead by a certain “Shane”, and he doesn’t like the way that guy looks at you.

✶ His brother teases him about you, not thinking he’s actually right. Until he realizes that yes, his little brother has a thing for you. More than a thing. And then he teases him even more.

✶ You’re too afraid to tell him you feel the same thing about him because...well, sometimes he’s just kind of an asshole to you, so he can’t possibly like you back ? You didn’t realized that he was an ass only when Merle was around. 

✶ The day his brother dies, you give him a shoulder to cry on, and comfort him just like he comforted you months ago when you realized your entire family was dead. Only, you’re good with words, and thanks to you, for the first time in his life, he feels completely free, relieved, of any pain and suffering. 

✶ That night, he tells you about the abuse he suffered from when he was a kid, from his parents, and the one from his brother though he loved the damn fucker...and you suddenly understand. You understand everything.  

✶ “I’m here for you Daryl, and I don’t intend on going anywhere and I”...You don’t even have time to finish your sentence that his lips are on yours. 

✶ Never did he do something that felt so right. Kissing you just seemed so natural, as if he was made to do it. 

✶ For a second, you don’t respond and his heart drops...until your tongue demands passage in his mouth and oh damn is he dead too, and is he in Heaven right now ? It surely feels like it. 

✶ You guys don’t say “I love you” just yet though. You’re already both freaked out that you got attached so fast...Besides, the World you’re living in now doesn’t really give much time for romantic shit. 

 ✶ From that time and on, you guys stick around each other, and everyone know you’re together, but Hell they wouldn’t ever talk about it. They ignore you slipping in his tent at night when you think they’re all asleep, or him rushing out of yours early in the morning, before anyone is awake (or so he thinks). You guys want to keep it private ? Then so be it. 

 ✶ He finally tells you “I love you” after his desperate search for Sophia, Carol’s daughter. Because he realized, when that little girl walked out of Hershel’s farm zombified (dead), that there was no time to waste. Life was too short, even more now in that fucked up world. So : “I love you (Y/N)”, he says, over and over again, as you hug his tired and wounded self. “I love you (Y/N)” he says, over and over again, not letting you go, kissing you all over. There’s no time to waste indeed, and if you guys love each other, why keep it a secret ? “I love you too Daryl”. 

Actual Relationship headcanons : 

✶ When you’re cold, you can be sure that his leather jacket is gonna end up on your shoulder. He can’t have you get cold. If you’re in public and he’s in a good mood, he’ll let you cuddle against him for more warmth, but more often than not, will just throw his jacket over your shoulders, and wait until you two are alone to cuddle. 

✶ Not a fan of PDA, at all, as stated before. But there’s some occasions, when one of you almost died, or when a friend of yours die, where you’ll stay closer from each other. Where he’ll kiss you sweetly not caring about wether people watch or not. It’s rare, but it happens. 

✶ Going on random (and dangerous really) motorcycle rides. You two always use the “we’ll go look for more supplies” as an excuse to go...And end up making love to each other in a place Daryl deems “safe” (he’d never put your life in danger). 

✶ He’s incredibly jealous, especially towards Rick, even though he’s clearly just a friend, someone you consider your brother. 

✶ It’s ok though, because sometimes, you’re jealous of Carol, whom he’s been close to ever since he looked for Sophia. Even though there’s nothing between them but brotherly/sisterly love too. 

✶ He’ll always stick up for you, even if you’re wrong. He’ll defend you to the death. 

✶ Him getting “pissed” when you make stupid jokes and puns, acting as if he’s annoyed when you’re cheery even though you’re all in a shit situation...but deep down, loving the way you brighten up his world. 

✶ He’ll die for you. And hates when you take stupid risks. 

✶Literally all your arguments start because you did something stupidly risky to save a friend or something, and he can’t loose you. 

✶ Make-up sex. 

✶ You two can hold a conversation by just waving your hands around, and looking at each other. Comes in handy when you need to be stealthy. Freaks everyone else out because “How ?!”. 

✶ Him loving when you run your hand through his hair. But hating when you tie said hair in a bun. He looks ridiculous, with a bun...

✶ Pet names that are both cute, but also kinda rude “Love you, asshat”, “Love you too jerkbucket” and other “fartface” or “douchetruck”...it seems weird to others, but you guys like that better than “princess” “babe”, “handsome”...it’s like your inside joke, but also, it’s actually really loving. Pet names.

✶ Being the only person he ever loved. So much it hurts. 

✶ Stupid arguments sometimes, because he’s emotionally retarded and doesn't know how to tell you certain things, which frustrates you. 

✶ When he does talk to you though, your heart sings. For him to trust you that much...it means a lot. You gotta be careful in moments like this though, he can be open one time, and then if you say or do something “wrong”, close himself completely for a long time. 

✶ Knuckle, forehead, neck, cheek kisses. So much of it. 

✶ You almost dying of cuteness when he harshly shoves some flowers in your face. “Picked them up on my way when I was hunting. They made me think of you”. Oh my God. So. Damn. Cute. 

✶ Making sure you feel safe. And you feeling actually safe only when he’s around. You hate to be separated, even though sometimes it needs to be done. 

✶ Sharing a cigarett or a beer, just the two of you, somewhere far from any of your friends. You guys need some times alone, some privacy...and don’t mind being “alone together”. 

✶ Sweet and/or rough sex, depends on the mood, but it happens whenever you get some time alone.  It’s difficult to find time to actually have sex in this zombie outbreak world, so when you guys do, you make it count. Oh yes. 

✶ “A little foreplay goes a long way”. 

✶ He’s bad with words, and rarely says “I love you” (that one night after trying to save Sophia being the only exception)...but every single of his action conveys all his emotions. Conveys what he feels for you. Wether it’s a hug, a kiss, or making love. He tries to make sure you know what you mean to him, but really, he doesn’t have to try hard, just looking into his eyes proves to you how much he loves you. There’s that tint in it whenever you’re around...

✶ He always gives you the best piece of food he brings home. But you always end up giving it to someone else, because “they need it more than you”. Bullshit. No one deserves the best but you...

✶ Always watches over you, even when you think you’re alone. Just in case a walker would surprise you you know ? Or something worst : an ill intentioned man. There’s a lot of those nowadays. 

✶ Since he admitted his feelings to you, he cannot fall asleep without you around. Without touching you in some way. You can’t either. 

✶ His abused past-self sometimes coming back in moments of doubts, sadness and fear, and him letting his tears go just with you. 

✶ “Daryl will be fine, just let me talk to him guys” you tell your friends, as you join your boyfriend who hid somewhere, and you find him curled up in a foetus position, shaking...Only you can bring him back. 

✶ At some points, he realizes he cannot live without you anymore, and that freaks him out...but then you snuggle against him, you’re in his arms, and he forgets all his worries. You’re not going anywhere, you already told him.

✶ Him often wishing the World didn’t go that much to shit, because otherwise, he would marry the hell out of you. But you guys don’t have time for a stupid wedding...

✶ He also wants children, but cannot bring himself to “force” a kid to live a life where he’ll have to survive more than just live...Maybe one day, if things get better ? 

✶ He almost thought things would get better at the prison. There was a life being built there, maybe one where children would have their place. But then the Governor had to come and fuck everything up. So he fucked his tank up.

✶ You and him talking about this impossible future. Marriage, children, a house, dogs, living in a peaceful countryside...

✶ It makes you sad sometimes, to know all of this is impossible...But as long as he’s with you, it doesn’t even matter that it probably will never happen. As long as he’s with you, everything’s good. He’s enough for your happiness, and your enough for his. Just you. Just him. 

If you die (which is likely in a zombie filled world) :

✶ He’s devastated. Even more if you turn into a zombie, because he feels like he HAS TO give you the kill shot...

✶ He buries you in a nice place, a place he knows you’d love. Makes sure nothing can ever disturb your peace. 

✶ Leaves the group for a while, walks aimlessly around, killing any zombies or whatever hostile in his way. 

✶ Thinks about ending his life...But then he realizes that’s not what you’d want him to do. 

✶ You’d want him to fight. To keep living. To move on. 

✶ Eventually, he does move on, but never loves one like you. In fact, he never have another relationship. Friends, yes. But love is gone in the tomb with you. 

✶ Him burning candles on each anniversary of your death. He cannot forget you, and actually fully “moving on” is impossible. He’s always sad when he wakes up from a dream where you were in...

✶ He’ll forever feel guilty that he wasn’t able to protect you. 

✶ You believed in an afterlife, and every day, he wishes that, the day he’ll die to, you’ll be there, waiting for him...

[sleepingfancies]

I’m mad and it’s about my son so you already KNOW I have a lot to say here.

The thing that is so infuriating about Chris Manawa’s situation and subsequent death is the timing and literal execution of his story line. Get ready, because there’s a hell of an essay below.

Chris Manawa got scratched out of FTWD in S2 after his fan support plummeted when he started down a rocky, arguably sketchy path. But here’s the question of the day: how would that storyline have ended if the writers hadn’t gotten cold feet about it? Too bad we’ll never know, but let’s dissect what’s so goddamn frustrating about this. In stages, broken down, so y’all can follow.

*****************

1. Inherent Good vs. Inherent Evil vs. That Little Grey Area

 Let’s talk about Rick Grimes for a second. Our guy Rick went completely off the rails in S3 after Lori’s death, and still had moments in S4 and S5 where his actions were pretty “yikes” (i.e. leaving desperate, likely harmless hitch hikers to walkers, slaughtering people in a church, ripping a guy’s throat out with his teeth, etc).

“But Clara,” you say, “those acts were justified.”

Well, partially, sure. But on the other hand - that’s what the writers have lulled us into thinking. We know that Rick has seen some shit, been through some shit, and had to make some shit decisions. We know he’d do anything to protect Carl and Judith. He’d do anything to protect The Group. He doles out justice like he’s a walking gavel. We automatically give him a pass for this. He’s a damaged man and those are his family members; we can understand him going a little cuckoo sometimes. And besides, Rick would never go “dark side.” No matter how ruthless Rick can get, there is never any real, honest to god danger that Rick might completely snap. And if it ever seems like Rick is going down a bad road and losing fan support, well, the writers just throw in someone worse - like Shane, the Governor, the Terminus cannibals, or Negan. So long as there’s someone inherently bad, no one will start to wonder if Rick is still a capable leader.

The lack of anyone inherently bad in FTWD immediately handed Chris an extreme disadvantage when it came to his arc. We, as viewers, were simply not allowed to see his actions compared to the actions of someone who had solely poor intentions. We were not allowed to see the actions of a traumatized teenage boy in comparison to a grown ass man holding a barbed wire baseball bat who simply doesn’t care who lives or dies, so long as he’s alpha male (you know who we did get to see that comparison with? Carl fucking Grimes).

Let’s talk about why that is, shall we?

***********************

2. Before (The Good), During (The Bad & the Ugly), and After (The Good)

With most major/minor characters (or even antagonists) in stories of all kinds (but especially televised stories), we see their “before and after” to trauma and challenge. Daryl and Carol had abusive family backgrounds that explain how they can behave and think sometimes. Shane genuinely thought Rick was dead and grew attached to Lori and Carl in the chaos, began to feel responsible for them, even love them. Even at his worst, he continually brings this up, and to a point it does explain how he can think and behave sometimes. Even the Governor had a tragic backstory, both initially and after he lost Woodbury.

Chris Manawa’s storyline is not a “before and after” story, it’s a “right here, right now” story. 

When the apocalypse really kicks in, we as an audience find ourselves right smack in the mid-beginning of Chris’ development. Think about it; he watches his mom get shot in the head, he’s thrust into a world where he isn’t safe anymore, and he’s surrounded by people who make him feel like an outcast. Add the cherry on top that he’s literally just a 16 year old kid, well shit, now you have a traumatized, isolated character who is neither mentally nor emotionally prepared to handle the situation.

What does this result in? Fucked up shit. Bad decisions. Anger - deep-seated, simmering anger that is not being dealt with, but just continually building. Look, I love my mom. Love my mom. She’s the best person I know. I look up to her, and if my parents got divorced and my dad kept telling me to give my “new family” a try, I wouldn’t want to either. I’d stay with my mom. I’d trust my mom. I’d know that she was the one constant in my life who would never voluntarily leave me or force me to hang out with my step-siblings. And then, she gets infected. No one understands by what. My mom is going to die, and then she dies because my dad shoots her in the head in front of me. In that scenario, personally, I would be beyond distraught. I would be beyond angry. I would withdraw and cut myself off and mourn and smash shit and yeah, I’d probably dissociate so fucking hard. Especially after finally trying to reach out to my step-family and getting shut the fuck out.

We don’t get to see the resolve of Chris’ backstory, because his backstory is his present in FTWD. Think. About. It. This is the kinda shit you’d expect to hear 5 minutes of over sad piano music as the narrator looks off into the mid-distance on TWD. This is the kind of backstory you’d expect to hear from someone like Daryl, or Beth. Hell, this almost is Beth’s arc.

And, sadly enough, Chris’ arc being shown presently rather than presented as backstory is almost precisely what killed him. My poor traumatized son. My third and final point is to finally settle this bullshit comparison once and for all, bc y’all see fit to do my son dirty.

***************

3. Carl vs. Shane vs. Negan

You know what made Shane so despicable? The fact that despite the many chances Rick gave him, he continually fought only for himself and his best interests, he continually wanted what Shane thought Shane deserved. He was selfish, arrogant, close-minded, obsessive, and downright untrustworthy.

Does literally any of that sound like Chris? Chris, the boy who tried to help Alicia over a fence and got punched in the face for it? Chris who tried so many fucking times to alert Travis and Madison that he was NOT FUCKING OKAY and needed help but they ignored him at every turn? The boy who kept making steps to leave the group because he thought they were better off without him there? The poor thing might’ve turned suicidal if he had been forced to stay with them.

“But Clara,” you cry, “remember that time Chris shot an innocent man?”

Yes, I do. I remember when my sneaky son tackled Travis pretending he just wanted a hug. I remember my angry garbage boy taking so much satisfaction in axing walkers between a fence.

You know who else shot an innocent man? Carl Grimes.

You know who else repeatedly takes pleasure in killing zombies? Carl Grimes.

You know who acts condescending, dangerous to their own families, and remark on the fuckability of every woman they meet? Shane and Negan.

You know who DOESN’T act condescending, dangerous to their own families, and remark on the fuckability of every woman they meet? Carl Grimes and Chris Manawa.

Huh. It’s almost like... Chris would’ve been another Carl Grimes, if he had had a competent parent who’d recognized his trauma and helped him through it. If the writers hadn’t chickened out by the fandom backlash and decided they were going to see Chris’ arc through rather than cut it short while they felt like they were ahead.

***************

BONUS ROUND: Trauma, Dissociating, and Cries for Help

Let’s just peep at some things Chris said while he was alive, mainly in his almost-final moments.

---

(when Travis is skeptical about joining James, Derek, and Brandon because  the Clarks are a perfectly nice group) “[Derek and Brandon] look at me different [from the Clarks].”

(When Travis says Chris is making a mistake by trusting Derek and Brandon) “I would hide at recess every day because the football guys used to make fun of me. What’d you tell me? ... The lesson was to fit in. I’m fitting in.”

(when Travis protests at Chris’ attachment to Derek and Brandon, saying he’s only known them for two days) “They’re my friends. James is my friend.”

(when Travis says they don’t need Derek and Brandon) “I do.”

(when Travis asks for the date) “No, dad, I lost track. What does it matter?”

(when Travis remarks he should’ve helped Chris) “I’m no good. Look at me. I’m no good!”

(when Travis asks what Chris is doing killing walkers behind a fence) “Making myself useful.”

---

Like. Holy shit, how does this not SCREAM to y’all that this is a kid who has a history of feeling like an unwanted outcast and he needs help my fuckignfw GOD this boy just needed HELP

He’s depressed and dissociating and angry and JESUS. He latched on to Derek and crew in two days because he’s that fucking desperate to be wanted and included and in on the joke for once

TL;DR don’t come for my son because I am upset and moody about this and he will always be more of a parallel to Carl than to Negan or Shane and I’m so goddamn FRUSTRATED that the writers didn’t have the guts to just fucking finish his fucking arc and let him be at peace god fucking damn I just

FUCK

[harfblarf]

more rick and morty nonsense-- this time, rest and ricklaxation

i havent seen any posts outright pointing this out so: we know that toxic morty contains a lot of morty’s insecurity-- “I don’t want to be on camera I’m ugly”, “my voice is annoying”, so on-- and that he’s scared he’s gonna be in hell, but he also outright states that he "just want[s] to die”. Also that he’s in pain. 

Other things Toxic Morty says:

“I believe you” to Rick, with no hesitation-- Morty’s occasional blind faith in his grandpa is viewed as toxic? Healthy Morty certainly doesn’t just play along with Rick’s ideas

“*screams*”-- panic

“yes rick, i-i agree rick”-- stutter, capitulation, submission, avoiding confrontation

“i think my voice is annoying” in response to rick asking what morty thinks of him discovering electricity-- vaguely self-centered in a depressive way?

“i dont like confrontation”-- yeah no kidding

“i-i dont like this, this is scary” fear, aversion to violence

“i’m a piece of shit but I got the tank” obedient, self-hating

leans on dash much like healthy morty did, looking resigned

“jesus christ it hurts”-- unlike healthy morty makes no effort to reassure others

Toxic Rick :

“you can die when I say so”-- controlling

“why am I bragging about that, I have nothing to prove”-- insecurity

“I’m surrounded by inferior pieces of shit and--” *looks at morty* LOOK IM NOT SAYING HE DOESNT VIEW MORTY AS AN INFERIOR PIECE OF SHIT I’M JUST SAYING THERES AN IMPLICATION THAT IM CHOOSING TO READ INTO. YES HE FINISHED WITH ‘TOXINS’ BUT COME ON that pause tho

hey where did toxic rick get fucking glass test tubes

*destructive tendencies*

“I’m gonna rip your throat--”-- violent boi

“you little sociopath/okay shut up morty”-- considers healthy morty a sociopath, doesn’t want to listen to morty talking about people hating him (did not shut him up previously, only now)

“don’t negotiate with that little turd, you’re the rick, you need to show dominance!” insecurity, desire for control at any cost

angry when his plan goes downhill, angry about remerging

“I got a lot more use out of that thing than he ever did” considers his sexuality a toxic thing, bound to his anger and irrational attachments?

“fuck you summer” no respect, no apology

“alright fuck this time for plan b”, but leaves beth alone

fucking throws healthy morty out of the ship. not his morty, not his problem, i guess?

brags at a very uncomfortable toxic morty

“trapped in your brain... with delusions”

“relax, quit your bitching, you’re gonna be fine... grandpa’s here”-- that same arrogance that makes him call himself a god, is what assures him that he can help toxic morty

“just do it you piece of shit!” angry but resigned to the only solution he can see (small picture)

Healthy Morty:

“mind if i put on some music?”-- considerate, nonpresumptive

the whole “one song a day” thing-- optimistic, planning, looking to the future

“if anyone could [calculate happiness], Rick”-- deep respect for Rick, respect for intelligence, flattery

“thanks rick. I love you”-- affection for his grandpa, appreciation

“if we’re all bored, wouldn’t the common denominator be you?” this is a clever joke, but it’s mean. cleverness/humor is prized above consideration and kindness

“I knew you could” and the rest of this montage-- uh so Healthy Morty provides the confidence Normal Morty is missing to a bunch of people. if that’s not symbolism idk what is; plainly Morty considers supporting and helping people Healthy

“*doesnt react to being called a loser, not even to deny it*” I wonder if this is like, self-acceptance

suave but still in an awkward way? like he drops a pickup line on jessica with an awkward forced laugh

“happy to help rick”-- but no surprise, no real emotion. like it’s forced

“bad phone, chuck it”-- acceptance of simple answers

“if something’s worth saying, it’s worth eye contact”-- considers reliance on technology unhealthy? interesting especially considering his interactions with Rick and all his tech

“you shouldn’t have to deal with that, man”-- curiously, despite making it his job to stop other people from being in pain (helping all his schoolmates), he advises against helping the Toxins

“I think i know what to do. *snaps phone in half*” destruction of property, choosing simple solutions

“things are good... taking that away from me? that wouldn’t be healthy.” manipulation, selfishness, self-preservation

“world’s greatest grandpa, for reals” more manipulation

awkward chattering, spouting shallow wisdom

“pronounce it however you want, words are just things” lack of judgement

“please, thank you, we’re having a conversation”-- shoos away the waiter to make jessica less awkward, being rude to the waiter in the process. singleminded, simplistic solutions

extended metaphor of jessica to a planet, including some like very specific shit, “what’s the equator, what are the holidays”

“talk to me.” demanding, assertive

really... loud? and aggressive, and awkward and emotive; very little self-control

lacking attachments, passions, “life is a highway”, “no sparks no damage”

...really long metaphors with stacey too. u ok morty?

“bad parts of us, which includes our dishonesty” (emphasis mine); morty has no question that deceit is bad. of course, that’s what a manipulative little shit who believes in lying “for good reason” would say, too, so.

stacey will “do anything for you morty”? weird, probably more evidence of his manipulation. quickly earned her devotion

“kill him rick!” morty considers his violence and willingness to retaliate “healthy”

bites toxic morty-- willing to use unfair/dirty fighting techniques just like toxic rick did

also grinning while he attacks him

casually stops and leans on the dash, blank-faced, when beth appears. again, no passion, no emotion at all

also healthy morty was in the driver’s seat and only settled once he was in control

“we gotta stop him”

the one to explain why Healthy Rick shot Toxic Morty again

“you’re a better man than me Rick, I’m healthy enough to admit that”-- healthy morty to regular rick. what does it say that both toxic and healthy morty view rick as superior? man, that’s kinda fucked, even if healthy morty’s actions here are totes dickish

“have I ever lied to you? that’s right, and ask around, I never do” manipulaaaaaation

uses jessica as yet another extended metaphor

draws attention, revels in it, offers falsely specialized attention to people to earn and keep their affection (the wink, the friendliness with “dwayne”)

“red pill or blue pill”

“totally understand dwayne, you’re the boss”, then cuts to... jargon that makes his coworkers happy. i strongly suspect at least part of a lie here, or an omission of truth

the boy is really obsessed with organic carrots, who knows why

“is that how long it takes for rick to trace my location” but he’s smiling, not scowling, he’s... at best amused, at worst unbothered, i guess?

“you miss someone that loved you so much you never had to love ‘em back” holy shit morty

“you didn’t hang up”--”huh. how ‘bout that.” then to surprise into mild consternation when the fucking voltron drones show up

“do what you gotta do”-- despite not wanting it, recognizes the inevitability of rick getting him to remerge

apparently healthy morty told his girlfriend that he was “capitalizing on his lack of conscience by becoming a stockbroker”. interesting

Healthy Rick:

“heheh, this universe”-- considers the universe impressive/beautiful/awe-inspiring (compare to ‘the universe is a crazy chaotic place’)

“that is an interesting concept... listen to me, trying to calculate happiness over here”-- respectful of others’ ideas, still brilliant and trying to improve on them, recognizing that math/science isn’t the solution to everything

“here’s something no science could measure: i’m real proud to be your grandpa, morty”-- pride in his grandson, acknowledging the limits of science

“morty, a moment of your time?”-- so polite hot damn

“what if the toxic parts of us have their own identities-- their own will to live?”-- inherent respect for the value of life

“i’m accountable to my toxins”-- considers responsibility and facing it healthy

“locked ‘em in a cage *hits it while smiling as toxic rick swears*” my guy what the fuck; theoretical emotion, no actual immediate empathy

upset, sad about toxic rick’s deception

“sorry summer” considerate, apologetic

“summer get out of here, go”

“we can resolve our issues, we don’t need to resort to over-the-top--”

“just leave her out of this”

“it’s okay girls, i’m so sorry” takes the time to be reassuring and apologetic when danger is still afoot for the world, offers to cook??

“not our right to stop them”

“your morty”/”i know you give a shit dummy, because I know I don’t”-- i think this is again about “not my morty not my problem”, and that Healthy Rick doesn’t care about Toxic Morty

“merge with me and you’ll know how to save him”... except once they merge there is no saving him, is there? just preservation to merge him with Healthy Morty

“I had all my problems removed-- my entitlement, my narcissism, my crippling loneliness, my irrational attachments” -- things healthy rick considers unhealthy are identified, but he’s still doing this in part because healthy morty insisted it was the right choice, and he’s still proud to be morty’s grandpa

“you’re literally incapable of seeing the bigger picture” so large-scale thinking is considered healthy?

“if i ever gave you the wheel, we’d be dead in five minutes” and isn’t that true, because toxic rick is willing to sacrifice himself for morty, and is too arrogant to think anyone is a threat to him? he would get morty AND himself killed if toxic rick was always in charge. no, letting toxic rick guide him is inevitable, but being controlled by him is unacceptable

Regular Rick: 

“man i really overthink shit when I’m angry”

“now it’s time we re-merge your little ass” interestingly his priorities were a) fix planet (what morty asked him to do), b) remerge morty (save toxic morty)

“that kid is a real piece of shit” (about healthy morty only)

“part of me really wanted to [save you], toxic morty. part of me really wanted to.” 

“tiny american psycho”

“kept asking ‘did you get a new morty yet?’“/”because you kept drunk-dialing me and crying about it!”/”I WASN’T CRYING” /in the background “I didn’t care” (what a liar)

Conclusion: as funny as most of this episode is, it strikes me that what Rick considers unhealthy, Morty considers healthy. Healthy Morty is violent, lacking a conscience, manipulative, domineering, sexual, and lacking in passion and attachments (he does, after all, abandon his family, not just Rick, for three weeks). Yes, he’s also less of a coward, not suicidal, and helpful, but compare to Healthy Rick. Healthy Rick is similarly lacking in passion and attachments, but he’s nonviolent, honest, less arrogant and less willing to impose his will on the world, nonsexual, and calm. Everything Healthy Rick isn’t, Healthy Morty is. It’s a fascinating insight into how Rick’s lies and denial are fucking up Morty’s perception of what is “healthy” and what isn’t. He has come to view violence, foul play, manipulation, lack of emotion/conscience, and dominance as valuable skills, even necessities, instead of the shameful attributes Rick views them as.