#look look. everyone's favorite. the shapeshifting comics!!

[fitzs-space]

Lets play mermaids they said, it'd be FUN they said

I tried to finish this for may, its here now. happy pride gay people

transcript down there

Gem: Are you guys even able to breathe in water like this?

Etho: No, it’s really just aesthetics,

Etho: but there’s enough conduits around here, so it’s safe enough- Grian: ACHHHJJHJHUUUHIUFUCK

[grian witnessed the horrors]

[pluckyredhead]

Why was Victor golden in the Titans series (the devin grayson one)

I figured you would know because you know alot about DC comics

This question makes me so happy because a) I get to rec one of my favorite comics of all time and b) the answer is unintentionally hilarious.

So basically, some years prior, Vic's body had been pretty much completely destroyed and his consciousness was absorbed into a hive mind of computer intelligences called the Technis. Then when the Technis was destroyed, Vic basically had a breakdown. In the absolutely excellent JLA/Titans: The Technis Imperative, he came back to Earth, took over the moon, kidnapped everyone who had ever been a Titan, and put them in little eggs underground where they would be safe and happy because they were his friends and he loved them. You know, like you do.

The Titans escaped from the eggs and were like "Buddy...no..." and eventually Gar yelled at Vic enough that he was like "Okay I will stop being a disembodied consciousness that has conquered the moon," but this didn't fix the problem of Vic having no body. Luckily, the Titans happened to have a suit of morphing alien armor lying around that could house Vic's consciousness!

The suit of armor? Was called the Omegadrome.

(This was years before omegaverse was a thing, and also the Omegadrome was created by a previous Titans writer and not Devin Grayson, but I like to think she's amused by it now.)

Anyway, Vic's consciousness was ported into the Omegadrome and now he looked like a beautiful gold man who was naked all the time. Gar wasted no time getting up on that:

The gold body is especially fun because Vic can also shapeshift. He didn't love it, though, because the complete lack of organic body parts made him feel extremely disconnected to his humanity no matter how many times Gar tearfully professed his love. I am not exaggerating about Gar's behavior even a little bit, I swear to god.)

(Dick later revealed that he had cloned Vic's body, an extremely normal thing to do (this is where Tim got it from!!!), and Vic was able to shift into his cloned body but keep his shapeshifting abilities. He later lost those abilities in Geoff Johns's Flash run and went back to being 1980s-style Cyborg, because Geoff Johns is the most boring thinker imaginable.)

Anyway, you should read JLA/Titans, it has every single character of 1998 in it and they are all having every single feeling. Seriously, this story is absolutely epic in scope, the character work is impeccable, and Phil Jimenez's art is, as always, exquisite. Whoever your blorbo is, if they were around in 1998, they are in this book, having emotions and looking beautiful. It is also the absolute pinnacle of Vic/Gar and the reason I consider "Hey rust-bucket! Let go of the frickin' moon already, will ya?" to be one of the most romantic lines in all of comics. PLEASE READ IT.

[your-talos-is-problematic]

riverwood, solitude, riften, and throat of the world for the skyrim asks!

Riverwood - Hadvar or Ralof? Why?

So I have only played Skyrim once, but I would say I’m a Hadvar person. Something about him immediately greeting Afonya with “the gods really have abandoned your people” was really funny to me, so I went with him. He also has some interesting character moments with the Imperial torturer, and it’s funny to me that he can’t recognize the Jagged Crown by appearance alone.

Solitude - Who's your favorite Jarl? Who's your least favorite? Why these?

I’m so glad you asked me this one because I’ve never seen anyone else even acknowledge that my favorite Jarl exists. Brunwulf Free-Winter, Ulfric’s replacement, has stolen so much space in my brain. He’s one of the few people in Windhelm I look forward to (others include Ambarys Rendar and all the pissed-off Jarls) because he’s so much nicer to the Dunmer than everyone else. He’s much more progressive than most of his kin, but still flawed- it’s really interesting to me that he still uses “dark/high elves”. He also refuses as Jarl to let Argonians in to the city, at least for the time being, which is interesting to me because it’s so open to interpretation. He’s either genuinely afraid of violence from Windhelm’s citizens (which hints that they’re even worse people than they seem and also at the strength of beastfolk hate even in comparison to elf hate) or he doesn’t actually care enough to accommodate and protect them (which combos with his strange, albeit accidental on the part of the devs, use of cat and lizard to refer to the pc). Also he’s having a secret relationship with Elda Early-Dawn of all people, and never acknowledges her very racist tendencies. I want to write something with him and Afonya, since there’s a lot there with Windhelm’s Dunmer-positive Jarl and its Dunmeri Thane. Also his non-Jarl schedule is in four-hour increments so he takes four-hour naps and it’s very funny to me.

As for least favorite, Laila Law-Giver really gets on my nerves. She’s so oblivious to all the city’s problems and so unaware that Maven’s using her. Also her son’s like “I don’t like Ulfric” and her reaction is to assume he has some sort of magical sickness. The switch in Jarls from her to Maven is one of my favorites, though, since it incurs so little change in policy. Maven’s always been in control, so she doesn’t need to be Jarl, but she still revels in the title. She’s probably my second-favorite, honestly. Writing her is fun.

Riften - What's your favorite guild? How do you feel about their questline?

I love love love the College of Winterhold! It is the most nostalgic thing ever for me because it reminds me of middle-grade fantasy books. I love the professors, I love the apprentices (of course my girl Brelyna), and I love the indoor and outdoor aesthetics of the College. I know the questline gets a lot of hate, but honestly I was having too much fun to care. Being randomly visited by the Psijic monks is surprising, and learning about the Augur of Dunlain is mysterious, and Ancano is comically suspicious, and that’s enough for me. The dwarven ruin visit with the ghosts was honesty super fascinating and fun, and the moment where the spirits break out into the town is honesty my favorite questline climax (second to killing Ulfric, honesty). And its side quests are great, of course. Where else are you going to get shapeshifted into a horse by your future wife?

Throat of the World - How do you feel about "Season Unending"?

I love it! Season Undending is probably in my top three quests in the entire game. I really like this feeling during it of like “why does everyone listen to me about these things”- the interactions really make you realize how and why the Dragonborn holds so much political power. Also, being able to affect how the world of Skyrim functions to such a large extent is such a crazy feeling. I let Elenwen stay during the meeting, too, which is perfect fanfic fodder for Afonya. Refreshing my memory on uesp while writing this also just taught me about the hidden scoring system, which is really cool. Generally, I like when RPGs let you do major things with no fighting involved. Also, because the Reach was temporarily Stormcloack, the quest where that guy delivers the poem involved him running all the way to Solitude to give it to the girl he liked, when he was supposed to just go to the Markarth throne room.

[tonystarkbingo]

TSB Round 7 - Week 15!

In case you missed it, we're trying something new. The next few months will be themed for a little extra inspiration! And to kick off, we've made October a double theme month -- Friends and Foes. We've got the prompts right here, and be sure to keep scrolling for some excellent fills below!

Collaborator: May Card Number: 7031 Square Filled: K5 - Backstory Title: Favorite Barista of Tony Stark Link: AO3 Pairings: Steve Rogers/Tony Stark; Peter Parker&Tony Stark Word Count: 1972 Rating: Gen Major Tags/Triggers: Getting together, marriage proposal Summary: The progression of Tony and Steve’s relationship

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Collaborator: rebelmeg Card Number: 7001 Square Filled: Adopted - Next Generation Title: It's Good To Be Back Link: Tumblr Pairings: Peter & Tony & Morgan & Pepper Word Count: 901 Rating: Gen Major Tags/Triggers: post-Endgame fix-it, happy endings only, family fluff Summary: After the Snap and everyone comes back, Peter visits Tony in the hospital and meets someone he didn't expect.

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Collaborator: MagicaDraconia16 Card Number: 7002 Square Filled: S5 - Tony's Poor Life Choices Title: In A Flap Link: AO3 Pairings: Morgan Stark & Tony Stark, Pepper Potts/Tony Stark Word Count: 100 Rating: Gen Major Tags/Triggers: humor, shapeshifting, drabble Summary: Looks like he had some explaining to do to Pepper.

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Collaborator: tencitizens Card Number: 7013 Square Filled: T5 - Art Format: Book/Magazine/Comic Cover Title: Midtown Magazine's Special Edition - The Man Behind Iron Man Link: Tumblr Pairings: N/A Word Count: N/A Rating: Gen Major Tags/Triggers: N/A Summary: A fake magazine cover, a "special edition" post-endgame around the time of No Way Home, featuring Tony Stark. Two images, with the minute difference where one says "Peter Parker" and the other just says "Spider-Man" to show before and after the spell in the movie.

[dans-den]

Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves Review

Hey what’s going on everyone?! It’s Dan here and today I’ll be reviewing Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves! 

Warning!: May contain some spoilers!

I’m not gonna lie to you guys, March has been Medieval March Madness for me. March is my birthday month and I’ve been going to the Medieval Renaissance Festival, then I saw a Jousting show and now I'm watching D&D movies. I even bought a mug at the Jousting show. I enjoyed all of it, now I just need to play actual D&D and it’ll all come full circle. Honestly this movie looked dope when I saw the trailers and seeing the actual movie, the trailers are different from the actual movie, but in a good way. 

When I saw the trailer for this movie, I was under the impression that it would be about taking something from the Red witch lady or stealing something from her. I was under the impression she would be the main focus of this film but it turned out that was only half the battle. Turns out the main focus of this film is Edgin Darvis (Chris Pine) breaking out of prison and reuniting with his daughter, Kira (Chloe Coleman). However, she’s been manipulated by Forge Fitzwilliam (Hugh Grant)  into thinking her father abandoned her and now Edgin has to gather a group of misfits like an amateur wizard, a warrior lady banished from her tribe, and a shapeshifter to go and save his daughter all while taking Fitzwilliam and the witch down. You’d think that would be an average movie premise but the way they executed it, is awesome. This movie is better than I would have expected and it does go above and beyond in terms of VFX, witty writing for the characters, the action, even the acting flowed well bringing these characters to life. 

Let’s start with the VFX, I think these effects are better than what Marvel is pumping out nowadays on Disney+ or even the Modok memery. I loved the effects in this movie and they did an excellent job bringing the fantasy world creatures to the big screen. The magic was done well too, it didn’t look cheaply done and it was all smooth transitions. The VFX doesn’t really have any bad moments or times where it looks janky. I know the budget is like 150 million but that’s money well spent on the visual effects.

The cast of this film did a phenomenal job with their roles. Each character had their chance to shine in one way shape or form. I will say the least amount of character development I saw was from Doric, but even she came to her own conclusion about humans and how she originally felt about them. Though I will say that one of my nitpicks about this film is the relationship between Simon and Doric, they do have a history together and at the end where they consider revisiting that, felt a bit underwhelming despite this being from the amazing growth from Simon. One of my favorite characters in this film is Xenk Yendar who is a Harper but also a Paladin. He’s someone who takes everything literal and it's funny shit, he’s like the Knuckles of the group (he’s with them for a single mission which is a shame).

I will say that for the writing, it’s hilarious, witty, charming, and above all fun. The writing pokes fun at certain movie cliches as well as narration to sum up the plot or situation. The writing works especially with Forge since he’s more of a comical villain. He does have his ruthless moments but I feel he was written to be more of a comedic relief villain, kind of like Modok but actually funny and written to be a real threat. There are times where I feel the movie’s writing is a bit meh but honestly those are blink and you miss it moments that I can forgive. I did feel the final battle was rushed a little but like I said it doesn’t bother me that much though I did wish there was more build up to that final battle. 

Overall the movie itself was definitely one of the better movies I’ve seen by far this year. While Paramount shows can suck major cheeks at times, I will say their films are bangers. D&D is a fun game and the fact that they brought it to the big screen in the best way is great. I know there are other D&D movies dating back to the 2000’s and I heard those weren’t as great but I am glad that this one was done so with fun writing and great effects in mind.

Rating this film I’d give it:

8.5/10

I highly recommend seeing this film, it’s a fun time for everyone even if you’re not into D&D or fantasy. I hope more fantasy or D&D related stuff takes notes from this movie while improving on the weaker areas. That’s all I got for today

See ya!

[originaltalecreator]

Hey, y'all want some gods?

If you do, you're in luck, my friend. I have developed a whole new fictional pantheon, unique to Modern America. I'm gonna list them below, but the best part is, these guys are free to use however you please: drawings or comics (NOT PORN), NPCs in your games, characters in books or fanfic, whatever you want. No credit is necessary, but you do have to show me whatever you use them for. I want to see what cool things you do!

Phobia = the enby goddess of Depression, anxiety, and other mental health issues. They can cause these problems, but they might help you solve them too if you catch them in a rare good mood.  

Aggra = Anger and violence and toxic strength, she’s the goddess of war, riots, bigots, and stuff like that. Looks like a Karen. 

Glitch = the shapeshifting, genderfluid trickster goddess/god of memes, internet trolls, petty criminals, random weird stuff, and pranksters. VERY capricious and prone to dragging people down Internet rabbit holes. Usually has long curly red hair. 

Mythos = the god of stories, and by extension, fandoms and fan creations about those stories, whether that’s books, movies, TV, or RPGs. He looks a bit like Mithros from Tortall, but he's very friendly and sweet and always decked out in fandom merch.

Curio/Corrupta = The goddess of pollution and the weird mutations and diseases caused by it. She doesn’t really mean any harm, she doesn’t realize that she’s doing harm anyway, she’s a mad scientist at heart and she’s mostly just treating the environment as her science playground. She's also, in her alternate form as Curio, the goddess of scientific discovery, knowledge, curiosity and learning new things. Stained lab coat, wild curly hair, and a bionic eye. 

Cami = the goddess of confidence and self-expression, mostly through art and clothes. She’s slightly crazy and out of control, but in a fun way. She’s also the patron goddess of alternative fashion and beautiful things, and just beauty in general. She has purple bobbed hair and elaborate clown-style makeup most of the time. 

Foundryn = the protector goddess of animals and children, especially lost or abandoned animals and children, including kids who have parents but those parents are neglectful or abusive. She’ll sometimes go undercover as a homeless shelter worker or animal shelter worker to help where she can. She's the sensible mom friend of the pantheon. 

The Rainbow Wizard = The patron god of American queer people, his favorite form is a very sparkly rainbow-robed wizard with purple eyes and a gold crown, hence the name. 

The Old Woman = she doesn’t have a name other than that, she’s the death and fate and afterlife goddess. She has eyes all over her body and she watches people all the time, calculating what sort of afterlife she’ll give them. 

The Genres = Like the Muses, only they’re personifications of each modern music genre and also represent the music industry. They’re always bickering about who’s better. 

Glut = the god of abundance and plenty and wealth. But also fast food, waste, unequal wealth distribution, and malnourishment from empty calories. 

Beau = Cami's twin brother. God of love, all different types, from romantic to platonic, from unconditional healthy love to borderline obsession. He's a very tall, slightly muscled guy with a bright yellow curly undercut and a sparkly white Elvis suit encrusted with pink and red heart shaped rhinestones. He also wears heart shaped sunglasses. 

Stadiya = the goddess of competitions, everything from team sports to video games to competitive reality shows. 

The Wayfinder = The patron god of travel and immigrants, especially refugees and everyone else who comes to the US trying for a better life. Tends to have a walking stick and wear simple clothes and worn-out shoes. 

Viva = the goddess of justice, revolution both internal and external, facing uncomfortable truths, and standing up for what you believe in. Likes cheesy motivational quotes, but can also be very helpful. 

Glamoro = The very flamboyant god of artists and performers, all kinds, not just musicians. He does work closely with the Genres, but also is the god of both stage and screen actors, circus arts people, sculptors, painters, dancers, et cetera. Has an annoying habit of shouting lines and stage directions during normal conversations. Never goes anywhere without his top hat, looks a bit like a circus ringmaster.

Somna = The shapeshifting enby god of sleep and dreams. Favorite form is a pulsing nimbus of shadows. 

[one-pissed-off-child]

My impression/expectations of the Madrigals based on the first trailer vs what I think of them now

Mirabel

Then

- didn't really pay attention to her tbh

-seemed a little dull compared to the others

-viewed her as a narrative device than an actual character

Now

-Anna and Hiccup fused into Mirabel

-her sarcasm is immaculate

-most relatable character out of everyone

-fantastic dancer

-prolly very into arts and crafts

-very cute face

Isabela

Then

-hnngh pretty flower lady

-disney princess vibes

-probably gonna be my fav

-I feel like she sings to birds in the morning

-prolly gives food to the homeless or smth

Now

-went for Cady Heron got Regina George

-I judged this book by its cover so hard

-she's?? so?? hot? help???

-serving femme domme realness

-golden child syndrome sucks

-wouldn't be opposed to her taking over the world actually

-supervillain au when?

-thinks she deserves everything and she's absolutely right

Luisa

Then

-hnngh big hot lady

-seems like a no-nonsense type character

-another candidate for favorite

-man crusher

-notice me senpai

Now

-a lot sillier than I imagined and I love it

-Scorpia kinnie

-emotional baby

-daddy's girl

-I could strangle disney for not giving her a colorful dress like the others

-#LetLuisaHaveFrills2k22

-gives the best hugs

Dolores

Then

-didn't appear much in the trailer so

-didn't really have an opinion

Now

-she's!! so!! cute!!!

-town's biggest gossip

-her squeaks give me life

-better rapper than Eminem

-can't keep a secret

-very unflappable like nothing surprises her

-tells her mother everything

-can destroy you in five words or less

-I feel like she likes fluffy things

-won't start a fight but will finish one

-10/10 quality girl I want to kiss her nose

Camilo

Then

-thought his shapeshifting power was pretty cool

-immediately pegged him as the comic relief

Now

-very pretty boy

-everyone's favorite cousin

-mama's boy

-doesn't care what anyone thinks

-his smirk sustains me

-also tells his mother everything

-master prankster

Antonio

Then

-adorable baby boy

-want to give lots of snacks and snuggles

-deserves love

Now

-and pretty much yeah

Bruno

Then

-I had no idea this man existed lmao

-didn't see him in the trailer

Now

-someone get this man some depression meds

-really needs a hug

-probably listens to Simple Plan

-terrible decision-making skills

-mans really decided to hide in the walls for a decade rather than talk to his mom

-i mean same tbh

-could y’all stop infantilizing this 50 year old neurodivergent man thanks

-is LOVED by his family and anyone that says otherwise is wrong

Pepa

Then

-I liked her hair

-also didn't appear much in the trailer so no opinion

-didn't watch We don't talk about Bruno before seeing the movie so I didn't have the same stigma against her that most do

Now

-introducing the actual fav character

-I LOVE HER SO MUCH

-someone get this woman some anxiety meds

-second biggest gossip in town

-another fantastic dancer

-probably enjoys peppermint tea

-needs to stay away from coffee

-is a loving mother and wife

-couple goals

-literally just see the way she looks at her husband and kids

-very dramatic

-would def be a broadway star

-definitely either the youngest or the oldest

-LOVES her brother

-stop saying she hates Bruno

Julieta

Then

-seemed like a very good mother

-very sweet

-I like her eyes idk why

-she has the most mom power ever lmao

Now

-an EXCELLENT mother

-stop saying Bruno should adopt Mirabel when she has Julieta

-so kind so caring I need her in my life

-should have gotten more singing lines

-prolly very sassy when she wants to be

-mom friend

-doesn't get mad easily but fear her when she does

-probably the oldest

Felix + Agustin

Then

-ALSO didn't appear much in the trailer

-thought Felix was a side character tbh

Now

-disney is ill for setting the bar this high

-how do the Madrigals keep picking up quality men

-what is the secret

-Felix has Gomez vibes

-probably bond over how much they love their wives

-fantastic fathers

-"I was protecting my daughter"

-Julieta and Pepa are winning

Alma

Then

-seemed like a sweet old lady

-kind of reminded me of my grandmother

Now

-needs a therapist asap

-if ya'll don't leave this poor ptsd ridden old lady alone

-did what she thought was best for her family

-STOP SAYING SHE HATES BRUNO

-LOVES all of her kids and grandkids but has a hard time expressing it

-was a single mother to three and the impromptu leader of an entire town of people in her twenties

-she handled what needed to be handled

-probably sings the best lullabies

-acknowledged that she was wrong and went to fix it

-all that being said I did very nearly throw hands with her for a second

[lokiondisneyplus]

No character in the Marvel Cinematic Universe has the staying power of Loki. Portrayed with just the right amount of smarm and charm by Tom Hiddleston, the impish trickster with the ability to shapeshift and cast illusions is a favorite among fans despite the fact he's betrayed friends and family multiple times since debuting opposite Chris Hemsworth in 2011's "Thor." The most predictable thing about him might be his unpredictability. And yet no one thought the character would return to the MCU after being killed by the all-mighty Thanos (Josh Brolin) in the opening scene of 2018's "Avengers: Infinity War." However, we're now on the cusp of the character leading his very own show.

Debuting Wednesday, June 9 on Disney+, the six-episode "Loki" follows a past version of the character, though it's not a prequel. This Loki is the man who successfully stole the Tesseract, aka the Space Stone, when the Avengers traveled to the past in 2019's "Avengers: Endgame." His actions that day ultimately created a branched reality — the very thing the Ancient One (Tilda Swinton) warned the Avengers about when they attempted to gather the stones in the past. So when the show picks up, Loki will find himself being forced to work with the Time Variance Authority, an organization dedicated to protecting the proper flow of time, to help restore the main timeline he broke when he fled with the Tesseract in 2012.

It remains to be seen whether or not the series is one of the shows Marvel's Kevin Feige said was developed with additional seasons in mind. But with this particular setup — and assuming the show operates independently of the main overarching narrative of the MCU — this is the type of series that could easily run for multiple seasons should the people involved desire it. And given his comments over the years, Hiddleston definitely seems game to portray Loki until he's too old to do so.

But what is it about the character, a Frost Giant who was adopted by Odin (Anthony Hopkins) as a baby and raised as an Asgardian, that has allowed him to persevere – especially when Natasha Romanoff (Scarlett Johansson), Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr) and even Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) have not? What gives Loki, a character who has been both villain and antihero, such longevity in the MCU? Is it Hiddleston himself? Is he nurturing goodwill with his enchanting performance? Is it the character's unpredictability keeping things fresh? Or is it the potential of a flawed man still searching for an identity and purpose?

Over the last decade, Hiddleston — whose name was once bandied about as a possible James Bond candidate after a stellar turn in "The Night Manager" — has won favor with Marvel and its fans thanks to his continued dedication to the role of Loki and his support of the extended universe. Some actors have been happy to say goodbye after fulfilling their contracts, but you'd be hard-pressed to find an actor who loves his job with Marvel more than Hiddleston. (Never forget the time he dressed up in character and took over Hall H at San Diego Comic-Con in 2013.) But in addition to his acting chops and commitment to the role of Loki, Hiddleston is also just an effortlessly charming individual, and some of that natural charisma bleeds into his performance, making the character a richer and more complex character as a result. And it's a good thing too because a character like Loki — someone ruled by his emotions, whose only allegiance is to himself, and who wouldn't think twice before double-crossing his own brother — runs the risk of becoming either very annoying or quite tired rather quickly. Luckily, Loki is neither.

After learning the truth of his origins in the first Thor film, Loki's anger toward his family and the betrayal he felt put him on a path to finding his purpose, which resulted in him becoming the mouthy and manipulative, power-hungry antagonist of the first Avengers movie. At the time, no one outside of Feige and other decision-making executives likely knew what was in store for the future of the MCU.

But now we can look back and see Hiddleston's captivating turn in "The Avengers," in which he attempts to take control of Earth using an army of Chitauri forces, was more than just the catalyst for the various heroes recruited by Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) to finally team up. It was also the beginning of what might be the best character arc in the entire MCU. No one save perhaps Sebastian Stan's Bucky Barnes, aka the Winter Soldier, has had a more complicated or effective emotional personal journey throughout the entirety of the Infinity Saga (and beyond). Perhaps that is why when Loki was eventually killed several films later in the middle of his redemption arc during the opening scene of "Infinity War," the heartbreak seemed to extend beyond the edges of the frame and into the real world.

The exceptionally fun 2017 film "Thor: Ragnarok," which immediately preceded "Infinity War," saw Loki forced to confront his past and make a decision regarding his future. The death of his father and the return of Hela (Cate Blanchett), the Goddess of Death and the sister neither Loki nor Thor knew existed, ultimately meant the end of life as he knew it. But rather than fleeing at the first chance like everyone assumed he would, Loki accepted his place in his family and returned to his brother's side after the destruction of Asgard. Of course, he also pocketed the Tesseract before the planet was destroyed, a seemingly innocuous decision that would unfortunately lead Thanos right to him. But learning to care about something more than his own immediate wants was a redeeming moment for Loki, as was his attempt to save Thor from Thanos, so his death was both an effectively heartbreaking moment that resonated with fans while serving as a harbinger of what was to come.

It also felt like closure, so when a past version of Loki popped up in "Avengers: Endgame" when Tony, Cap, and Scott Lang (Paul Rudd) traveled to 2012, it was a pleasant surprise. That the new series "Loki" follows this branched-reality version of the character and won't erase the character's original narrative arc is what makes the show such an intriguing new chapter. When the show premieres, Loki hasn't gone through any sort of character evolution. He is still the angry man who tried to force all of humanity to kneel before him in a desperate attempt to find his place in the world. He has yet to go through the events of his mother's death or the destruction of Asgard. He's a man out of time, a man without a home. And it's the chaotic, still-in-progress nature of Loki and the inability to guess what he might do when an organization like the Time Variance Authority, which is dedicated to order, tries to force him to do what they say that makes this new chapter so exciting.

Each episode of the show, which also stars Owen Wilson as Mobius M. Mobius and Gugu Mbatha-Raw as Judge Ravonna Lexus Renslayer, will see the character travel through time and space on a mission to restore order to the timeline. But will this Loki follow the same path as the man we know and love? Or will this version make different choices without Thor by his side? More importantly, will he find what he's looking for?

Loki is a man driven by insecurity and an ongoing struggle with his identity, though he deftly covers up his deficiencies with a devious wit and charm. The constantly shifting logo in the show's trailer represents both the character's shapeshifting ability as much as the idea that he doesn't know where he belongs or who he is yet. And although the beats of such a character arc are hardly new territory for Hollywood — you could argue they've even been done to death at this point — the potential for greatness still exists as Loki remains pleasantly unpredictable. It means anything can happen, and with Hiddleston promising a show that is unlike anything Marvel has ever done, there's no reason to believe Loki the man and "Loki" the show won't continue to endure and evolve even beyond this first season. After all, he certainly has the staying power.

"Loki" premieres Wednesday, June 9 on Disney+.

[misstyery]

boy next door | izuku x reader

pairing: izuku x reader, boy next door/ friends to lovers

synopsis: izuku is your cliche boy next door: sweet, shy, and unassuming. you hate how stereotypical this all is, but you find yourself wanting to get closer and closer to your freckled neighbor...

notes: took me wayyy to long to get this out, but it’s here! I’ll get back to more consistent writing after this, and i’ll probably have another fic coming out tomorrow, and then back to my fantasy au! series. if you like this please like and reblog! requests are open ( but please read my rules first!)

word count: 0.7k

the first thing you noticed about izuku’s room was how cluttered it was. not messy per se, but there was a variety of trinkets and junk scattered throughout his room. a baseball jersey hanging over the back of a chair, funko-pops and figurines posed on top of a dresser, and wads of crumpled up paper spilling out of a mini trash bin. he apologized for the mess and tried to hastily tidy up. he then rushed off to the bathroom, saying he needed to ‘freshen up’ before you two could start on your project. so now you’re sitting on izuku’s bed, observing everything in his maximalist-esque bedroom.

everything in the room screamed ‘izuku’, especially the massive collection of superhero comics resting in a giant bookshelf. you could see that it was organized by company, starting from DC and ending with Valiant comics. his room was very charming and was a perfect representation of its owner. izuku’s room made you find him even more endearing, and a pleased smile grew on your face. izuku really was the cliche, sweet and dorky ‘boy next door type. and you hated how stereotypical your feelings for him were.

you glanced at the bathroom door before standing up and walked over towards the bookshelf. your eyes scanned the bookshelf before settling on the DC section, reaching out and grabbing a book at random. it was a Wonder Woman book, and you opened it, absently flipping through pages.

“ sorry i took so long, practice was just a little— oh! “ you jumped at the sound of izuku’s voice and clumsily put the comic back in its place. “ no, it’s alright! i don’t mind if you look at them. “ izuku smiled at you kindly and stood next to you, pulling out the Wonder Woman comic.

“ this is a special edition Wonder Woman comic, specifically volume 4 “ he explained as he flipped through the pages. you noticed how carefully he handled the book, and as you looked closer you found that the book was in mint condition. your eyes flicked back towards the other coming on the shelf, those ones had definitely been well-loved. the books had cracked spines, worn pages, and some even had stains on the cover. yes, well-loved indeed.

you looked back at izuku, still flipping through the pages and reading them. “ you really like comics, huh? “ you asked. he looked back at you and smiled bashfully, shrugging his shoulders and rubbing the nape of his neck.

“ yeah i do, i know it’s kinda dorky but hero comics are really cool! like x-men! the mutants in x-men are so unique, like mystique! she’s one of my favorites, to be honest,. she can shapeshift into anyone, she can change her voice, height, anything…” izuku continued to ramble on, telling you about his favorite comics and heroes. you were perfectly content with listening to him talk, you stood there with a dopey smile lining your face. he really was so endearing.

izuku trailed off when he noticed you staring at him, and he felt a flood of embarrassment when he realized that he’d been rambling, about comic books, to you of all people. “ sorry, was i rambling? you can stop me when i do that, y’know. i know not everyone is really into comics like that. “ his voice was soft with a somber kind of lilt to it, and his eyes were focused on his hands holding the book.

you frowned and placed your hand on his shoulder. “ i don’t mind it. and yeah, being a fan of superhero comics is a little dorky, but it’s part of your charm. “ you winked at him and took the book from his hand, sitting back on his bad and patting the space next to you. “ c’mon, maybe you can tell me something about Wonder Woman this time. “

a relieved smile appeared on his face and he joined you on the bed, sides and legs flush together. a pleasant warmth settled in your stomach, and you handed the comic back to him. this time, he opened the comic to the first page, and as he began to read it to you, you couldn’t help but focus on his face. he glanced at you from the corner of his eye and a red flush overcame his face. yeah, he really was your boy next door <3

[pluckyredhead]

I’m sorry, “angel mixed with a blob of protoplasm” WHAT?

I will admit that I put that line in as bait and I am SO HAPPY someone asked about it because it is one of my very favorite pieces of bonkers comics history, both for the bonkersness and because it led to some actually really amazing comics.

So from her debut in 1959 to her death in Crisis on Infinite Earths in 1986, Supergirl was the version most people know her as: Superman's cousin, Kara Zor-El, who came from Krypton just like he did. Her human alias was Linda Danvers.

However, when DC was building out their post-Crisis universe, they decided that they didn't want to have any Kryptonians but Superman. After all, how can he be the Last Son of Krypton when there's a Bottle City of Kandor, a whole mess of criminals in the Phantom Zone, a dog, a monkey, and Supergirl? So Kara Zor-El could no longer exist, not even as a memory.

But...Supergirl is a really valuable IP. So they needed to find a way to use that.

Enter Matrix.

Matrix comes from a pocket dimension that was basically created to tie up a whole bunch of Crisis-related loose ends and I'm not going to get into the details, but the short version is: Earth was attacked by rogue Kryptonians and had no superheroes to protect it, because their greatest hero, Superboy (Clark Kent), had vanished years ago. So Lex Luthor, a good guy in this universe, created a superbeing out of protoplasm based on the genetic matrix (hence the name) of his dead wife Lana Lang, dressed her up in a costume similar to Superboy's, and sent her to the nearest universe looking for him.

Instead she found Regular Superman and brought him back to help save her Earth, but...they completely failed and everyone died. WHOOPS. Clark killed the rogue Kryptonians (yup) and brought Matrix back to his Earth, where she stayed with his parents while she tried to figure out what to do with herself. She also briefly dated Regular Lex, thinking he was a good guy like her Lex.

Matrix had super strength and flight, but her other powers were different: she could shapeshift, turn invisible, and fire "psy-blasts." She was also sort of a blank slate of a character that DC didn't really know what to do with...

...until the 1996 Supergirl series. This was 80 issues long, all written by Peter David, and remains the best Supergirl run of all time. At the beginning of it, Matrix tries to save a human girl who is being sacrificed by a demonic cult, but fails - so instead she merges her protoplasmic body with the girl's, and they become one being. Not two minds in one body, but one completely unified entity.

The girl's name? Linda Danvers.

After the merging, Supergirl/Linda's powers changed: she still had strength, flight, and psy-blasts, but she could no longer turn invisible, and her shapeshifting was limited to switching between tall blonde Supergirl and petite brunette Linda. BUT! Due to Matrix's sacrifice, they had also become something known as an "Earth-born angel," so she also had flaming wings when she wanted them, flame-vision, teleporting through a flame tunnel, and the ability to judge the sins of the wicked.

After 50 issues of this, Linda "fell from grace" for complicated reasons and she and the angel part split off. Her powers were severely reduced and she couldn't shapeshift into tall blonde Supergirl anymore, so she had to wear a blonde wig while she fought crime (a reversal of the Silver Age, when Kara Zor-El wore a wig to become Linda Danvers) and she changed into a costume much closer to the Superman: The Animated Series one.

But in the early 2000s, DC decided to bring Kara Zor-El back, and Linda sort of wandered into the wilderness. (Literally. She had some traumatic things happen to her and just went MIA after sending Clark a letter telling him not to look for her.) Kara Zor-El is my all-time favorite character so I'm not mad that they brought her back, but I wish they had kept Linda as well. There's 19 Robins and 437 Green Lanterns, we could have two Supergirls.

But yeah, if you see a Supergirl between 1988 and 2002, that's Linda Danvers, and not a Kryptonian.

[alirhi]

Loki ranting

Okay. I had this thought in my head of like just compiling links of all the Loki shit I've posted/reblogged so far so that when I get into a conversation about the show and how it fucking disgusted me, I can just be like "here. here's this masterlist post, go read all this shit. This is my entire argument, and not only mine, but a lot of stuff posted by people far more intelligent and level-headed and eloquent than I am, whom I happen to agree with." Because the alternative is constantly getting fired up all over again, and that is exhausting.

BUT! I'm stupid and don't know how tumblr works. Apparently I can't just be like "give me all the Loki-tagged shit I've got" I can only search all the Loki-tagged shit on all of tumblr. And I'm not scrolling back through all of my posts. I talk too fucking much for that shit 😂

So, I'll try to remember all of my grievances with how the MCU has treated Loki, and all of the excellent posts made by other, equally upset fans, and put it all together here under this nice, neat little cut for everyone else's sanity and scrolling convenience...

For people who actually read my shit fairly regularly - bless you, you crazy, patient people. I love you! - this is going to be a lot of repetition of shit you've already read. Probably at least twice. I'm passionate and I have a terrible memory lol. Sorry.

Anyway, first, for those who don't know me and haven't been following my explosions of rage for the past couple of months, some quick background: I do not read comic books, so Loki's Marvel comic canon means nothing to me. I know almost nothing about it. The reason I'm so in love with the character in the MCU is because I am an eclectic witch and the deity I've actively loved and worshiped the longest in my life (literally for as long as I can remember) is Loki. So when he was mentioned in The Mask, I squeed. When they named Matt Damon's character after him in Dogma, I cheered.

When Thor came out in 2011, I just about died from happiness. I was hungry for any representation of this underappreciated god, no matter what it was. I didn't even bitch about how underpowered he was, because at least he was there. But I'm getting slightly ahead of myself.

I can hear anyone reading this going "Why Loki? Isn't he, like, evil? Like basically the Norse version of The Devil?" Because I heard all this shit irl all the fucking time. And no. So let me give you a quick rundown of who Loki actually is.

Loki is a Trickster God. He's often referred to as the God of Mischief. He is not and never was evil, simply chaotic and hedonistic. Loki Laufeyjarson was the son of Laufey (that's mama; they changed her to a man for some reason in the movie) and Fárbauti. Right from the start, from his name, we get a sign of how Loki goes against traditional norms of the time, because in Norse culture, families were patrilineal, and surnames were "son/daughter of father" (which would have made him Loki Fárbautitason), not the mother. But Loki's surname is matrilineal. Feminist icon woo! lol

Though he's a Jotunn, Loki is counted among the Gods (Aesir) in Norse tradition. Depending on his mood, he is alternately helpful or disruptive to the other Gods. I'm not gonna sit and teach a whole text class on him lol but I'll use my favorite example of Misunderstood Loki - the conception of Sleipnir!

So, get this shit. This is also part of why I DO NOT follow Odin and never fucking will (a very small part, but still part of the reason). So, the other Norse Gods are petty motherfuckers, and they wanted some shit built but didn't want to pay the dude doing the building. So they were like "okay, if you can get it done in X amount of time, we'll pay you, but if you can't manage it NO MATTER WHAT, this whole thing is free." And they made sure he had NO help, nothing but him, his materials, and his Very Good Horsey. And this guy and his horse were fucking BAMFs. So it was looking like he was definitely gonna get it done in time, and Odin was like "nah, fuck that shit. I'm cheap." and so he sent Loki to distract the work horse. Loki transformed into a mare and lured the horse away, got fucked, got pregnant, gave birth to the 8-legged (for some reason) horse Sleipnir. Odin rides Loki's son into battle. Um. Kay.

So Loki helped Odin be a petty mf, and Odin got himself a new pet out of the deal.

Oh, also, because he's smart af and a shapeshifter and a master magician and genderfluid, Loki "fails" to fit the super fucking toxic and narrow Norse/Aesir view of "a real man". He prefers intelligence and manipulation to solve problems rather than violence, he's not afraid to behave like a clown if it gets shit done, and that grosses the Aesir out, so they constantly ridicule him for being "less than a man".

Loki is the God of the outcast and the misunderstood. The marginalized people from all walks of life. He is the God of the LGBT community. In modern terms, he's pansexual, polyamorous (married to Sigyn and they are deeply in love, but boy gets around and I've never seen any indication that Sigyn gives a shit) and genderfluid.

Okay. Focus, Ali. This is part of why I usually post multiple rants instead of one big long one XD The longer I ramble, the more I get sidetracked and forget the original point.

So. Loki's awesome, and being a Trickster, is powerful as all fucking hell. There's not much he can't do.

And now we come to Thor (the movie, not the deity). Loki's there! 24-year-old Ali is spazzing! All is right with the world!

Oh lord, they've actually done him justice?! Amazing! He's complex and nuanced and emotional, just like the real Loki! I loved this movie. Loved. It. The climactic thing with trying to blow up Jotunheim never really made much sense to me until someone made an excellent point the other day about Loki being raised in a racist society that was racist against his own race, he just didn't know it yet, poor child. Baby Thor was never corrected when he pledged to commit mass genocide, so Baby Loki probably absorbed the lesson then that Jotunns=evil and killing them all will win his father's love. Anyway, 2011 Loki was a beautiful, heartbreaking portrayal of the God I've loved all my life and spent 24 years longing to see depicted on the big screen.

Then The Avengers happened. And I saw another Loki very close to Norse mythology - mainly, how he's treated. In the beginning of the movie, he's sick, exhausted, and in pain. He can hardly stand, he stumbles and needs help when he walks. He was very obviously tortured, and the sickly blue light of the scepter's control is in his eyes. That gets less and less pronounced as the movie goes on, showing Loki working his way free of it, but in the beginning, he's a mess. Because he was tortured and used by Thanos. Marvel directly confirmed this, and that he was under the scepter's/Mind Stone's control. Loki's actions are not his own in The Avengers. He's under both threat and Thanos' direct control. The movie actually shows The Other directly threatening him to keep him on task, because this is not Loki's plan. It is not what he wants. He's being used and villainized... Just like in real life. It hurt to see this done to him, but the accuracy was too beautiful to ignore.

Thor: The Dark World comes out. I've heard people complain that this movie is the weak link in the Thor trilogy. I disagree. I think that's Ragnarok, for a bunch of reasons, but we'll get there. (And for the record, I loved Ragnarok, too. It was a funny movie. Infinity War and the Disney+ series are the only portrayals of Loki in the MCU that I truly fucking hated.) Anyway, good, fun movie. Had its faults, as all movies do, but it still followed Loki's real-life arc in a way. How? By having Loki dragged back to Asgard in chains and imprisoned underground. Again, not super happy that this happened to my love, and having to see it on screen was painful, but at least in the MCU he's not chained to a rock with venom dripping on his face for eternity, so there's that. (poor Sigyn. how tired do her arms get, holding up that bowl? best wife ever, amirite?)

In TDW, we're shown Loki's love for Frigga, who favored him and taught him magic as a child. We see his bravado; his attempts to mask his true feelings, especially grief. We see him slowly coming back to himself after the events of The Avengers, and slowly mending his relationship with his brother. He accepts that Odin will likely never love him, but Thor just might, because they were close when they were young. "I didn't do it for him." No, no my sweet, you did it for your brother, and a little out of guilt for what happened to your mother.

At the end, Loki fakes his death and escapes, taking the throne, and I have mixed feelings about this. Not the writer's choices here; I love that completely! A natural progression in Loki's story. But my joy is tainted by how closely they're following the Eddas now. Because Loki's escape from his prison heralds the beginning of Ragnarok. And Loki will die in Ragnarok. I don't want to see that play out in front of my face. I won't be able to handle the grief (spoiler alert! IW broke me. I almost walked out of the theater. Loki's death was legitimately fucking traumatic for me. I don't even care how pathetic that is. That grief was real, it was intense, and I still shake and cry when I think about it.)

Marvel announces that Thor 3 will be called Ragnarok. The internet treats this as a shocking revelation. I roll my eyes and mumble "duh" to myself and move on XD

Then they say Ragnarok will be a buddy comedy. I throw up a little in my mouth and no longer want to live on this planet. If they're going to make something called Ragnarok, could they at least treat it with even a fraction of the respect they've shown these characters thusfar? Jfc. I mean, I'll see it anyway, because I'm a whore for Tom Hiddleston lol. But come on, people!

I hated that they made Hel the long-lost older sister and Fenrir her fucking pet/attack dog. Those are my favorites of Loki's children! Hel is such an incredible badass that the early Christians named their dimension of eternal torture after her! They were terrified of her, to the point of naming the place that terrified them most after her. That's awesome! And Fenrir's just the best. I love wolves. Those two details, and Odin's retcon of "we're not Gods! ...lol, except your sister. she's totally a Goddess. and def gonna kill literally everything, so... good luck! byyyeeeee" pissed me off royally.

The rest was great. I genuinely liked this movie. Still do. And they finally used The Immigrant Song! That was pretty cool. If they'd thrown in Bring the Hammer Down and Thunderstruck, I might've called this movie perfect. XD

I wasn't totally in love with their portrayal of Loki in Ragnarok. Yes, the falling for 30 minutes line was funny, as was "I have to get off this planet" and "YES! That's how it feels!" And "Get Help" was funny as hell. But also, like... There is no way Loki would have been the dumb one in that first encounter with Hela. Also, he can teleport and project copies of himself and shit, so... He would not have been that desperate to go straight back to Asgard and bring her right along with them. Loki's not stupid. But whatever. Movie's gotta movie.

What I did love was seeing the slow mending of his relationship with Thor continuing, and the badass fighting on the bridge. I also loved that, like Real Loki, Movie Loki helped when help was needed, was quick and clever, and while he was carrying out the main plan, he was also planning ahead and grabbing the Tesseract. Yes, that drew Thanos right to them, but that's a whole other thing. Loki never would have left that thing on Asgard to be destroyed or lost.

And now Infinity War. Hooooly fucking shit. You know what? No. I'm not going into this. He was killed, years of character growth were erased forever, my heart fucking shattered. The end.

Endgame. IW hurt me so bad I didn't see Endgame until this year. I actually watched Civil War first (for context: I had actively avoided all Cap movies until this year because I fucking hate Steve Rogers. I find him insufferable. Did not realize what I was denying myself until I watched CW and finally saw the charms of Bucky. When he appeared in IW, I was so lost. XD I was like "...who dis? Murder Jesus?" also I just... didn't care. I was numb by then from crying through most of the movie over Loki)

So, anyway. Endgame. Loki picks up the Tesseract in alternate 2012, escapes, fans go "yay! he didn't actually die!" I go "yes he fucking did. Five years of his life, gone. Five years of growth and change, erased. Loki is dead. This will not be the same."

I was more right than I could have predicted. Now we come to the point of this rant. Sorry it took so long, but you were warned lol.

The Loki series makes me so angry I actually get sick to my stomach. It was fucking TRASH. When I praised Marvel for following Norse mythology so faithfully earlier? Yeah. I DID NOT MEAN TREAT HIM THE WAY THE OTHER GODS DID. I did not mean paint him as a pitiful clown, a joke, a caricature of who he truly was, with his pain and suffering played for LAUGHS.

This is supposed to be 2012 Loki, newly freed from Thanos' control. The Loki we saw in the beginning of TDW - snarky, exhausted, nihilistic. The Loki who rolled his eyes and said "get on with it" expecting to be killed.

The bumbling clown flipping on a dime from posturing to calling himself weak is not 2012 Loki. That is not ANY Loki. That is Tom Hiddleston in a black wig doing what he's told by a shitty writer who had no fucking idea what he was doing and was salty about his (bad) original script (for something totally fucking unrelated) getting killed.

In Episode 1, Loki is mocked, imprisoned, stripped against his will, tormented, belittled, and given a flippant summary of all the trauma Actual MCU Loki suffered that this one skipped out on, with no context, no acknowledgement of the trauma he's already lived quite fucking recently, and with the narrative twisted to not only erase all the abuse he's suffered, but to make it all his fault. And this is supposed to make him want to help these people?

And worse, IT FUCKING WORKS. WHAT?! I CAN'T- FUCKING WHAT?! Remember when I said LOKI IS NOT FUCKING STUPID?! So why is he STUPID?

Episode 2, he's a child. Mentally, this Loki is a fucking child. Now we've erased all the growth and development of his entire adult life. He's dopey, impatient, impulsive, desperate for a pat on the back and actually shows it. Yes, abused and neglected children crave the positive attention we never received, and we often grow up to be a bit emotionally stunted. But not all of us, and not Loki. Not as we've seen him EVER in the rest of the MCU. Playful and a bit callous at times? Absolutely! But not a big dumb fucking puppy.

Episode 3, a ray of hope, despite Sylvie! (I hate Sylvie) Loki casually admits he's pan/bi; labels never come up, but he admits to being with both men and women! He sings! Not really relevant to whether I approve of his portrayal or not lol but Tom has a beautiful voice, Norwegian ("Asgardian" lol) is a gorgeous, entrancing language, and I could watch that one bit on loop for eternity and never get bored. And then, finally, we see a glimpse - a glimpse - of Loki's power! He stops a falling building and pushes it right back up! Are we finally getting to see what he can really do? Will the next episode bring us Loki in all his glory?

Nope. 4 and 5 we see him mocked and pushed around and utterly irrelevant. Again. We see tiny reflections of what he could maybe theoretically do in other random Loki variants, but the "main" (lawl. main. it was the Sylvie and Mobius show. Loki was never the main anything.) Loki? Nothing. He wears his heart on his sleeve for no reason, bonds with the man who imprisoned, taunted, and gaslit him, is killed, and continues to be a moron and a joke. Always the clown. Always the dumb one. The one with the bad ideas. The inferior Loki.

Don't even get me started on that finale. I can't. This already took so much out of me. Fuck Marvel. Fuck this fucking show. I just... I'm done.

[whammy5]

How to Play Double Trouble in Thirsty Sword Lesbians

After a bit of a break, I return to my exploring how to play @DreamWorksSheRa #SheRa characters in @EvilHatOfficial #ThirstySwordLesbians with a look at everyone's favorite shapeshifting mercenary, Double Trouble.

Introduction Double Trouble is an interesting character within the larger She-Ra franchise. Originally a one-note character who appeared in just a toy and tie-in comic, the revived series made them into a much larger and popular character. Their theatrical personality and talent for shapeshifting-based infiltration made them a fun character to watch, and their skill in character analysis a…

[panlight]

What are your favorite Bella moments? What are her weakest moments? When does she shine and when is she badly-written OR just not a very good person?

Going to James to save her mom is a good moment, character-wise. I think plot-wise it’s kind of clunky but that’s not a Bella-as-a-character problem. And she has some really nice moments in Midnight Sun! She was always good at the big, martyr-y gestures in the original books but we didn’t get to see much in the way of everyday small acts of kindness, and MS fixed that. I loved her sticking up for Eric when everyone else was making fun of him about Comic Con, or inviting the outcast stoner girl no one wanted in their group to work with her. That’s the kind of stuff that was missing in the original books. 

She also is legitimately funny in the books! Much more sarcastic and lively than we get in the movies. The movies cut out a lot of the more funny, playful banter moments, which is a shame. 

Least favorite Bella moments are:

a) making Edward sit out the fight in Eclipse. I just . . . no one else has that option. None of the other Cullens asked their mate to sit it out. Emily didn’t make Sam sit out.  Kim didn’t ask Jared.  Billy and Sue didn’t ask their kids to sit it out, etc. Bella can’t bear the thought of anything happening to Edward but all these other people have to risk people they love, too, and while this isn’t her “fault” (she’s not responsible for Victoria’s choices) it is still ABOUT her, and it feels wrong that she pulls Edward out of it. To be fair Bella does acknowledge it’s kind of a crappy thing for her to do, but she still does it anyway. It would have made WAY more sense for her to have hung out with the imprints and parents in La Push, protected by some of the younger wolves like Seth. Then she could commiserate with other ‘weak’ humans worried about the supernaturals they love. It’s framed as “Edward and I can’t be apart so either he sits it out or I’m at the fight” but . . . her being at the fight makes absolutely no sense as a human, and again it’s not like the people in La Push who aren’t shapeshifters aren’t also going to be separated and worried. She wasn’t the only one going through that here, but she and the narrative make it out like she is.

and b) that part in Volterra where she’s mad at herself for crying about people being murdered in the next room because it means she can’t see Edward’s face clearly.

I knew it was stupid to react like this. Who knew how much time I had to look at his face? He was saved, and I was saved, and he could leave me as soon as we were free. To have my eyes so filled with tears that I could not see his features clearly was wasteful—insanity. But, behind my eyes where the tears could not wash the image away, I could still see the panicked face of the tiny woman with the rosary. 

It’s just . . . not a Good Look, imo. I get you are madly in love and he’s gorgeous and you’ve missed him but people are literally being eaten nearby; gazing at his perfection is not that important. People are being murdered! By vampires! And then she’s horrified that Gianna wants to be a Volturi vampire and I know Bella specifically wants to be a Cullen vampire but all of them except Carlisle (and Rosalie on a technicality--killed, but never for blood) have killed people, too! There’s nothing she could realistically DO about the people being eaten, but being annoyed at herself for feeling bad about it because it cut into her staring at Edward time was . . . strange. 

[schleierkauz]

Q&A Highlights

Ok so bad news first: My questions were ignored. Cornelia did not clarify any of our death-related theories. Maybe next time.

There was A Lot of other stuff, though so... Enjoy!

- The stream starts with everyone wishing us a happy women’s day! Usually women in Erfurt (where the bookstore people are) get flowers but not today because... you know. Cornelia says America is starting to go back to normal, meanwhile Germany... :| Anyway. Don’t look over here.

- Cornelia says she probably won’t get the vaccine anytime soon because she’s just chilling on her farm anyway and people who have to be out in public/are vulnerable should get it first

- Question: When will Cornelia visit Germany again? In response to this, she gives us some exclusive news, not official yet, heard it here first: She’s gonna move to Italy! Apparently she bought an olive farm there which is cheaper, better for the environment (her current farm will be sold to some people who want to turn it into an organic farm) and obviously closer to Germany so she’ll be here more often. :)

- The 4th Reckless book will be released in English at some point this autumn

- There’s no definite release date for TCoR because she’s busy with Dragonrider but she hopes she’ll have finished writing it by the end of this year

- If she’s still alive after all that to work on Reckless 5, it’ll be the last book of the series... probably. She’s also working on a bunch of smaller projects with her artists in residence

- Question: What are Cornelia’s favorite stories by Jane Austen, the Brontë sister and Shakespeare? She’s not a huge fan of Austen or Brontë because she finds all those repressed emotions too exhausting to read about. With Shakespeare on the other hand she struggles to name a favorite because there’s so much greatness to choose from (she does name MacBeth and Romeo and Juliet though)

- The Black Prince’s legacy in the Reckless timeline may play a role in the next Reckless book or it might evolve into a whole other story. Either way, she’s thinking about it  👀

- Someone asks about Reckless characters and Cornelia says that Kami’en and the Dark Fairy felt very familiar to her from the start in that she always knew who they were as people. She’s not sure why that is. She thinks the Dark Fairy represents many aspects of womanhood, like the ancient forgotten Goddess. Same with Fox, who embodies different sides of that.

- If Cornelia had to date a man from the Mirrorworld, Kami’en would interest her

- Rainer Strecker randomly joins the chat to say hi and everyone is delighted

- Cornelia’s favorite book series is still Lord of the Rings

- Question: Why has the Black Prince never found his true love? Cornelia says she’s not sure that’s true - maybe he did found true love at some point and then lost it again? ‘...and they lived happily ever after’ isn’t a guaranteed outcome after all. Since he’s such a passionate man, she’s pretty sure he’s had at least one big lovestory at this point. She hasn’t asked him about that yet but hopes she’ll find out when she continues writing his story.

- Jumping off that question, Cornelia says she respects her characters’ privacy and lets them keep their secrets until the time comes to ask about them, just as she would with real people.

- Someone asks if Cornelia has ever written herself into a story and she says a part of her is in all her characters. Except the villains because she hates them. She feels closest to Fox because she also always wished she could shapeshift

- The bookstore lady jumps in and asks about Meggie, is she similar to how Cornelia was as a child? Cornelia says yes, especially because she also had a very close relationship with her father and they would bond over books. However, she always envisioned Meggie with dark hair and as a different kind of girl than she was. (Ok sidenote from me on that, I wonder what she means by ‘dark hair’? Because Meggie is explicitly blond, so like... dark blond? Or did we just unlock brunette Meggie in 2021? Cornelia-)

- Continuing the conversation, Cornelia says she doesn’t consider herself the creator of any of the characters in her stories, she feels like she met them and wrote about him but she would never say something like ‘I invented Dustfinger’ because that’s absurd. How would that even work. That’s disrespectful. No.

- Some characters pretty much demand to be written about and are very impatient (like Jacob), others are more shy and elusive and take effort to understand (like Will or Dustfinger)

- There probably won’t be another book like The Labyrinth of the Faun because it was created under such unbelievable circumstances. Cornelia does enjoy writing film scripts, though, like she did for the Wild Chicks recently

- Question: How does Cornelia come up with character names? She has a bunch of encyclopedias and when she knows where a story takes place she checks if there are any artists from there whose names she can steal. She always wants names to have meaning and to paint a picture of whatever character it belongs to. However, she says that sometimes the vibe of a name is a tricky thing: When she wrote The Thief Lord (which takes place in Italy), she thought ‘Mosca’ was the perfect name for a big strong boy. However when the time came to translate the story into Italian, the Italians told her that ‘Mosca’ sounds like the name of a tiny little fly. Oh well.

- Cornelia says a lot of readers have written to her about The Thief Lord because at one point Victor (the detective) calls Mosca (who is black) a “Mohrenkopf”. Context: ‘Mohrenkopf’ is a German slur towards black people and also an outdated name for this goddamn marshmallow cookie:

Fuck this cookie.

- Cornelia says yeah, Victor is being racist in that moment but that doesn’t mean that she, the author, is racist. Similarly, she used the term ‘Indians’ in Reckless and a lot of readers were upset which she did not anticipate. To her it’s a positive word since she admires ‘Indians’ so deeply and finds terms like ‘Native/Indigenous Americans’ very complicated. She wonders how much longer she’ll be allowed to say ‘Black Prince’

- She thinks it’s right to be vigilant about bigotry but simply searching for problematic words is dangerous because context matters

- Bookstore lady brings up Pippi Longstocking and how the N-word has been removed from modern copies (think Pippi’s father). She think’s it’s wrong because the original text is part of the cultural heritage and shouldn’t be hidden from children but instead explained. 

- Cornelia says that in America she sees the hurt that’s connected to that word but she doesn’t think it’s right to simply remove the slur and expect everything to be fine. After all, the text in which it was used is still the same so any harmful ideas would still be in there and that needs to be discussed. Simply whitewashing things doesn’t make them any less racist.

- Cornelia brings up a visual example: The Asterix comics. She always liked them but the fact that the only black character is drawn as a racist caricature is harmful and wrong. It’s time to listen when black people express how hurtful depictions like that can be. Many white people never noticed racism growing up because it never affected them and that’s why it’s important to learn

- The ‘from rags to riches’ American dream was usually reserved for white people and Cornelia thinks a lot of (white) people are waking up to that fact. The way black people are still being criminalized and the way prisons use inmates for cheap labor is horrible and like a modern kind of slavery

- The bookstore people try to say something but Cornelia is not done: We Europeans are not off the hook either because the sins and wounds of colonialism are still felt around the world, not to mention the way other countries are still exploited today. Our wealth rests on the shoulders of poorer nations. Many doors are opening and it’s difficult to step through but we have to do it and admit to the things we may have been blind to due to privilege.

- The three of them agree on that and go back to reading questions

- Question: What are Cornelia’s tips for young authors? She advises to never start writing a story on a computer, always get a notebook and collect ideas & pictures for your story. Don’t rush things. If you have more than one story, give each story its own book and feed whichever one is hungry. It’s important to follow the idea where it leads, if you use cliches your readers will recognize them. And then it just takes time and passion. And trust in your own unique voice. She paraphrases a quote by Robert Louis Stevenson who once said no one cares about stories or characters or whatever, people read books to see the world through the goggles the author puts on them. I’m sure he said it prettier, I’m paraphrasing the paraphrase.

- That said, Cornelia thinks authors who say things like “I’m writing to express my innermost turbulences” are kinda dumb. She thinks it’s important to write about the things that happen everywhere else and around yourself and to try to find voices for others, not just yourself. Just like how carpenters build furniture for everyone else, a writer should use words to build things for others, whether it’s a window or door or a hiding place.

- Speaking of notebooks, as most of us probably know Cornelia has a lot of those and occasionally publishes them on her website. She says she’d love to let people look through them in person, maybe at the new farm in Germany (Cornelia sure does love farms)

- Speaking of writing things on paper, all three of them stress that everyone should write more letters because one day they’ll be old letters and curious people will want to read them, just as we like to read old documents now.

- Last question: How come both the Inkworld and the Mirrorworld feature a character called Bastard? Cornelia thinks that’s a good question and she should probably think about that. (Am I stupid? Are they talking about Basta? I’m confused)

...And with that, the livestream ends. They’ll get back together to do this again two months from now, until then: I’m going tf to sleep

[notallthosewho-wanderarelost]

Real quick scattering of thoughts on Loki 1x02 and x03 before I watch the newest episode. I watched them pretty much at the same time so it’s a two-for-one post. Here be spoilers for episode 3! On mobile so no cut again, sorry.

Spoilers ahead. You’ve been warned.

Okay. In no particular order but attempting to start with ep 2 first:

Loki trying to get info on the Timekeepers and the TVA in ep 2 and being blocked by the most bored archive librarian ever was hilarious. The whole sequence of him trying to get her attention only for her to completely ignore him until he rang the bell was creepy but so funny.

Loki’s reaction to getting the details on Ragnarok made me so sad. :( Same, Loki. SAME. I’m also still gutted Asgard was destroyed and I refuse to even watch the movie ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ But him going to look at that in the first place made me wonder if maybe in the back of his mind Loki’s coming up with a plan to save Asgard? (Or at least, one version of Asgard in the multiverse.) I would love that. I want Asgard back in general and was hoping for Thor 4, but having Loki be the one to save Asgard would be SO fitting. He may be adopted but he’s still an Asgardian at heart, truly. Having Loki be the one to save Asgard would be a great way to show him finally acknowledging that and have all the Asgardians acknowledge it too.

We have an official population for MCU Asgard! 9719 people. That fits. It’s about twice the size of a pretty small suburban town. Asgard is SMALL. It just doesn’t have the space for a lot of people. It’s still a city, but Asgard the Realm has other things on it besides just the city, so it can’t have a huge population.

I wonder what the official population of New Asgard is when we see it in Endgame? And how many Asgardians come back post-Blip? This would really all depend on how many people made it through Hela’s rule and onto the ship during Ragnarok- and then half of them would’ve been killed by Thanos in the beginning of Infinity War. Would half of the remainder have been Snapped away at the end of IW, or would Thanos leave them out since he already halved their population? File under questions Marvel will probably never answer. Also file under “Thanos continues to be really bad at math.” (Should probably go look at the New Asgard sign again to check, but I don’t think it listed population.)

Loki annoying Mobius by messing with his salad was great. Loki annoying Mobius in general was great.

Loki letting the goats free in Pompeii made me think he might have a liking for goats, which means I now have a headcanon that Loki was friends with Thor’s goats as a kid and would sometimes let them loose to get their assistance with pranks. Thank you show, for cute kid Loki headcanons.

Tom Hiddleston probably had a BLAST yelling at people in Latin in character as Loki, and good for him!

Sylvie’s entrance sequence at the beginning of the episode with the fight scene vs the TVA set to “I Need a Hero” was amazing. I haven’t seen Shrek in a while but this might just reach the same levels of A+ “I Need A Hero” song usage as the Shrek sequence.

Speaking of the beginning of the episode, the Ren Faire setting was SO good. Great way to get laughs, and it made me want to go to a Ren Faire again.

The Roxxcart setting for the big encounter later in the episode made me flash back on all the times Roxxon’s appeared in the MCU. Two main thoughts: 1. I so want a Jane!Thor movie where the main villain is Dario Agger, evil Roxxon CEO and Minotaur. Preferably working with a better version of Malekith (from another universe probably) like in comics, because as much as I love Thor 2 my one complaint is that their version of Malekith was SO LAME. Especially compared to comics!Malekith. Plus an Agger + Malekith teamup would mean both the Nine Realms AND Earth are in danger, by definition. Thor 5 please, Marvel. 2. I really, really miss Cloak and Dagger and that show deserved so much better.

(Our) Loki’s perpetual insistence that he’s better and that the plot (pun intended) is about him is both funny and also a little sad- because he knows, or at least thinks, that if he stops insisting those things, everyone will stop paying any attention to him whatsoever. And he needs attention.

Poor Mobius probably felt so betrayed at the end of this episode. :(

Onward to episode 3!

This was by far my favorite episode so far. I LOVE Sylvie. I love her and Loki’s dynamic. I love that we get Loki talking to someone he considers an equal about some very personal things, and that Sylvie does the same thing with him. They understand each other in a way nobody else has. Because they’re the same person, sort of. I’ve taken to calling them “alternate reality twins” and that’s what I’ll keep calling them unless told otherwise.

They also annoy each other in a way nobody else can. And it’s hilarious. They look equally annoyed at the other not falling for their tricks and equally annoyed at needing the other’s help before they really start to bond and I LOVE ALL OF IT. I also feel like they adopt each other a lot quicker than either would be willing to admit, and then they’re annoyed at that! Loki yelling “you’re so weird!” at Sylvie made me go “OH they’re bickering like siblings!!!” and that was pretty early on! I’m an only child but that had peak sibling energy to me. Even them trying to trick and outdo each other had sibling energy most of the time.

Their earlier fight when they first get to Lamentis, before they realize where they are, had some VERY quality quips and also really had me wondering who would win in a fight between the two of them. Sylvie seems to have more physical strength, and she’s got a sword instead of daggers so longer reach, but Loki has skill and he has tricks. I think with his skill at magic (he can TELEPORT?! Probably only a few feet and probably limited by where he can see but that’s SO COOL!!! I don’t think we knew he could do that?!) Loki would likely run rings around Sylvie IF there were no people around for her to enchant. And assuming that she wasn’t able to set any traps beforehand, because Sylvie has proven well able to set traps to take down people who should be at a major advantage against her. Otherwise, I think Sylvie would win. She seems to have better physical training than our Loki, and if there were any people around for her to enchant he’d have to contend with them too. And if Sylvie could lay traps ahead of time, then it could go either way (you never can tell with a Loki, much less two) but I think Loki would probably lose. Loki is just as tricky as she is but that seems to be something she’s had a lot of practice in. Loki is more about confusing opponents with illusions and duplicates and talking his way around people. Sylvie sets traps instead, and is more comfortable/better at using brute physical force.

Speaking of enchanting, me while watching episode 2: “Hey, these mind controlling powers remind me of Enchantress’ powers!”

Sylvie in episode 3: calls her powers “enchanting”

Me: “OH.”

So Sylvie seems to be a composite of 3 characters. 1. Lady Loki, as in Loki when identifying as female. (There’s also that time from before they said Loki was genderfluid and a shapeshifter and back when Loki was still evil when he possessed Sif’s body and went by Lady Loki, but we don’t talk about that.) 2. Amora the Enchantress, a major Thor character/villain who uses magic to “enchant” people into doing what she wants-yes this is definitely a cringey “magically enchants people into loving her, consent-issues-out-the-wazoo” evil seductress stereotype in old comics, but it’s gotten better recently. And 3. Sylvie Lushton, the much lesser-known second Enchantress, who was a regular teenage human girl when after a Ragnarok (don’t remember which one, there have been multiple but this would’ve been early 2000s) Loki for shits and giggles decided to make her think she was Amora and give her the powers to match. She was on the Dark Reign-era (aka when Norman Osborn was in charge of SHIELD and the Avengers) version of the Young Avengers, the Young Masters of Evil, and that’s where I know her from. She’s a great character- she genuinely wants to do good and help people, but her brain is a bit messed up by the number Loki did on it, so she gets confused. I believe she’s currently in comic book limbo after Amora found out about her a while back, got pissed at her for stealing her name and her whole Thing, and tossed her somewhere dangerous on the World Tree while saying something about how if she can survive it then she’ll prove she deserves the name Enchantress. She sadly hasn’t been seen since as far as I know.

So each of those characters have similar characteristics with Loki’s Sylvie. Sylvie 1. Is a Loki who is female (Lady Loki), 2. Was presumably raised on Asgard and uses her magic to “enchant” people via a form of mind control into doing what she wants (Amora the Enchantress), 3. Is named Sylvie (Sylvie Lushton, Encanhtress II). Also worth noting that both Amora and Sylvie Lushton have blond hair, and so does the MCU’s Sylvie. All three characters also have green colored magic!

May turn the above bullets into their own post just for informational purposes. Also, when we said we wanted Enchantress in the MCU, this is not what we meant. Stop with the Monkey’s Paw-style wish granting, Marvel! (Looking at you, X-Men comics’ response to us wanting more Wanda.)

Anyway. Will round off with my favorite thing: everything on the train. Everything on the train was WONDERFUL.

Loki telling Sylvie about Frigga and how she taught him magic and then demonstrating the fireworks made me tear up. 🥺 Right in the feels. I miss Frigga a lot. I miss Asgard/the old Thor franchise in general a lot, but this is about Frigga. She was AMAZING and I miss her. Forever love the detail that Tom and Rene came up with the idea on the set of Thor 1 that Frigga is the one who taught Loki magic and fighting and how that informed their characters’ dynamic to the point of it being canonically discussed later. There’s a great Thor 2 deleted scene where Frigga talks to Thor about this exact thing. Frigga is such a fave of mine.

Sylvie telling Loki about her own past in turn made me very curious what her life was like and what the differences are. She seemed to have had a really hard time of it as a kid and I just want to hug her. (I also want to hug Loki, but that isn’t news.) Loki has had a very tough time, but really only after finding out he was adopted. He doesn’t appear to have had many friends on Asgard before (though I headcanon that he was friends with Lorelai before her exile, and since it’s my headcanon I imagine a similar situation with Amora, if not quite as close a friendship because comics Loki gets along better with Lorelai than her sister) but he at least had a family who loved him and who he loved, and a status as a prince that would’ve given him a good life and protection. Sylvie doesn’t seem to have had any of that as a kid. :(

“Surely there were some would-be princesses? Or perhaps a prince?” CANONICALLY BISEXUAL LOKI YES! YES.

Comics Loki is canonically both bisexual and genderfluid! Explicitly discussed on page, multiple times, and expounded on by writers too. (One of the most heartwarming Odin moments for me- yes, Odin does have heartwarming moments!- is when he’s telling his kids he loves them and he says something to the effect of “my son, my daughter, my child who is both.” The latter is Loki, the former are Thor and Angela. I might still be bitter over MCU Hela taking Angela’s place in the family sorry not sorry. This was in Original Sin: Thor and Loki, for anyone wondering.) I tend to default to he/him pronouns when talking about Loki because Loki tends to be male more in appearances, and also partly because it’s what I’m used to, but when Loki is clearly female I’ll of course switch to she/her. I have seen people use they/them pronouns for Loki too. I don’t think Marvel has ever said what pronouns Loki prefers though.

Speaking of which: I realize the “Sex: fluid” on Loki’s info card in episode 1 was probably foreshadowing Sylvie, but I kind of want to also read it as a nod to Loki being genderfluid. (Loki is also a shapeshifter, so gender would = sex in this case.) Whether it would be a nod to specifically comics Loki or also to MCU Loki is anyone’s guess as of now. We’ll find out I guess, or if it turns out to be strictly headcanon than it’s whatever floats your boat. :)

Back to the train scene!! Sylvie loudly protesting that she can’t sleep near people she doesn’t trust and then promptly falling asleep across from Loki a few minutes later made me emotional. ALTERNATE REALITY TWINS. Also VERY much a parallel to Loki falling asleep across from Mobius last episode.

Loki realizing that Asgard was really his home and his family really was his family only to also realize that he’ll never see either again and deciding to handle this by getting ABSOLUTELY DRUNK is SO ASGARDIAN OF HIM. I cannot. He even did the “Another!” *smashes glass* thing just to bring the point home.

Oh gosh, LOKI SINGING IN ASGARDIAN. FEEEEEEELS. I know, it’s actually Norwegian. I wonder a bit why they didn’t use Icelandic instead? Anyway, this was lovely and I love that going by the translation it’s a song of longing to go home, and it mentions Idunn’s apples of immortality. Apparently the full version of the song is going to be on the soundtrack and I’m so excited for that.

Loki’s metaphor of “love is a dagger” was actually quite good, he and Sylvie just lost the thread of it right at the end there. I wrote about this in tags somewhere, I’ll copy it in here later.

Edit: here’s an edited version of what I wrote on this post: This was a great metaphor until it got away from him. So close to the point (heh) and then they veered right away. Let me finish this for them: “Love is a dagger. It’s a weapon for far away and up close. You can see yourself in it. It’s beautiful. You have to give it to the right person.” So what this scene tells us about Loki is that he’s been hurt by love because it hasn’t been real. Or hasn’t felt real to him. Maybe he’s given it to the wrong people, or maybe he couldn’t tell who the right people were. (And if this is in reference to his family then I think he’s still too close to the revelation of his identity to be able to think clearly about the situation. Because his family DID love him! Even Odin. He just lost sight of that with everything happening.) Love is also about trust. And Loki doesn’t trust easily.

I really love this quote and this scene. Kinda want to do a “Love is a dagger” graphic of i ever have time.

I also wouldn’t be surprised if Loki and Sylvie come back to this conversation and come to a more satisfying conclusion. I hope that happens actually.

Sylvie using her headpiece against an opponent in the train fight instantly made me think of Wonder Woman. A+. Also, I haven’t mentioned yet but I love the fact that Sylvie’s headpiece looks exactly like God(dess) of Stories Loki’s from Agent of Asgard. Loki’s Ragnarok headpiece definitely had big AoA Loki vibes, but Sylvie’s headpiece is much closer- mostly it’s smaller, which is very Agent of Asgard Loki in general, but the one horn being cut off is specifically a God(dess) of Stories Loki thing and I love that they pulled from that.

Loki throwing the dagger and missing because he’s drunk was hilarious. Not good for Sylvie, but hilarious to watch. Don’t fight while drunk, Loki. Also, he threw “love” at Sylvie and I laughed when I realized that.

I didn’t realize until I saw a parallel gifset of it why Loki carefully going up to Sylvie after her scream felt so familiar- it’s just like how he went up to Thor after Thor overturned the table in Thor 1. The CONTINUINTY!! Absolutely amazing.

While trying to save the Ark Loki was probably thinking a lot about what he saw in the TVA clips of his own people trying to escape Asgard during Ragnarok and that hits kind of hard.

Loki apparently using telekinesis to stop the column from falling on him and Sylvie threw me off a lot until I saw another gifset that included the moment in Thor 2 (trailers only, I think) when he finds out Frigga is dead and all the furniture close to him breaks and flies away from him. The pose was even the same as when he stopped the column. I think he can sort of... push things away from him? (Almost like a Force Push 🤔) He seems to need to stop and tense up his arms while he does it though. And it doesn’t have the green effect the rest of his magic does, which is odd.

Speaking of Loki’s powers, I’ve said this in tags for sure but I’m so happy they’re FINALLY letting Loki hit people with green magic bolts. He does tend to prefer more subtle uses of magic, but I still can’t believe it took over 4 movies for that to happen. It’s kind of a no-brainer magic attack- probably exactly why Loki prefers other things- but you’d think he would’ve done it at least once after 4 movies.

I saw a post point out that by the end of the episode, Sylvie has lost both her headpiece and her cloak/robe thing, which makes me wonder if she’s going to get a new outfit by the end of the show. Or at least different accessories. I’m also curious if she’s going to take up the Enchantress moniker by the end of the show.

Finishing this with theme analysis and theory time:

The revelation that TVA agents used to be variants and were somehow reprogrammed makes so much sense. There’s something immediately shifty about the idea of 3 Time Keepers dictating the fate of everyone in infinite multiverses, and this just solidifies the hint that the Time Keepers are going to be the overall Big Bads. Which makes sense, narratively! But this shifts the TVA agents from villains to victims. Mobius gets to stay sympathetic and so does Sylvie, AND once the TVA agents find out about their origins it puts the same choice onto them that Loki has. They all have a choice now about who they’re going to be. They’re not who they thought they were, but are they going to let themselves be defined by what other people (here, the Time Keepers) think they should be, or are they going to be who they want to be.

This is exactly what Loki: Agent of Asgard is about, by the way. And I know I said in the last post that Loki’s greatest villain is himself, but I’m going to amend that because I didn’t say it quite right. Loki’s greatest villain is his evil self. Loki the god of evil, the Loki that is the villain. Loki (and all the other Asgardians) in Agent of Asgard is genuinely a god, and AoA tells us that gods are defined by belief- they are what people believe them to be. That’s how they exist. So because so many people believe Loki is an evil villain, the universe tries to twist him to fit that role. The plot of AoA is Loki trying to avoid that fate, to be better, be who he wants to be. It’s a meta story. It’s Loki trying to break free of the narrative he’s been part of up until that point. And eventually he manages to break the fourth wall itself and take control of his own narrative by becoming the god of stories. He controls his own story and it no longer matters what other people think he is, only what he thinks of himself. Nobody else gets to change or define him.

AoA’s villain is a future version of Loki that does go back to being evil. He’s basically the cosmic force- destiny, the narrative itself, etc- that’s trying to fit Loki into the “evil” box personified. Loki is seemingly taking that idea and subbing in a different personification for that same idea of lack of choice: the Time Keepers. We know from the Miss Minutes short in episode 1 that the Time Keepers want one timeline. We don’t know if that’s actually to prevent a multiversal war like the short suggests or if that’s just propaganda. When Loki tries to find out more about the war or about the beginning or end of time in episode 2, he can’t access those documents. Something doesn’t seem right there.

Edit: Also, in episode 2 Loki compares the TVA to Asgard by saying both the TVA agents and Asgardians are equally stupid. The reveal of who the TVA agents are adds a new dimension to that comparison. They both see themselves as guardians of the world around them, special, but really they’re no more special than the people they’re fighting to protect. Or in other words, they’re only as “special” (“heroic,” really) as they make themselves.

Also an edit: damn I just realized the continued stupidity of R*gnarok having Fenris and Odin in the same movie and Odin dies but get killed by Fenris. Asgardians have a saying about watching for wolves’ teeth.

I’ve seen the theory around that Sylvie might be a former TVA agent (which seems to be backed up by the midseason trailer I very belatedly saw, oh my GOD TINY SYLVIE!!!!! But also oh no tiny Sylvie at the TVA :() and I really like that. It makes sense. Maybe she went rogue because she realized the TVA is preventing people from choosing for themselves. Maybe she even knows what it is the Time Keepers actually want. Or maybe she’s doing this just for herself because she didn’t enjoy being brainwashed by the TVA and she doesn’t like being told who to be! That is after all part of “what makes a Loki a Loki,” even if she doesn’t use that name anymore.

I’m also wondering (hoping?) if maybe her being a former TVA agent could explain why she’s a mashup of different characters, instead of it just being Marvel mashing characters together because they can. This is mostly wild speculation, but could the TVA possibly have put multiple people’s timelines/memories inside her head? What if she’s in universe an amalgamation of a Loki, an Amora, and/or a Sylvie?

We’ve had some clips of what looks like a Thor 1 era Loki in front of the throne on Asgard- which looks different to me; maybe Loki redecorated? We’ve also gotten a shot of Loki in front of a ruined NYC skyline, including Avengers Tower. Maybe we’ll get an episode where Loki wins and we’ll see different timelines where he wins in different ways, until he realizes that this isn’t actually what he wants?

Whoops this got long??? Thanks for reading if you read this far!

[shanie-the-toyaddict]

1, 9, 15, 17, 21, 25, 26, 29, 33, 41, 46, 48, 54, 59, 68, 73, 81, 96, 98

😊

Oh my word! That's a lot!

Ok, here goes.

Behind cut for length

1. Name - I prefer Shanie but my parents call me “Mis”. Well, my mom calls me “Mis” my father calls me “Pooch” which I despise. Just stick with Shanie.

9. What did you study - I changed majors midway through college. I started out as an art major focusing on computer animation. That didn’t work out at ALL. Turns out I sucked ass at computer animation. Too much math involved. So I switched to a major in teaching with minors in history and popular culture. Unfortunately I failed at that too and, while I did graduate, it was with a degree in “Planned Program” which is a polite way of saying “General Ed”. I did earn my two minors though, so I guess that’s something!

15. Relationship Status -  Single. Very Very Single. I haven’t had a single date in about 10 years. By the looks of it, I’m going to stay single.

17. Do you have a crush - Do celebrities count? If not then no. I don't even know anyone IRL to have crushes on. I legit have nobody in my IRL life outside of my parents and my case manager. Kind of hard to have a crush when you don't have any friends or even acquaintances.

21: How was your day -  Well, today I got nothing accomplished. I did have a meeting with my case manager, so that was nice. It’s nice to have someone to talk to and infodump on (which she lets me). Outside of that I woke up, had breakfast, lunch, and dinner, had a nap, and went to Dairy Queen for ice cream on the way home. Unfortunately, DQ is on the far side of town and by the time I got home, it was melted. So it went in the fridge to eat later once it refreezes. Outside of that it was a pretty boring day.

25. Your fears - Whoo-ee. Ok. So coming in with the borderline I’d say my biggest fear is abandonment. That just comes with the territory. After that I have a huge fear of storms and waking up in a fire, both brought about by recurring nightmares. I also have a fear of flying (too much Air Crash Investigations) and I hate elevators. I’m not claustrophobic mind you, I just have a fear that they will fall on me. Anything over 3 stories and I’m having an anxiety attack. There are other, lesser fears but those are some of the big ones.

26. Your dreams - Well, in a literal sense, my dreams are wild, crazy adventures that I get most of my fanfics from. From a metaphorical standpoint I really don’t have any. I’ve given up on hoping for anything good in my life. I’m too busy trying to get from day to day to indulge in long term planning. I know it seems terrible, but it’s the truth.

29. Hobbies - Obviously action figures, that much is clear. I collect and customize them to display in my apartment. I also like making digital art (sometimes) and am starting to get into illustrations/artwork. However, I don’t have a tablet/pen for the computer so everything is done with the mouse and GIMP (which makes it difficult). I’m an avid collector of digital media. Some of my big ones are Doctor Who DVDs, Wrestling Entrance Themes, and Official Xena Photos (not the physical ones, jpeg scans). I used to be big into Wizard101 and, while I don’t really play anymore, I still like following the game on YT and on here.

33. Languages you speak – Only English, except it’s a very specific English. I usually speak what’s called the “Yinzer” dialect which is a dialect that is unique to the Pittsburgh region. That’s why you see me use the word “Yinz” a bunch. That’s our word for “You guys” or “Y’all”. However, while most of my speech is Yinzer, I have watched enough British TV in my lifetime to have picked up some Brit speech. It confuses the hell out of people when I use it because you’ll have me say things like “My apartment needs cleaned” and then follow it up thirty seconds later with, “I’m rubbish at cleaning.” My mother has picked up on this and sometimes calls me her “British Daughter” because of it.

41. Your Device Background – My phone’s lock screen is a picture of Shane in his Roman Centurion outfit from the one Royal Rumble photo shoot. My phone background is a checkered wallpaper with “SZ” on it for Sami Zayn. (That one might be getting changed if he stops being Sami.) And my computer background is just a night sky over the mountains. I rarely ever see my computer wallpaper so I don’t mind that it is a generic background.

46. The most dangerous thing you’ve done – You know how Lucy breathes fire on Xena? I taught myself how to do that. That wasn’t bright to begin with but it was made so much worse that I was underage and couldn’t buy Bacardi and was using lamp oil instead. I was young and dumb.

48. Some things you’ve tried in your life – Funny thing, I’m a sucker for strange foods. There was a list going around that said “How many of these weird foods have you eaten” and I think I had eaten all but six of them and that was only because I didn’t have access to them. I’m proud to say that, since then, I’ve knocked Quail Egg off the list! Turns out the local Japanese restaurant served it. So that knocked it down to five. Still need to get ahold of some gator meat and haggis. I’d love to try Foie Gras but it’s just so damn unethical that I don’t know if I could bring myself to eat it. Pheasant is another one that I’d love to try but I can’t convince my parents to buy me one (and I’m far too poor to afford it myself). But, yeah. I love strange foods. I’ll pretty much try any food once if I know it’s safe to eat.

54. Any tattoos or piercings – Unless you count partially pierced ears then no. And my ears are only partially pierced because after I had them done they got infected so I tried to let them heal shut. They ended up not closing fully and now, if I’m not adverse to a bit of pain, I can still wear earrings occasionally.

59. Song you wouldn’t normally admit you like – Judas is my guilty pleasure song. I know Jericho is a douchebag and I have tried to hate the song but I can’t. I end up singing along every time.

68. Favorite Movie/Series - Hmm... well, my all time favorite movie is definitely “The Towering Inferno”, hands down. I’ve lost count how many times I’ve seen that. I’m a sucker for disaster movies and, in my opinion, that one is the cream of the crop. I actually like it better than “The Poseidon Adventure” simply because I think the movie is inferior to the book. That said, I’ve also read both of the books that “The Towering Inferno” is based on and I like the combined movie better than them. Favorite series, however, I don’t think I have one definitive favorite series. I’ve had favoriteS like Xena, Buffy, Sherlock, Doctor Who, etc, but I’ve never had one all time favorite.

73: Favorite Greek God – Oh geez. Hmmm... You know, I’m going to have to go with Hermes here, primarily because I have this theory that he is the god of the internet. I know there was no internet in ancient Greece but, frankly, Hermes is the god of commerce, communication, travelers, and thieves. While it’s true that Hephaestus is the god of technology and would probably be the god of computers, I fully believe that Hermes would be the patron of the interwebs.

81 Favorite Books – In all honesty, going to college for 8 years burned me out for reading and now I can barely bring myself to read a comic book. For this reason, most of my favorite books come from childhood. My all time favorite book as a kid was “Flight #116 Is Down” by Caroline B Cooney. It was a disaster story about plane crash in a young woman’s back yard. Somehow, everyone didn’t die – a fact which was called out in the final pages when a fireman says that the crash was extremely odd because “usually they’re all dead.” That book might be another reason I’m terrified of flying. Other favorite books of mine was the “Fear Street Saga Trilogy” (Not the Fear Street Series, the trilogy that served as the origin story). I also like the Hitchhikers Guide saga but when I found out that Douglas Adams died before he could finish the saga, I stopped reading after book 4 so that the story had a happy ending. Novelizations in general are a big thing for me too, I’ve read some really good ones over the years and it’s fascinating to see how they differ from the movies they’re based on.

96. Hero or Villain – Well, if my dreams are anything to go by, I’m a villain at heart. I know, weird right? You all think I’m such a nice person but really, I have a huge dark side to me IRL and, if I was in a world where superheroes were real and I had superpowers I would almost certainly use them for evil. Or, at the very least I would use them to force social change ala Dr. Horrible.

98. Shapeshifting or Controlling Time – SHAPESHIFTING! Oh my goodness shapeshifting! I would love that so much! First of all, I wouldn’t be this huge anymore. I could be as heavy or a skinny as I want. Also, I wouldn’t have to worry about looking old or losing my hair! Plus, can you imagine the cosplay potential!? Forget dressing as the 13th Doctor, I AM THE 13th DOCTOR! That would just be the best!

PHEW! That was a lot! Thanks so much for the ask! This was fun. I love ask games.