#necessary components

[whetstonefires]

You know, I've been thinking about it, and it is absolutely essential to the narrative that Jiang Cheng is a dick and a trash fire. (Affectionate.)

Like, first of all, if he was a sainted little angel of a shidi the way Jiang Yanli is a shijie, Wei Wuxian's choices would become obvious, sort of impersonal, and boring.

Sure, lots of people wouldn't tear themselves apart for such a person in such a scenario, but they're not the protagonists of novels, are they; in a book you have to justify not doing that. So white lotus Jiang Cheng is off the table.

Jiang Cheng who isn't fragile-and-insecure but also stubborn-as-hell and violently reactive also won't wash.

If he wasn't the kind of person who sincerely tries to die under these circumstances, Wei Wuxian would have had the option of loyally supporting him in a less self-destructive way; if he was someone who could be trusted to handle the revelation without suffering a ruinous fracture of identity, Wei Wuxian wouldn't have been forced to distance himself after the war, because he could have come clean.

If Jiang Cheng wasn't the kind of person who centers on his own pride and hurt feelings and lashes out about it, it would be very hard to set up the lategame scenario where they're 'enemies' in a real, meaningful way, despite still loving each other and Wei Wuxian never wishing Jiang Cheng any ill. Even with Jiang Yanli's death.

And I mean, you could get most of the plot without doing this interesting thematic examination of the classic 'bond between martial brothers severed by one going to the dark side' trope, but I'd argue you'd lose an enormous chunk of the story.

And without Jiang Cheng's weaknesses, Wei Wuxian's motives don't cohere. His weaknesses form the foundation of at least two of the backstory's major turning points.

There's the tantalizing possibility that Wei Wuxian wouldn't have done it, if Jiang Cheng hadn't strangled him while blaming him for everything.

Probably he would have, all else being equal! But neither we nor Jiang Cheng can be sure.

Jiang Cheng sucking a lot, and knowing his own flaws perfectly well without that granting him the ability to do much about them, is heavily load-bearing. Which gives him such a fantastic implied point of view!

[bumblingbabooshka]

Vulcan Fashion/Hair Insp

[hellsenchantress]

God I rly hope Mizu does not end up with Taigen or anyone for that matter. She rly does not need a love interest esp in her path to revenge and self healing.

[tanadrin]

BDS is a political program with the practical end result of "mass murder of jews," so yes it's pretty definitively antisemitic.

I don't think I've ever specifically mentioned BDS, have I?

In general, I think arguments of the form "X program would have Y result, therefore supporters of X support Y" are very weak unless you can make a very direct argument that X is inextricable from Y. It is not clear to me that the objectives of BDS, which per Wikipedia are

to pressure Israel to meet what the BDS movement describes as Israel's obligations under international law,[7] defined as withdrawal from the occupied territories, removal of the separation barrier in the West Bank, full equality for Arab-Palestinian citizens of Israel, and "respecting, protecting, and promoting the rights of Palestinian refugees to return to their homes and properties".[8]

is inevitably functionally equivalent to "mass murder of jews." There seems to be a pretty long inferential chain there that I guess I'm missing.

[ongreenergrasses]

you know. the behemoth is going to torment me until the absolute last second

[cut-out-paper-stars]

this, too, could be sex

[rpfisfine]

rly great alex fanart from reddit

[notasapleasure]

Me trying to edit this fucking fic into something workable:

[ardenrosegarden]

Kathy Carter, Arthur I, Duke of Brittany, in History and Literature Julia Smith, Province and Empire: Brittany and the Carolingians Jean Markale, Celtic Civilization Bernard S. Bachrach, The Origin of Armorican Chivalry dir. Anthony Harvey, The Lion in Winter Euripides tr. David Rudkin, Hippolytus Céline Fallet, Arthur de Bretagne Gwenno Piette, Brittany: A Concise History Tri Yann, Arthur Plantagenest

[dredshirtroberts]

i was going to say i hate when i'm right but actually i enjoy the sensation of being correct even if i don't like the thing i was right about. So I'm very happy to be right so often, actually (especially now that no one in my life is actively trying to gaslight me)

[joelletwo]

i love every single time any fic any circumstance kjsdfg only guy whos actually had gay sex on purpose in canon sakata gintoki does need to play gay chicken to actually approach sincere gay. ness. sober

[banannabethchase]

I had a dream that somehow addressed the sociological and structural components of an omegaverse and I absolutely blame wrestlefandom for this bullshit.

[cursed-angelic-art]

It used to puzzle me what SQH's role in the story is, but I've formed an understanding. Scum Villain deals with a triad: the author, his creation, and the audience. And the story wouldn't be the complete, hopeful narrative that it is without resolutions for each corner of this triangle. The audience gets to participate in the raw and beautiful act of creation. The creation gets imbued with new life. And the author gets to finally rest and enjoy his art.

[basu-shokikita]

It might have been reposted here already, but I wanted to upload my Cartman crossdressing compilation.

Always loved how easily he would slip into feminine clothes and everyone just sort of went along with it. Say what you will about this guy, but when he commits to the bit, he means it

[blujayonthewing]

while it is most commonly taught-- and indeed, for most spellcasters, easiest-- to cast spells by strongly visualizing the desired outcome, melliwyk has always found it much easier to picture The Weave itself, her hands twisting into its threads to directly manipulate its effects upon the material plane and direct the magic from its source. consequently many of her somatic gestures are evocative of twisting, grasping, or breaking strings, her fingers splaying through the air as if through a complex cat's cradle