#no one ever even really blames him

[roseworth]

Wait ok I'm not knowledgeable on anything Wilson family. Slade drugs Rose???

yeah <///3 before tt03 they had met like once ever (and it went poorly) so to get rose on his side slade injected her with a super soldier serum

in #0.5 he kidnaps her after buying a hit on her (many such cases) and goes "cmon rose we can be a family lets be a family <3333" and she agrees (because shes angry and slade is the one handing her a weapon to kill the man that killed her mother)

then theyre on the same side for a while! the first time we hear about the serum (and iirc only time its specifically mentioned while shes being drugged) is in #12 (BART 🥺)

we also see some flashbacks in fresh hell of slade giving her the serum too

anyways then she joins the team and everything is alright (lie). this is the first confirmation that she was being drugged, plus also showing that shes staying on the team just bc shes afraid slade will get her again :(

in any story that takes place from 2003-2006 that includes rose & slade (bg #63-64, nightwing #112-115, etc), rose is being drugged :(

basically the writers needed an explanation for why she would choose to work with slade and wanted an excuse for why she would be able to join the titans later on and honestly? rare johns banger. this plotline fucks to me. completely defines rose's relationship with slade and gives her a concrete reason to hate him but also have very complicated feelings about her place in his life ouuughhhh

but in conclusion slade sucks so heres some panels of rose beating him up

[siennahrobek]

It’s interesting how much blame people will lay and how varying it is. How opposite. The Jedi didn’t give him special treatment because of his power/status. The Jedi didn’t treat him normal like one of their own. Obi-Wan was too critical. Obi-Wan didn’t pay enough attention to him. The Jedi didn’t allow Anakin to have friends/acquaintances outside of the Order. The Jedi allowed him to be friends with Palpatine. Obi-Wan didn’t save Anakin on Mustafar. Obi-Wan didn’t kill Anakin on Mustafar. Literally everywhere one turns, not only does the blame lay at someone else’s feet aside from Anakin Skywalker, but apparently there is no right answer either. Even if you could place any blame on someone else for his choices, either way it’s a two headed snake. It’s never been enough for people.

Star Wars is a lot of things. It’s about a lot of things. Family, hope, compassion, forgiveness, redemption, tragedy, war, peace, the goodness in people. But all in all, it’s about choices.

Star Wars is about choices. People make choices in these stories and they aren’t generally forced into any of them. It’s about agency, the ability to make those choices and owning up to them. And guess what? Anakin made the choices he did without anyone forcing him to do them. He made those choices knowing exactly what he was doing and exactly how wrong it was.

And the point is, that people allow him to make those choices. They can’t make them for him. He has to make those choices. And he doesn’t want to.

Anakin doesn’t want to make choices.

But in the end, of every episode, every movie, every defining moment, he makes a choice anyways. And until the end, none of them come out the way he wants them too.

Because he wants both, he wants it all. He doesn’t want to choose.

[dazais-guardian-angel]

I'm finding it difficult to reconcile the fact that what I've always wanted and envisioned for Nikolai and his relationship with Fyodor based on fanworks and the very very little canon information we've had to go off of so far, will very likely be very different from what we actually get.

While I understand the appeal of Fyodor taking over Nikolai's body via his blood ability, and the inherent, romantic, ironic tragedy of that — for Nikolai, the person who yearned for freedom, to meet an end by having his soul eternally trapped in the body of the person he loved the most, while Fyodor lives on in his body, never truly knowing how much he was adored by him — I would just hate the idea of that happening now? It just feels far, far too soon for Nikolai to be dead, for his character to no longer have a role or a purpose; his mind and behavior is so utterly fascinating in all its bizarre contradictions, there's so much more to explore and discover with him, he's one of BSD's most complex characters, or at least he's set up to be, and I really hope Asagiri wouldn't throw him away this soon without doing anything more with him.

I never really thought that Nikolai would be the one to end Fyodor for good, way down the line (that can only ever be Dazai's job, to me, since he's his foil), but I always imagined he'd at least have some kind of role in attempting to kill him, since that's his ultimate wish. I imagined that it would be ugly, frenzied, unhinged, desperate, Nikolai finally being forced to acknowledge the horrible truth that's always been buried within his subconscious but he's never wanted to accept: that going against all human reason and killing someone he cares so deeply for will not, in fact, simply make those feelings go away, and will instead make them unable to ignore in his despair. The realization that he'll always be chained to human emotions, to love, no matter how much he thinks he can be free of them. And then, the ensuing breakdown from that. Yes, it's extremely fanficky lmao, but that kind of drama makes sense to me for him and them. It's interesting.

There was also the angst angle of Fyodor being immortal, and Nikolai's agenda perhaps stemming from wanting to save him from that, and being able to finally free him from it in the same way he himself wants to be freed. Killing being the ultimate expression of love, not too dissimilar to Mushitarou killing Yokomizo, both putting on an act of being hateful/vengeful/hostile towards the other in order to cope with the fact that deep down they can't bear the thought of them being gone.

But then we got Fyodor's "death" here, and Nikolai's reaction to it was so unbelievably underwhelming and calm that it made me question everything I thought I knew about Asagiri's writing skills him, and what the story is going for with him. And combined with this revelation now that Fyodor is (unsurprisingly!) immortal, but specifically in the way that he can be killed but supposedly resurrects endlessly (which I really like in of itself, don't get me wrong)... it makes me question what exactly Nikolai knows, or will know, and it somewhat destroys the potential angst we could get with them in the end, or at least drastically changes it.

If Nikolai already knows Fyodor can't be killed, that means we'll never get a moment where he tries to kill him and then has to face the fact that he did the deed and it didn't make him feel freed, and he instantly regrets it. It also means we'd never get a moment where he tries to kill him and then discovers he can't truly die, and the ensuing insanity that would occur from that. It also makes me even question the legitimacy of his reaction to Fyodor's "death" here... was it so damn apathetic and lukewarm because he already knows it wasn't permanent? I mean, I'd like an explanation for it feeling so ooc, it would make me feel better about that, but I can't deny that it would be disappointing to have yet another part of this arc that was just an act and not genuine feelings....

Now, that isn't to say that it's impossible to do anything interesting with Nikolai already knowing the truth. He could be wishing to try to attain free will through the illogical pursuit of an impossible task: in this case, killing Fyodor. There's a beautiful, tragic paradox in him wishing to attempt something to gain his freedom that he and we know is impossible, especially if subconsciously he takes solace in the fact that he'd be able to kill Fyodor without actually losing him for good. If Nikolai doesn't already know, assuming he's not dead he's likely going to find out the truth soon when he next sees Fyodor alive and kicking — I can't imagine a way he wouldn't find out. In that case, we wouldn't get the aforementioned scenario where he tries to kill him and discovers it's futile, which is the most juicy to me I won't lie, but I am still fascinated by the idea of how Nikolai will respond just seeing him suddenly alive again and having to process this after having just mourned him. It's interesting to imagine how he might respond to and treat Fyodor after at last knowing how it truly felt to lose him, and realizing how much he didn't want that, and then suddenly having him back. It might cause him to finally understand that his desire for freedom is unobtainable, and cause him to spiral, and fundamentally change their relationship going forward. An eventual tragic end for him such as Fyodor taking over his body would not feel out of place to me in that case, perhaps, but still not until we've had more time to see Nikolai reflect and see his possible change in perspectives.

I don't know, I'm just rambling at this point lmao. I know very well that so much of my expectations and desires for Nikolai and Fyolai are built up from fan content over the years just because there's been nothing else to work with, and that it's unfair to judge what Asagiri decides to do with him/them based on preconceived notions. Whatever he does could still be interesting in the end, even if it's not what I initially wanted or expected, and being open to being surprised is always a good thing. At the end of the day we still know barely anything about Nikolai, so it's not completely fair for me to judge something as ooc for a character we still know so little about.

But... it's because we know so little about him and have gotten so little of him, that at the very least, I'm gonna be really upset if he does die here from being possessed by Fyodor like people are worrying about. I really don't think he will, because I'm pretty confident the helicopter pilot is the one Fyodor swapped with/resurrected in the body of as per soup's theory, and again I'm not saying it wouldn't be fitting eventually... but I really don't want it to happen now. :/ I just think Nikolai still has so much potential as a character and so much more we need to see of him before his likely inevitable and tragic demise (however it happens), so whatever Asagiri decides to do with him I just really, really hope we don't lose him so prematurely; it would honestly be such a tremendous waste imo.

[vani-ash]

Dead Friend Forever ep7 spolier

So did you forgive him Phee?

[adelaidedrubman]

and then there was wednesday

i went and got tagged on this day of wednes by beloveds @direwombat @socially-awkward-skeleton @inafieldofdaisies @corvosattano to wip, thank you my beloveds!

bitches will be like “i’ll never actually write america’s sweetheart it’s a joke au” then be like “anyways here’s 600 words of america’s sweetheart, the definitive wildfire ending.” have some jestiny attempting to make her directorial debut, warnings for drug and alcohol use and me being annoyingly meta. and jestiny publicist pov

“Sure,” the actress chimed, twirling a strand of short red hair around her finger. “I heard it in Sunday school.”  “Then perhaps you could fuckin’ explain to me, Olivia,” Jestiny said, pausing to draw a deep breath in through flared nostrils, “Why I would be turning on the water works before he cut my hair?”  Olivia furrowed her brow. “Um, because you were afraid? You had to be. You were being chased through the woods by a crazy cult leader brandishing a knife.”  Jestiny’s eyes widened. Andrea pinched the bridge of her nose in anticipation. 

“It’s not about fear, it’s about vulnerability,” Jestiny ground out, jabbing a finger of her coffee cup-clasping hand towards the actress and causing the pungent drink that was definitely not coffee to slosh loudly inside. “That is the scary part — not the knife. The hair cutting is an act of intimacy,” she said pointedly. She waved her free hand as if conducting a symphony as she continued, “It’s the culmination of a careful dance, all about the subtle struggle of who’s leading. There should be build-up to it!” She pulled out an Altoid tin and shook out a few white tablets that were definitely not breath mints to chew on. “It’s supposed to be predictable, but still devastating! It’s a tragedy!”  She glared down at Olivia. “And it’s a tale of hubris. The protagonist is arrogant before the downfall, not scared and crying.”  Henry rose begrudgingly from his director’s chair. “That’s in your memoir?” “That’s in the Bible.”  “Your memoir is like the Bible, to me,” Flynn chimed in, fluttering his eyelashes and clasping a copy of Urges from God by Jestiny Rook pulled seemingly from thin air. Andrea almost pitied him, to not foresee he’d be dumped the moment he shaved for the premiere party like all the others had.  “You want me to play it more smug, then?” Olivia asked, flipping through the pages of the script, as if the method to Jestiny’s madness would be buried somewhere amongst stage directions.  “Fuck no!” Jestiny cried. “I have to be relatable and likeable. Someone the audience wants to root for to come out on top, not see crash and burn!” She threw back her cup, gulping down the last of its contents. “I’m not smug, that doesn’t sell. I’m a plucky and bold underdog. I’m cheerful. I’m compassionate. I’m humble. I’m…” She restlessly drummed her fingers against the cardboard of her empty cup. “I’m America’s fucking sweetheart!” Jestiny paused as the words rang against the walls, eyes scanning with a familiar frantic jitter along the blank faces of the crew as she crushed the empty coffee cup in her hand.  “But, like —” she fidgeted with the ends of hair that fell just above her collarbones. “In a way that respects the fuckin’ integrity of the greater symbolism, and all.” Olivia sighed. “Does that mean I’m supposed to cry before or after the haircut thing?” “You’re a fuckin’ hack, Olivia. Pun once again intended.” “Should I be crying?” Flynn asked, looking up from the book cradled in his arms. “What is my motivation in this scene — in the Biblical sense?”  “Are none of you fucking getting this?!”  “Wait,” Henry mumbled, peering over Flynn’s shoulders. “Was he saying he’s Delilah?”  A low growl sounded in the pit of Jestiny’s throat, a final warning.  “They —” She clenched her jaw so forcefully that Andrea could see dimples sink into her cheeks despite the thin line her lips scrunched into, a hard knot of muscle popping its hinges as she tilted her head down and to the side. She drew in a deep breath as her hand clenched into a fist, releasing it as a ragged exhale as she splayed the fingers straight with a back and forth jostle of her arm. “They should have never let a man direct this movie,” she said with finality as she stormed off set.  Andrea sighed, turning to the side and picking up the fruit plate she’d been grazing on just in time to save it as Jestiny flipped over the craft services table. 

tags out to my sweethearts @florbelles @josephslittledeputy @afarcryfrommymain @poetikat @just-another-wasteland-merc @voidika @captastra @confidentandgood @belorage @deputyash @blissfulalchemist @shellibisshe @thedeadthree @nightbloodbix @ladyofedens-blog @miyabilicious @simplegenius042 @henbased @clicheantagonist @firstaidspray @strafethesesinners @nuclearstorms @jackiesarch @v0idbuggy @orionlancasterr @stacispratt @8bitpizzacoupons @strangefable @shallow-gravy @roofgeese + opt in HERE to be tagged for writing wip shit!

[mastersoftheair]

Sorry but am I the only one that thought that episode…sucked? Like it was straight up bad. Horrible pacing, no wrap up of all the random characters and plot lines they’ve thrown around all season (the tuskegee airmen, Westgates spying, literally all the guys beside like the main 4). (Seriously it makes me so mad that the three redtails got all of 5 seconds of screen time, almost no lines. Literally what was the point of introducing them other than to pretend the show was iNcLuSiVe) Even at the end of BoB and the Pacific you get a much better idea of what happened to all the remaining guys. In this they’re like what happened to DeMarco or Hambone or Brady or (insert character here) we don’t know! ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ The concentration camp scene felt shoehorned in compared to how it was done in BoB. Unless that actually happened to Rosie (which i haven’t heard anything about) but it was just like.. ok? It all felt so rushed and emotionless to me. Maybe I’ve just fallen out of love with MoTA but it’s been downhill for me since episode 6 or so.

i already made a little (read: long) post-finale write-up here, where i talk about the use of the tuskegee airmen, l'sandra, and overall editing/pacing issues i felt the show had. but i don't agree with the notion that adding the redtails was in any way insincere or trying to halfass being "iNcLuSiVe", i just think they suffer from this show's obvious time constraints. and to summarize what i wrote in my linked post, there's a limit to what white writers/directors/producers can do when creating a story about black people. there are some stories i'd feel uncomfortable with them telling on their own, truth be told. dee rees wasn't the sole nonwhite director, but she Was the only black one. i think she did her job well given the limitations and i appreciate that they let her direct those episodes, rather than leaving it up to a team of white people trying their best to tell a black story.

the worst i can say about the finale is that it didn't feel like That strong of finale, tho i wouldn't go as far to say it "sucked" or call it "straight up bad". i liked it plenty, it's just the weakest of the hbo war finales imo.

as for the concentration camp scene, artistic license was taken with both shows. unlike what's seen in the BoB, easy company wasn't the first to arrive at kaufering, and there's 0 mention of the all-japanese american 552nd who helped them liberate it). similarly, rosie rosenthal did assist in liberating those camps, though it would've been after the events shown this episode. idk if he saw one in that up-close way seen in this episode, but he could've (i should research this when i have time). plus, it would've felt weird Not having him acknowledge them at all. "shoe-horned" is an odd term to use here imo, as both scenes more-or-less center a jewish character (BoB's liebgott and MotA's rosie). the former show has survivors the characters can help, the latter shows no one left to help. the former has all of easy company there, the latter has rosie there all alone. rosie's scene felt deeply personal in that way. at the end of the day, both scenes are communicating different things. that doesn't make one better than the other when they aren't trying to be identical. (disclaimer, i'm not jewish, so i'd be interesting hearing from the perspective of someone who wrt whether or not they felt it was "shoe-horned")

i can understand if you've disliked the show post-episode 6 (and episode 6 was a very strong episode i'm ngl). eps 7 and 8 were weaker in many ways, even to me, so i get it. everyone's entitled to their own opinion (i'd be a hypocrite saying otherwise). just understand that this blog is run by someone who overall enjoys this show despite its flaws! basically, i encourage you to take this energy and make your own posts.

[pandoratheprocrasticreator]

they’re definitely going to bring up the huntlow ship by the end of the show because hunter is SIMPING hard but i really want them to do something interesting with it. i don’t want them to just get together with no drama aimed at each other. so what i propose is: a deconstruction of the last-minute love confession trope.

hunter spends the second or even third episode blushing after willow. but willow doesn’t flirt or blush at him, just encourages and hangs out with him like she would her other friends. and at the end of the second or the middle of the third episode, the gang is gearing up for a huge battle with belos, the collector, or any other villains they’ll have to confront. everyone knows it’s dangerous, so there’s a lot of sweet moments between friends and family where they make peace with some of their conflicts and reinforce how much they care about each other. lumity and raeda both get an “i love you” or a kiss.

hunter pulls willow aside and confesses his feelings. he says he has a crush on her and asks if after they defeat the villains, they could go on a date. maybe he gets out a plant glyph and makes a bouquet. it’s very cute and reminiscent of a lot of love confessions in movies and tv that characters do right before a battle.

but willow FREEZES. she’s only thought of hunter as a friend up to this point, and hunter dropping this bombshell during the most stressful day of her life really isn’t helping her decide how to answer him. she has to recontextualize all of their interactions up to this point. and whether she eventually decides to date him, she can’t make up her mind at that moment, because she’s never even considered dating hunter before.

because the “last minute love confession” trope only works out well if the two characters have been pining and basically knows the other’s feelings. it’s a good way to clear up the air in that situation before a dangerous fight where they might not get a chance after. but if only one side has/is aware of their romantic feelings, the last minute love confession becomes solely a way for the person confessing to get it off their chest. it doesn’t matter if the person being confessed to wants to know about these feelings or reciprocates, the confession is sprung on them without prior warning, and now they have to think about that on top of the dangerous battle.

so before willow can give hunter an answer about that date, everyone has to get in position for the fight. and during the fight, willow is DISTRACTED. she knows she needs to focus on the fight, but she can’t help but think about hunter’s confession from a few minutes before, regardless of whether she reciprocates. and at one point, willow gets a clear shot to take out the villain or rescue one of their friends or whatever the goal of the battle is, but she MISSES.

if hunter had confessed a few hours or days earlier, giving willow time to come to terms with it before the battle, or if he had waited until after the battle to confess, it would have been fine. but he tells her at the WORST possible time, so willow has something else on her mind during one of the most important battle of her life. and because of that, everything goes very, very wrong.

[the-woman-upstairs]

Honestly, even without Art’s attempts at manipulation and sabotage, I don’t think Patrick and Tashi’s relationship would’ve survived anyway. Before they started dating, Patrick was criticizing her career plans and Tashi was never interested in entertaining his massive ego at her expense. Passion and chemistry are important to relationships, but if that’s the only foundation, it’s gonna crumble quickly.

The only difference between Patrick/Tashi va Art/Tashi is that the relationship would’ve ending with a bang instead of a whimper.

[ethwastaken]

i was just at a james marriot gig and i've still not fully realised it

[polysyndetonaddictsupportgroup]

the higher-ups (and Yaga) immediately trying to leverage Gojo & Ieri's absence to put Yuuta on the roster??? God that's such a stark moment. Thank god Nanami and Gojo saw through that one immediately, because Yuuta wants to justify his own survival so badly he would've fallen straight into it.

That whole scene, with Yuuta immediately jumping on the opportunity to help people even though something is Extremely Wrong with him and he's on the brink of physical collapse--this boy is selfless to the point of self destruction and I am chewing the drywall about it. I love him so much.

If only he was able to summon his newly found homicidal rage in defense of himself, the higher-ups would no longer be a problem. Alas, this boy is Extremely Unwell.

(Sea Glass Gardens is absolutely incredible and i am obsessed with it in a way that is totally and 100% normal. I'm so normal about it, trust me <3 )

The thing about Yuuta is that he really is prime to be taken advantage of right now and the higher ups know it. They had him try to kill himself for them--they know that there's a window of opportunity that they can use to get him under their thumb and avoid The Problem of Gojo, which is, namely, having a human weapon who you cannot fully control. Gojo nailed it from the beginning: they want a magic gatling gun with no personality or free will. They learned their lesson with Gojo and are trying to rob Yuuta of his agency before he learns how to protect himself.

And Yaga's part in that scene really was meant to kind of emphasize how, even with the best intention's, he just doesn't work to protect the kids. Like. everything he said was technically true, and he meant it with the best of intentions. He's the guy who has to think of everyone's needs. he has to manage this crisis. he's got a lot of people hurt badly who just came out of a war, and a lot of people going into fights with some very aggravated curses spawning without sufficient manpower to address the danger and no healer to save them if they cut it a little too close. He didn't have the intention of manipulating or sacrificing Yuuta, but he was aware that it would come to his detriment and risk.

The issue is the higher ups. They don't give a shit about the people in their workforce. They should be the ones doing whatever it takes to solve this crisis and save their people--and if that means giving up on their machinations? They should have already done it. It's their responsibility.

They just don't care. They want Okkotsu Yuuta under their thumb, and their society hemorrhaging is treated like an opportunity, not a dire problem to be solved. They don't care if half a dozen of their own people need to die to do it. Hell, it's better if they do die--they can put it straight on Okkotsu for not being willing to sacrifice himself, when they should have been making whatever promises they had to in order to make this work.

Gojo's done this before, is the thing. He was Yuuta, a long time ago. Nanami was right there watching it happen. They both know what the higher ups do: They let society get to a crisis level and put all the responsibility on you to save it. they let you maneuver yourself into a vulnerable position as a result, and then they use it as leverage to put their goddamn boot on your neck.

The thing is that Gojo adopting megumi all those years ago really did put them into a crisis state. the zenin pitched the mother of all bitch fits trying to secure his unconditional return, and they were a huge percentage of jujutsu society's labor force and resource pools. instead of the higher ups managing the problem at all, they took advantage of the situation and shoved more and more of its weight and responsibility onto gojo, until he was dropping off his own kid at his abusers' compound thinking it was the only compromise that could resolve things. megumi paid the price for gojo not calling bullshit, and right now, with him in a hospital bed? gojo's less willing to repeat mistakes than ever.

he knows that they're going to use the safety and suffering of everyone else as the leverage against him, and he knows that as terrible as it is, he cannot blink first. He's played this game before, and he knows that the only way to get the higher ups to back off on something like this is to dig in your heels.

I think what happened to Megumi all those years ago and how bad it got before they put a stop to it is something that haunts all three of them. When they first started raising him, they were very young, and they were very broken, and they loved him very, very much. He was their little boy, and he was never the same after the Zenin. They were supposed to protect him, and they didn't, and not a single one of them has forgiven themselves for that.

Megumi was sort of sacrificed for the greater good when he was a kid. None of them thought that that was what they were doing when it happened, but that's what happened. His happiness, safety, and wellbeing were sacrificed to pacify the Zenin and make it easier on everyone else.

Megumi and Tsumiki had to become their non-negotiables after. They had to become the things they refused to compromise on. The Zenin would take miles and miles if you gave them a millimeter, let alone an inch.

Gojo didn't think he was compromising them when he left them on their own to deal with Geto's war. They were disgustingly self-sufficient kids. They had been alone for longer stretches of time when they were practically toddlers--they should have been fine on their own for a couple of weeks.

But they were still his kids, and he still left them alone for everyone else's sake, and now his kid is blind and half dead in a hospital bed. It's like being punched in the face by old mistakes.

So they're off the roster completely, all of them. And they're not compromising an inch on what their focus is, and they're not letting anything happen to any of the other kids in their care.

It's terrible that their coworkers are suffering, but it wouldn't be happening if the Zenin hadn't fucked with Gojo Satoru's kid, of all the goddamn people. It wouldn't be happening if the higher ups would actually do their job and start managing shit.

And if they use Yuuta as an anxiety riddled bandaid on the bullet hole in their society? Then they'd be sacrificing him the way they sacrificed Megumi all those years ago. And they have never been less willing to do that.

I'm so so glad you like the story! Thank you for talking with me!

[alastairstom]

Listen yeah okay. Alastair was mean at school. True enough, I don't care, I think he was funny, but it's true. I just wish that those who were mad at him cited "partially responsible for a prank that resulted in a student dying" rather than "called our friend Goatface" as the reason they didn't like him. Because that way they'd have, like, actual valid ground to stand on

[s0fter-sin]

“maybe if i, an 8yr old, managed to talk sense into my groomed and deeply traumatised 13yr old brother, maybe he wouldn’t have accidentally almost killed himself and become a villain” and no one in that room disagreed with him??

[choices-and-voices]

Random moments from Chapter 5 of Blades 2 that made me feel things, part 6/6

[sidesteppostinghours]

feeling some rather intense thoughts and emotions over steps that arent mine, about an au that i did not create.

@/idlenight if you see this im sorry but i had to borrow your boy because it was all i could think about after seeing aurries tags

[dutybcrne]

As far as the people of Mondstadt are concerned, what happened that night of Diluc's eighteenth birthday in terms of the results of The Confrontation between Diluc and Kaeya, is instead a fabrication that a grief-stricken Kaeya had recklessly tried to clear a domain on his own only to be attacked and hurt by a Pyro Abyss Mage. The only reason he survived was being blessed with his Cryo Vision.

Each and every time the lie is brought up, especially in the Angel's Share, Kaeya feels the urge to find that 'Domain' and lock himself in it.

[spectralscathath]

number 22 for the salt thing

22. your favorite part of canon that everyone else ignores

idk if the whole fandom sleeps on this but like, the bits of the fandom I'VE seen have, and no fandom was specified for this so I’m gonna come out and say it: I like Endeavor’s arc in MHA. I like that he is a toxic, abusive father, a terrible husband, and just kinda the worst, and, key point here, I like that he figures out that he’s a bastard and realises ‘oh shit I need to do better’ and then has No Fucking Clue how to do it. Do I think it’s handled perfectly? God no, there’s problems in the writing, always will be. But I think it’s interesting, it’s intriguing, and that while I do understand people hating Enji for his actions and stuff, I think that flattening him down to just a one-note abuser actively robs the storyline of a complex and fascinating character.

I think my favourite thing about it as well is that Enji fucks it up constantly. He has no idea how to be a father, he has no idea how to be a civil human being, he knows how to be a hero in terms of doing the work side of the job (such as having the most solved cases on record or his agency focusing on all areas of heroism instead of specialising), but he can’t for the life of him be an inspiration or a leader. He’s self-centred, he’s hard-headed, he’s mean, he’s hot-tempered, he’s proud and ambitious, he can’t handle a single conversation without resorting to gruffness and intimidation, and these are flaws that he has baked into himself for decades, of course they’re not gonna just go away. I want to study him under a microscope, honestly. Here is a character who has so completely defined themselves by two things: being perfect at their job on paper, and being second best. And then, all of a sudden, for the first time in his life. He comes first. But not by any of his own merits, his hard work. Nope. He comes first by default. And he hates it.

But, then that lil finicky bit of his perfectionism comes into play, and now that he’s been handed the title that he’s spent so long trying to take, even if it isn’t how he wanted it, he’s still that stubborn fuck who’s gonna do his goddamn job, so he starts actually trying to figure out how to be what All Might was, and isn’t that so interesting, the duality of flaws? How his need to be the best made him a monster, and then, when circumstances changed, it set him on the road to try and atone. And I do mean ‘atone’. I’m definitely in the ‘this is an atonement, not a redemption’ camp. It's mostly semantics, and I’m definitely not up to date on the manga so god knows if it’s gonna get pulled off, but man, if this landing is stuck, I’d love it.

Following on from that: I’m absolutely on team ‘none of the Todorokis die at the end’. I think the best ending for the Todoroki family is that they all live, and they all keep getting to have interesting and different interactions with each other. Because the reactions to Enji from his family are the other best part of his arc. Stories thrive on drama and conflict, and this man is a walking fusion generator of the two. Rei wants nothing to do with him for good reason until she needs to work with him to help their son, she has her own demons to deal with as well. Fuyumi is forgiving to her father, but that doesn’t mean she’s not still angry at him, she has her own reasoning for doing so. Natsuo would be happy if he got to live the rest of his life never having to talk to his dad again but doesn’t want him dead. Dabi is just swinging wildly between every emotion known to man with the dial turned all the way up, his issues are all standing on top of each other in one emo trench coat that’s currently setting everything on fire before anyone can realise there’s a person behind the nightmare. And Shouto is also in this complicated space of sorta wanting stop being angry, not for Enji’s sake but for his own.

If Enji was just a one-note character, the abuser using his hero status to get away with his crimes, then that would lose all the interesting interplay between the family. It takes all the teeth out of the Todoroki plotline. And Enji or Dabi dying at the end? Well, where’s the story supposed to go from there, it doesn’t fit, it’s a cop out for Enji’s plotline, which is all about ‘you are not allowed to escape the consequences of your actions, you must live to see the damage you have done and work to fix it’. Enji is a man defined by his need to work, and so work he must.

What a fun way to take a character. (Again reiterating that I’m not saying you have to like him but like. I think he’s very polarising for good reason and that often leads to people flattening him down into Pure Evil Abuser, and I feel like from what I’ve seen of the fandom, the interesting stuff about him gets lost in that.)