#opinions on the ending

[orangejuicetoast42]

MAJOR SPOILERS FOR OWL HOUSE S3E1, THANKS TO THEM

I really just want to say what’s on mind right now and hope it isn’t too incoherent. 

So, like most I just got finished watching the first special and dear god did I love it! Pretty much everything about it was amazing and didn’t feel rushed or contrived at all. A great start for what is unfortunately the end. Well almost great. Like any usual fan, I turned to social media after my viewing to see what others thought and I noticed that a few were pointing out something troubling about the special, the way Belos was reintroduced to the kids. Here’s where the spoilers start. 

To sum things up, Belos makes his big reappearance towards the end of the episode in the form of possessing Hunter and eventually crushing Flapjack out of spite. Not only does this lead to a really heartbreaking scene but also brings up some not-so-great implications that others have pointed out. For a good chunk of this episode, we get to see Hunter slowly heal from his trauma from the Emperor’s coven, from Belos, and starting to be okay with who he is as a person. But it’s safe to say that healing process gets upended when the cause of that trauma takes control of him again, though now in a more literal sense, and kills the first friend he ever had. 

That’s painful, it’s harmful, it takes a character who has already been through a lot and seemed to finally be given the chance to move on from it at his own pace but then gets that taken away from him too because we all know that Hunter may never look at himself the same way again. He might now never get to the point where he can’t trust himself and in turn pull away from those he did trust due to the fear of hurting them too. Other fans have pointed out the real-life implications this final scene has which isn’t great either.

But notice how I’ve been bringing up other fans so far. It’s because while I do hope I’m at least somewhat aware and observant of this world we call home, I know for fact that I am not qualified to speak in depth on the facets of abusive relationships and the pitfalls of bring the abuser back into the abused life. I’m just a person who likes to geek over writing and storytelling and uses it to take a break from my real life. 

And it’s because of that interest with writing that I don’t necessarily fault Dana and the crew for those implications. Writing is hard, even more complicated when the story you’re tell resonates with thousands of people. You’re bound to make mistakes and having all those eyes on you is only going to highlight those mistakes. It’s a tough position to be in especially since I’m pretty sure it wasn’t done on purpose or with malicious intent. 

All we as viewers can do now is say “hey doing that makes it like this” and hope this is taken into account for any future projects. Though I’m not saying this to invalidate the feelings of anyone who is upset by what Hunter had to go through again or those who this situation hits too close to home with. You have the right to take issue with this and speak out so others know why this isn’t alright.

Okay so what am I saying? Well, this is where that interest in storytelling comes back into play. Like I say, I loved the episode but it’s those last 10-15 minutes that the issue makes itself known, so if that’s the case why not just tweak them, given them the old reworking. I guess what I’m saying is that I have a few ideas, two in particular, for the climax of the episode that don’t lead to rehashing abusive relationships while still keeping the same plot beats (mostly....partially). 

The first one doesn’t hold much water now but it could still be an interesting idea if given more time to developed and if I wasn’t so tired. Basically, Belos doesn’t possess Hunter but instead continues to leach onto dead animals like he is seen to do throughout the episode until he is finally able to solidify into his monstrous form. Like maybe while Luz is at the vet’s office, she overhears a conversation about the increase of dead animals and reports of how they looked odd. Then when she gets back and she and Hunter try to find Belos, that rat jumps out like in cannon but now they notice something off Hunter notices something off and can’t brush it off. 

This all culminates into a full gang chase/fight throughout the forest and graveyard as Belos shifts between different undead creatures as he tries to reach the Titan’s Blood first. Like I said, this idea could use some work but I know it would end with Hunter taking a stand in front of the others saying how he’s tried of the fear Belos causes in him and how he just wants to be himself before blasting the old dude out of the whatever animal he’s in (I’m thinking bear) but is a little to slow to stop him from retreating to the portal.

Now for the second idea, which I would like to say now that I’m unsure if this is just as problematic, but I couldn’t help but think since well...it just made sense. So again, Belos does not possess Hunter, but his endgame isn’t animals either. No instead he has his set on something, no someone more likely to give him the strength he needs. And that someone is Luz. 

Throughout this episode we see Luz on this downward spiral of depression and guilt due to feeling like all she does is ruin the lives of those she loves and doesn’t deserve anything but their anger. And the parallels between her and Belos have been hammered home significantly so far. So, who’s to say that it’s completely out the realm of possibility that Luz is the one Belos latches onto in the cabin and Luz slowly falls further into his control due to her own guilt and her mind painting her as being just as bad as Belos.

Belos is eventually expelled from Luz through the combined efforts of Luz’s friends/family reminding her of all the good she has done while fight off Belos’ attempts to destroy them. The final blow is again dealt by Hunter but this time it’s more from the angle of him promising that he will never let Belos take away anything from him again before throwing the vile in the water and diving in after possessed Luz to help her out.  Again, a lot more can be done with this but I’m tired and might use this as a fic so yeah.

Also notice how in both of these ideas, Flapjack doesn’t die. I know that it is very much plot relevant and will probably lead to Hunter now being able to use spell circles or at least teleport on his own (theory for another day) but did they really have to do it to him. Like if it is really that necessary save Flapjack’s death for the last special or the final battle. Just anytime where Hunter is not getting repeatedly punch in the gut with trauma.

Alright that’s all I got, sorry if this was a waste of time, please don’t fault the creators too much, and get some sleep. We could all use it. 

[abracadaze]

i feel so bad for nikola tesla like imagine spending years beefing with a guy who has conned the public into believing he's some sort of supergenius when in reality it's his overworked employees developing all of his world-changing inventions and you end up dying broke and starving and alone and then 100 years later another guy cons the public into believing he's some sort of supergenius when in reality it's his overworked employees developing all of his world-changing inventions and he's doing it all IN YOUR NAME. he must be rolling in his grave like a fucking rotisserie chicken

[cali]

i hate motherfuckers who base their whole personality on the sum experience of their formative years + the people they mostly interact with + some key impactful events in life + a small amount of traits they were just born with + their current interests and some other stuff probably. so fucking annoying...

[mrmrsman]

I'd love to see a dpxdc story where the Justice League knows about Amity Park and the Ghosts the whole time, and does think the ghosts are rogues to be addressed. Doesn't agree with the GIW, maybe doesn't even know about them? THE IMPORTANT PART.

The Red Huntress is the only active vigilante in Amity Park, according to the JL. Phantom is marked as one of her rogues. Maybe the Fentons even are marked as rogues from all the property damages and random shooting/sliming of citizens. Valarie is the only person successfully taking care of the ghosts, masking and suiting up in the classic vigilante way the whole time.

[clone-futon]

Basically Kid in every movie when it comes to action scenes

[lucabyte]

On autonomy, and what it means to be Obliged to Help.

Bonus:

[poorly-drawn-mdzs]

Get Their Ass.

[First] Prev <–-> Next

[xxsinisterxx]

I noticed in Dungeon Meshi in the anime that Kabru seems less desperate than in the manga. He is drunk, screaming, and crying over an autistic man who doesn't even know he exists. It isn't a cute little infatuation—Kabru is OBSESSED. Even Laios's clueless as$ can tell he wants something more than just being 'friends.'

[sigilmint]

hating Romeo and Juliet is fine if you had a shitty English teacher and didn't care about school at the time or whatever but if it's been many years since then... I'm giving you permission to let go of that opinion. the problem in Romeo and Juliet isn't the young love story, it's the stupid family rivalry that gets both heirs killed. that's what it's about. it's about closed mindedness and pettiness leading to tragic consequences. these adults hated each other so much, were so determined to hate each other, that they let their children die over it. the love story is romantic and dramatic, but hating the play because 'some dumb teens die bc they think they're in love' isn't it. they are in love. teens can be in love and it can feel like the most important thing in the world. and they shouldn't have to die bc of their families' bullshit.

[cyanide-sippy-cup]

Wayne Family Adventures literally had 2 entire seasons worth of healthy dad Bruce who sits down and talks with his kids. He brought Jason down from a nervous breakdown. He got Damian a dog. He told Tim that it's Batman who looks out for Robin. He felt incredible guilt over missing even one of Cass' recitals. He plays with the kids, he takes care of them, he talks with them about family and what they mean to him. He puts in the work.

And yet we still have people coming out of the woodworks to claim that being an asshole is "integral to his character" the one time he says fuckshit to the kids.

Look I came from from multiple abusive households (yeah that's right I'm pulling this card). I know what that looks like. This ain't it. What Bruce said is fucked up, no doubt about it. But this is after potentially years of kindness and heartfelt discussions. Saying something fucked after all that healthy behavior isn't abuse, it's a call for help. And that's what the kids are trying to do. He's scared. He even admitted to Damian that none of it matters as long as they're safe.

This arc isn't to point and go "oh look at how horrible Batman is and how he treats his family". It's showing how grief and trauma can twist the people you love into something that hurts, and the effort and pain needed on both sides to fix that (like in the Jason episode, how he lost control and almost hurt Dick and then told them to take care of Bruce). Keeping this idea that violence and abuse is integral to Batman and his relationships is the same mentality that has kept main timeline Bruce in that behavior for the last god-knows-how-long.

[rbvcdeluxe]

every time someone makes good richie lipschitz characterization an angel wins their wings back

[hellsitegenetics]

https://scp-wiki.wikidot.com/scp-3999

String identified: SCP-3999 Object Class: Apollyon Special Containment Procedures: SCP-3999 cannot be contained stop be contained

String identified: Item #:

String identified: Researcher Talloran:

Closest match: Trametes ferrium Common name: Metal eating fungus.

Researcher Talloran is to be identified using the BLAST database modeled using AlphaFold kept in a standard terrarium suitable for moths.

Common name: finding tumblr's genome one post at a time.

String identified: The following file contains a virulent infohazard. Due to this, it is imperative that all personnel accessing this file be certified as having a Cognitive Resistance Value (CRV) of no less than 14.5. Should you fail an automated CRV verification, please remain calm and do not move. A member of your site's medical staff Researcher Talloran will be with you shortly.

Special Containment Procedures: Researcher Talloran is to have his genome aligned with its 12 closest genetic matches using MEGA. Navigate to the "table" section and select phylogenetic tree. Click "yes." Use sub-branches to note connections between each branch, such as families or kingdoms.

Item #: Cydia strobilella genome assembly, chromosome: Z Object Class: Spruce seed moth

(Researcher Talloran must link the image source.) This can be the only conclusive fact.

So stop asking.

[wyrmswears]

yknow what, fuck you, [unhumans your previous elemental masters of lightning and ice and makes them best friends^_^]

Ice is an unspecified eldritch being. He has an uncanny valley effect on humans that unnerves the majority of the team who in turn can't understand how Libber, Garmadon, and Wu don't feel unsettled by him. Eventually, the teams warms up to him, and though no one becomes as close to him as Libber is, everyone knows they can come to him if they want to hex their ex or get a demon exorcised (sometimes these are one and the same).

Libber is a raijū and though this isn't common knowledge when she joins the elemental masters, news quickly spreads; she isn't great at keeping secrets. She DOES bite and Maya learnt this the hard way.

more art but also cw for death under read more

[triplecreature]

actually I'm kind of curious about this because it was a huge debate among my peers in my community

Clarifications under the cut:

The poster is in a public space where it is typical for everyday people to post things. It is not someone's private property or possession. Think piece of paper taped to a telephone pole, not sign in a storefront or in someone's yard.

The poster is not protected by law; you are very unlikely to face legal consequences for vandalizing it. Caveat: some peers have argued that it risks being socially consequential because an organization or demographic that you are a part of may be judged as intolerant/oppressive/disruptive/otherwise unpleasant if people witness your actions, and thus advocated against vandalism for fear of damaging your public image.

The poster is not an expensive or personal piece of artwork; it is a mass produced print on letter paper.

You are vehemently opposed to the message displayed on the poster, but it is an opinion that people are free to have in your country.

The 4th option refers to things like intentionally putting your own poster over top of the bad poster or otherwise making the bad poster harder to view; some people argued that targeting the poster for removal is out of line, but posting your own messages is an innocent action that you are well within your right to do (in this context, posters regularly eclipse each other as new ones are posted over top of outdated ones due to limited space)

The poster is part of a campaign; it's not unique. There are many postings of it across the community.

This is all assuming that the offending poster is not old and would typically not be considered fair game for pruning for quite some time, and that it is being specifically targeted for removal because of its message (rather than petty vandalism or because it's obstructive or damaged). E.g., if a poster is advertising an event happening on April 20th, it's typical to prune it after that date but not before.

Of course the situation that prompted the real life debate did involve a specific offending message, but I'm not going to specify what it was for now because I think it'll skew the results as people will just end up voting based on whether they like or dislike that message, which isn't the point of this. For this poll we are assuming that it IS a message that you are very opposed to; you can substitute in your own opinion that you have strong feelings about.

Please reblog for sample size!

[telanadasvhenan]

thinking more about the psychological aspect of solavellan, and before I start, I'd like to stress that this is NOT CRITICAL of it, I actually think it's what makes part of the dynamic interesting. My word isn't the be all and end all, however, this is just my musings on the topic :] Also, REALLY long post! so, more under the read more lol

From Lavellan's point of view, I would personally struggle to see her trusting another lover or close one again for a long time, if ever again. I don't really think people ever talk about the real impact of the things she goes through, or what solas put her through, and the hurt as a result of it. The relationship is never defined between the two of them, it's always spoken about in vague undetermined words from their companions and poetic elvish between the two of them. Are they lovers? companions? partners? it's really up to the player. Leliana says that "you were close", Sera says Lavellan is "in it." Vhenan means home, heart, it's not a word said lightly imo and he tells you he loves her by their second kiss. It's never an official thing, so how secure can Lavellan truly feel?

This could go both ways when it comes to the break up. Crestwood, as a scene, is so interesting to me because the first portion seems like a man brought to his knees by weakness for the woman he loves. The two of them never cease to touch, fingers entwined, shoulders brushing, skin to skin. It's so reminiscent of how Lavellan matches his Hallelujah cadence. They're two parts of a song singing together. It's a gorgeous scene and it's understandable how so many are angry at how it ends because the whiplash between how it starts and what it leaves you with is severe. Imagine this from lavellan's shoes.

You're desperately in love with someone at odds with your people, who is wonderful and enticing and smart. Loving solas feels like loving the whole world, like being free and connected with the stars. But you don't know what this is. And, if you thought you did, how far can you presume? Is Lavellan always on edge, scared to love him deeper and richer than he loves her? or is she in a false sense of security, assuming his affection is forever hers. So when he not only breaks away your faith and trust in your history, plus potentially the vallaslin, she is clearly deeply upset. This isn't a minor fact that simply can be swept aside. The vallaslin is important. And Solas, even with the best intentions, has hurt her. He knows it and there's a reason why he apologises (bc he wimped out on the real truth). How much more does he know about her people that he has refused to tell her or kept from her by omission? Can you imagine the embarrassment, the utter humiliation of that secret? how many memories of them together where she replays his distaste for her people in her mind, knowing that he has access to knowledge that could change her perception of her past? Its ALOT. and thats even before the breakup.

Solas is not kind about the break up. It's rushed (impulsive to me) and doesn't do their connection justice. His composure cracks in places and it's very unlike him. It absolutely blindsides the player, so imagine being in Lavellan's place, AFTER THE VALLASLIN? personally, I wouldn't have been able to function. I half suspect that a sad, calm Lavellan is also in shock or disassociation. Because how else do you cope? The lack of communication between them alone is enough to raise my eyebrows. He promises answers. He confides that she saw through his mask and doesn't tell her what was real, and what was fake. He has given her a kernel truth whilst keeping her in the dark. Everything he told her could be a false, imaginary polite mask or it could be the truth. Where does it end? Where does he begin? Where does she stand?

I don't know if everyone has experienced what it's like to be ghosted or for a friend to simply disappear one day, but it changes you. I say this as someone who has both been avoidant as well as anxious, but you never recover. Someone disappearing like that makes you doubt any reassurance that people won't just evaporate from your life. So when Solas just disappears, the game's single conversation with Leliana feels a little lacking to me. I understand that they can't really dedicate a lot to it, I get that, so I'd like to fill it in. At first, it's search parties. Solas wouldn't just leave her like that. He promised her answers. He started another mural just before they left for corypheus. He didn't intend to just leave, surely.

Days, weeks and months pass. The question is worse than the truth. Is he dead? Did he use them? Was he being truthful when he spoke to her in those ruins, or another polite mask he could hide behind? Is it better if he's dead or better than he didn't deem her worthy enough to even say goodbye? We, as the players, obviously know this isn't true, but she doesn't know that. Does your lavellan assume the worst and be overcome with grief that her one love, her heart, her home, was nothing more than a lie of omission? or is there anger there at his betrayal of her trust once more? I seriously doubt it was easy to forget or dismiss. That kind of disappearance ruins your trust with people. Something. Anything would have been enough.

Again, this is all my opinion on how these emotions would play out and DEFINITELY NOT canon nor do they have to be! But I seriously struggle to see how Lavellan could even come to heal from these wounds within even a two year time skip. By the time of trespasser, almost everyone has left her side. She's almost entirely alone again, save Cullen and Josie (and leliana if she's not divine). And thats okay: they all have rich lives to return to. But that must just reaffirm to her that no one will stay. She is alone. How does she trust again?

And then there is Fen'harel. Lavellan's reaction to fen'harel has always lacked the fear I kind of hoped would be there? I mean this isn't just a minor deity, this IS THE antagonist of her entire faith. I'm assuming that she's lost hope in the gods, even though it's confirmed to her that they're real, but that message has been a part of her since childhood. So learning that he is the dreadwolf, again not from him, but from the fragments of his past must cut her deeply.

Her love was never who he said he was, she knows this, but who is the real man? She's never known him in a context where he can truly show her. Her love is fragmented between each identity he holds. Her trust that he is who he said he is fragments with it. The knowledge that not only has he been watching the inquisition, her, for years without a single hint that he lives or is okay must destroy her. Could you imagine how insignificant you must feel to him? And he essentially affirms to her that yes, in the greater scheme of things, his love and hers are inconsequential. They cannot matter to him because he cannot strive from his path. His indulgence was a mistake. And it's undeniably cruel. I love solas and I cannot argue that he was kind to Lavellan because he wasn't. To me, there is no way to see his actions as kind. Understandable, absolutely and definitely without malicious intent.

Lavellan learns that he loved her just as deeply, if not more. He loved her with all his heart and it did not matter. She changed him and it has only brought him more pain. He loves her too much to even allow her near him, to even give himself that weakness. They are apart from each other in an endless distance, only the two of them in the world. No one else.

Obviously, each Lavellan is different, and I've made a lot of assumptions, but I think it's worth considering. How do you love someone again after all of that? How much can you rebuild your faith after what you have learnt. Lavellan has loved a "god" (I know he's not a god, but for all intents and purposes, he has the power of a god and wears an evanuris crown.) and in turn, a god has loved her. And he left her with one last embrace that will leave its mark on her forever, then he leaves once more. Lavellan is alone.

Each love after is met with suspicion, distrust and comparison. Lavellan is entirely changed. How many pieces of her can be taken away until she is no longer herself? Each person wears a new mask she cannot determine. Where do they begin? Where can she find herself?

How lonely it must be to love someone like Solas and be at the other side of an endless distance.

[shiraishi--kanade]

"It's so embarrassing to admit I only create art for validation" did paleolithic humans not paint for other humans to see. Does a child making their first drawing to show their parents makes it any less valuable. Do gardens arranged for the visitors' eyes make the roses any less beautiful. Do love poems written for one person alone to hear make your heart ache less. You're fine