#or characters who have never or likely will never interact again* eg ->

[oftheriverseine]

“They’re so canon,” I say, about a ship that couldn’t be further from canon

[subrosasteath]

Me (lovingly) at all the people who fully believed Coiny went back to normal this episode

Like... Okay let's break this down. Break down beneath the cut as it's long! Spoilers for BFDIA 19.

The first shot of the episode is Coiny hiding his face at the bottom of the stairs. It's obviously supposed to set up how he's feeling this episode, although later he plays it off as a joke, saying he was "napping" and moving right into being over dramatic about missing Cake at Stake. If you believe him, this set up now becomes a joke.

If you don't this set up now becomes a way to show the audience how he's feeling inside, as he doesn't seem to want to outright say or show any animosity towards Pin, especially in front of the other contests. Pin even expresses confusion the first time they talk because the first thing Coiny does is compliment her - saying "nice find!" about the new host. The fact they make her look confused at all is a hint in and of itself that we should be doubting how Coiny's acting right now - yes, it also works for her character, as she obviously didn't expect him to want to positively interact with her, but the emphasis on the confusion should nudge the viewers to think "hey.. wait a minute..."

Another quick thing - Tennis ball says Coiny's been "isolating in the tower for a while now", not specifying how long, meaning it's possibly Coiny's been hiding out in there for much longer than "an afternoon nap" as he says.

Pin and Coiny don't interact again until the super market gag. When Coiny suggests the super market, and Pin accuses him of trying to trick her, Coiny says "would I ever lie to you?" to which Pin says "Yeah." Meaning It's possible Pin suspects Coiny of lying about how he feels. This is another hint to the audience - Pin is telling us that Coiny can be a liar and a trickster sometimes, and that we can't take everything he says at face value (Eg, How long was that afternoon nap, buddy?). This can also just be seen as a reference to the fact Coiny is a mischief maker, again, making it easy to write it off as him being his "normal self".

Pin goes in anyway - this could be seen as two things: Either she doesn't care if it's a trick or not (implying she doesn't view Coiny as a threat) or she knows it could be a trick, but seeing as he's not being antagonistic towards her so far, decides to trust him anyway (Coiny has never done Pin wrong before, why would he now?)

But Why? Why would Coiny offer Pin a huge giant super market?

I think It's possible he wanted to show her that he can still be helpful. They don't have to be allies, but he's still useful, and getting rid of him would be getting rid of a huge resource of support in the games. He wants Pin to see the value in him, so he offers her everything he can. Look, we don't have to be enemies! He's trying to convince her not to hurt him again, because look at everything he can give her! Isn't it worth it? ...Isn't it?

Or, it's possible he was setting her up, so that he could knock her down later. A taste of her own medicine, if you will. Coiny expected Pin to buy at least 2 things, both of which she'd need for her basket, only for him to swoop in and steal them from her after, putting them in his own basket and possibly winning the challenge. He wanted Pin to feel the betrayal. A metaphorical way of pushing her off the platform. A way to say See, this is how it felt, but now we're even and you understand me, so we can go back to normal, right?

I'm excited for what happens next episode - I wonder if we'll get a Coiny break down before or after Pin's inevitable elimination.

[luv-again]

The “well struck Amy” is rotating in my mind. How would banter go between Shadamy?

And what would be the source for the banter?

okay. i tried to answer this at an earlier time but my entire response deleted 🤩 BUT i decided to take some extra time to put some special care in (aka adding ✨️ pictures !! ✨️). anyway, you have no idea how much this rotates in mine !! idk if this is common knowledge, but team sonic racing is genuinely the reason i rediscovered shadamy and fell into the sonic fandom in the first place. i grew up on the sonic racing games, they hold such a special place in my heart 🥹🩷

so behold, as bee talks, at length, about tsr and how this can best be interpreted for further shadamy banter because she has no self-control or sense of brevity

under the cut <3

shadamy banter

shadow and amy’s connection pre-tsr is only a small handful of interactions based on acts of kindness, trust and respect. but then this game comes along and gives us something else : playful banter

amy is a lot harder to speak on, as her playful jibes extend to the majority of the cast (a true feast for your multishipping needs <3) but she gets the opportunity to unleash her more competitive side, which i feel is somewhere between hardcore and social in this game. with shadow, a lot of her lines aren't too harsh on him, but when they are,, she's actively wanting him to give it back. i'll do a few little dialogue dissections further down, since what and how she speaks to him is quite interesting

as for shadow, the difference is a lot clearer and HE is the reason why i'm on the shadamy train. what he says to amy is just— i'll get to that. his wit in tsr alone is nothing short of caustic. he rips into his opponents with little care - telling them to suck it up or dishing out backhanded comments. but amy ? oh, he puts a little more care into his words with her. he knows and means exactly what he says and he's even a little smug ! he can get into teasing with her without being downright mean (actually, in retrospect i that might be a lie. in my gameplay experience he's never been rude to her). this side of shadow was almost completely lost after sa2 and heroes, so for his character alone, these little moments where he can be a little silly again is so great (my blorbo, my scrunkly <3)

now who would i be if i didn't do full-on voice line dissections (it's the english/actor kid in me, i fear). of course my word is not gospel and i am just cherry-picking lines and looking at them through the shadamy lens, so feel free to take my analyses with a grain of salt if you want :)

if you want to listen to the audio yourselves, here's some voice clips provided by TrailBlazer1 on youtube : amy // shadow

amy lines

she's so egging him on. if it were anyone else, i'm sure they wouldn't get away with it, but amy ?? oh, she can prod away with him. she wants him to retaliate in this low-stakes situation. she's inviting him to the fun !! she's the cutest <3

look at the competitive edge coming in ! maybe she's trying to tell him she's more than capable of crushing him (which i'm sure he's aware of). it's both a warning and an encouragement to face her

ooohhh boy. her tone in this one is lower, level; challenging. this girl wants the "ultimate life form" to live up to the name, to back up what he preaches and— no way this wouldn't kick him into gear. that's such a splinter under the skin type of comment. if anyone can get through to shadow, it's amy (i am very much a broken record on that one lmao). think what you want about this statement but i'm also giving it the innuendo eyes 👀

shadow lines

oh come on, shadow full well knows amy isn’t afraid to get her hands dirty. shadow in any other case treats her like a lady better than most. this is a tease, a pisstake, if you will 🤭 point is, i don't think he's actually all that mad about her giving him a good one-two on the track

okay, in all fairness this seems a tad rude, but hear me out. shadow's obviously regarding amy's poor performance here. BUT. i like to think he holds amy in high regard — an equal, dare i say — and seeing her show anything that's sub-par probably disappoints him as much as it would as if it were him in her place. i want to interpret this one as pushing her to be the best she can be because he knows she's a worthy opponent / ally

when i said he was the reason i'm on the shadamy train, THIS was the comment that sold me. go ahead, tell me this isn't banter. tell me this isn't teasing. tell me this isn't a blatant innuendo. do WHAT, shadow ? want to explain that one to the class or— ? jokes aside, not only is he teasing her, he enjoys getting a reaction from her, else what does he mean by "i can do this all day" ? no, he wants to. what he'd do to get amy to react so animatedly . . . he wants to be the one eliciting these reactions from her.

. . . or something. like i said, salt grains, but that's the subtext i get

long and unwanted dribble aside, what would further shadamy banter look like ?

TL;DR : i think it best comes through where they can be competitive and not too serious about it. see reckless challenges, teasing jabs and subtle innuendos ;)

this "well-struck" comment from the crossworld previews really sits right with me overall, shipping goggles or not. shadow still shows he respects amy and treats her as an equally formidable opponent and that's something i really love about their dynamic : they never undermine or underestimate each other

all in all, i am so excited to see what crumbs crossworlds has for us !! i am itching with all the possibilities. it's so nice to see these two cut loose and interact, however briefly <3

thank you so much for these asks as always, they really fuel my chatty side hehehe >:)

[dirtyoldmanhole]

i'm going to be musing about one of gunter's most controversial lines here just because i've been idly thinking about it while drawing.

heads up for dead dove shit.

context: the JP version of Fates:Conquest had a region-locked minigame ("skinship" where you basically pet the character with your stylus lol) where you the player could interact more with a married gunter if you went that route - it also had several JP-only lines which you can read here.

generally they aren't that much different in tone than the EN ones though fun to read (especially since the minigame is lowkey sexual in nature; all the cast's lines were more strongly sexual not just his), but there was one line that uh. raised some eyebrows in the EN fandom when the fan-translators found it, shall we say.

in bold; (i've added some of the others for helpful context; i don't believe all of them are said one after the other, as it's whenever you choose to enter the minigame one is said).

By no means did I think these feelings would develop… Close your eyes for a moment. I apologize… I thought just touching you would be fine… When you touch me like that… Don’t tease me too much… or even someone like me won’t be able to endure it. (TL: He uses the verb “tawamureru” which means to play, joke, or flirt but I decided to liberally change it to tease) You’ve returned. We mustn’t… Oh no… I thought of you as a child but… I love you. Haha… is something the matter? Is it fine for me to touch you too? This side of you… don’t show it to anyone else. My wife… does cute things… I love you. I might have regarded you with special feelings ever since you were young. (A RANK:) Thank you very much for being kind to me to this extent. For as long as you wish it… I promise never to leave your side. (S RANK:) I thought I would always live alone. But you… lit a flame once more in my heart which I had locked away. This time I won’t let you go. I love you more than anyone else.

(... once again touched at how surprisingly romantic he can be)

anyway! oh yes, That Line.

tsk tsk.

given his position of power with essentially raising corrin, you can imagine how some people who already disliked the ship tended to leap on that line as "proof" of him sexually abusing corrin as a child to put it bluntly.

thoughts are still rotating, but roughly in order of:

instinctively (and the most boring position just to get it out of the way) on the first level i don't like how often this line is immediately whipped out to dissuade gunter/corrin shippers specifically but also shippers in general from engaging with taboo sexual concepts. especially when it's just as boringly... crudely blunt as "pedo". (slightly adjacent to gunter fans in general since there's sometimes an uneasy feeling that as long as you don't ship him that way with a 40-year age gap/parental figure/etc there's an exception carved out as "one of the good shippers" as long as you ship him with less of a power differential (eg gunter/shura. note i dig that ship, this is just an example.); though i think this sentiment has thankfully died down as of late versus the early years of fates fandom.)

god that is such a fustratingly common and boring way to engage with media. moving on.

on the second level down, i also instinctively dislike the feeling that it's whipped out to flatten the potential of gunter being romantically/sexually written as either binary concepts of "good" and "bad-touch", with the latter being often pointed out with an accusatory finger. personally i like reading bad-touch gunter for the lulz sometimes. also for the nuance given how sadly complex child abuse/grooming/pedophilia is in real life, and how it impacts the victim in so many ways beyond the obvious. and shocker - i like reading predatory-gunter sometimes even for cranking-the-hog-material! (predatory-gunter is kinda hot, man.) sometimes all of the above at the same time. i think all of these readings is just as applicable and interesting and needful as redemptive-gunter stories. (it's a very similar reason to why i fucking love possessed!gunter noncon what-if setups.)

and the above point doesn't even go into the nuance of can-you-even-have-redemption with the above if you want it. how would that work. how would that work in rev-verse vs conquest (different flavors of anankos possession going on in both. it's so much more complex than your usual grooming story if you frame it that way because his own agency is literally a question mark the entire time, which is endlessly fascinating to me with the horror potential as being a double victim in some ways. is this actually anankos' influence more than anything? how would everyone feel about that? especially anankos being corrin's bio-dad?)

going back to the quote itself there's even several other ways to interpret it that's not a crude (and imo annoying) distraction of moralizing.

like i always found it interesting that for a guy who deliberately self-censors 95% of the time, that he kinda blurts that out in a weak moment (which is already one interpretation, that it's semi accidental). why would he say that to corrin?

seriously, why would he?

i don't think he's trying to scare her off (like he does with some lines when he's a little insecure about his age).

what if he's genuinely fond of and loves corrin with a nuanced blend of fatherly love at the begining but yeah it did turn sexual towards the end (plus fatherly love) and either he doesn't want to exactly interrogate himself when that changed (because i personally think he holds a lot of understandable guilt over these feelings in general), or he isn't thinking about that at the moment and like. how the hell do you relay something like that without caveat-ing yourself to hell.

i think it's one of the few times here he's actually trying to be emotionally honest and vulnerable about how shits' complicated to him too. (and keep in mind he is not in general..... as emotionally aware as the tumblr crowd lol. he's an old man.)

there's a funny line in my head right now of "schrodinger's daddy dom" where society right now is a-okay with a daddy kink from the little's side but metatextually we've created a situation where it's impossible to create a three-dimensional daddy dom that is somehow free of sin and yet has honest to god sexual desires of his own especially in a messy situation like this.

especially in an evolving situation like this when it was very clear by the S-support he wasn't ever anticipating corrin to reciprocate his feelings, and he was dealing with his budding feelings by essentially just keeping it to himself. (canonically, he wanted to do the least-messy thing by not involving himself with corrin. it's only if corrin/you pursue him that he even gets this far.)

the extra funny thing:

all of this is dependent on the translation. culturally, through this whole game of telephone, the line itself may have some other JP specific connotations that we aren't aware of. christ what i wouldn't give to pay a fluent JP translator who didn't mind engaging with dead dove concepts to go through his support chain + these lines and give notes there.

....

and that's probably not even all of my thoughts but it's an essay as-is. :P

[hpowellsmith]

Spoilery ask and answer from @firesquid4 about Noblesse Oblige references in Royal Affairs and Honor Bound below:

They're brief and obscure - most people haven't seen them, or if they noticed they haven't mentioned it!

In Royal Affairs, the queen makes some small references about Pascha (I think it's if Rosario isn't married to the Creme MC).

In Royal Affairs and Honor Bound, Rys shows up very briefly under a couple of different names, when interacting with Hyacinthe in RA and with Lavinia and Amato in HB. If you look through Rys' passports in a scene in Noblesse Oblige, you'll recognise the names.

I've generally been cautious about referencing the events in Noblesse Oblige for a few reasons. The first is that originally it was designed to be totally separate so I avoided referencing it in Royal Affairs; also, I started NO partway through RA so that made it more tricky to add in. (If I was doing it again, I would include more mentions in RA).

The second is that it's always a bit of a balancing act when deciding these references: I'm wary of it becoming overly contrived, especially when characters are a long way from each other geographically.

The third is that the endings of NO are open enough that I don't really want to set certain things in stone. eg: would an MC and Pascha who ran away stay away from the royal family forever or would they return to them at some point over the years? Things like that are very personal to the MC and I'd rather allow players to make their own interpretations if possible.

The fourth is that as far as Rys and Pascha go, there are governmental/royal influences that have a lot of power and motivation to hide what happened with them. Danelak is less powerful but they have strong motives to keep under the radar.

All of that said! I wouldn't say "never", especially if I was writing something set in Jezhan.

And who knows, if I have the time and brain for it I might write some side things about the Noblesse Oblige characters post-game!

[chenoehi]

been thinking thoughts about KH3, MoM theories, etc a lot lately and this is my current brain rot:

All the Org XIII ancient keyblade wielders seem to treat Sora with either derision or kindness.

Eg. Marluxia and Luxord are friendly to Sora when they’re fading away. Marluxia thanks him and Luxord gives him a card to help him. Luxord was arguably never unkind to Sora prior but he was still antagonistic. Larxene isn’t kind per se but she shows a different side briefly and even smiles at him in the end, which for her actually seemed genuine.

Meanwhile you have Xigbar/Luxu and Demyx. Both of which are, frankly, bastards (affectionately! I love them your honor) to Sora in KH2, DDD, and KH3 even when they don’t need to be. Like, just thinking about Xigbar antagonizing the shit out of Sora in KH2/Radiant Garden and like Cardi B I’m wondering what was tf reason.

Based on what we know of him now, we can make educated guesses as to why he acts that way — his character file is illuminating and offers a lot of insight as to why he may feel differently about Sora, in addition to how nosey af we know Luxu is.

Demyx initially acts friendly but that’s really just him addressing Roxas imo which he makes pretty obvious by speaking directly to Roxas in KH2. And while he was objectively terrible to Roxas in terms of ditching him on missions in Days, he was never actually rude or unkind to him that I remember. For the most part he’s friendly with him both in game and in comics (that I know of). And he seemed alright with Xion.

Sora? Nah. He’s sarcastic as shit and while I love me some barbs, I tend to agree with the opinion that sarcasm is veiled contempt.

In fact contempt is the word I feel fits best for how both Xigbar and Demyx act/feel toward Sora.

But Riku? Demyx calls out to him in Remind and starts talking like they’re besties, he smiles at him softly — which is not at all weird or like his soft smile for Ienzo, no not similar in the slightest — and he gets up in his personal space, which, while not entirely unusual for Demyx, is in contrast to his interactions with Sora. It’s made a little creepy by the odd familiarity with which he’s treating someone he’s supposedly just met — and not even properly. (it’s actually crazy to me but rn I’m realizing the org members almost never introduce themselves to anyone lol Sora has no idea who these people are, like he literally doesn’t know what to call them so he just says “it’s org 13” bc names? what’s a name?)

And this single solitary interaction between Riku-Demyx for me is all just so strange because there’s few people on record in the games that Demyx is actually friendly toward. Xigbar, Ienzo, Roxas, maybe Xion, now Riku. That’s an ..interesting mix. I’m not counting Vexen because dude was finding every excuse to walk away from science boy in RG before getting sucked into the scheme via manipulation (and arguably his own ego, cause you know, he’s the only one who could pull it off bc no one would suspect him). He literally claims himself that he had no real friends outside of Xigbar and we know that association alone is 👀 At one point Axel speaks somewhat kindly of him, but then Demyx was saying how much quieter it was and how he’s glad the loudmouths were unalived in Castle Oblivion. Not very neighborly of him, but then again Axel and Zexion were friendly enough to bet on who’d die next only for Axel to axe (aheh) him so a lot of that backstabbing shit went on. So maybe he was cool with Axel but clearly not enough to be friends with him, even though he apparently wanted friends. (On another note, I still find it super odd Axel chose to defend Demyx to Roxas instead of piling on, we never even saw them interact. It’s weird.)

It’s unfortunate we don’t get to see Xigbar/Luxu interact with Riku on his own but, like with Demyx, I think he would be less bastardly than he is with Sora. Maybe it’s a keyblade master thing, maybe Riku’s just earned more respect, or maybe he just can’t stand that Sora is the ‘hero’ putting others (Riku et al) in danger constantly by needing to be rescued or protected — at least from Xigbar/Luxu’s perspective.

[gorogues]

1. What’s the most accurate/canon depiction of The Rogues relationship with each other for both pre-New 52 and post-New 52 comics? (eg what Mark is to Lisa and vice versa, what Digger is to Sam and vice versa, Len and Mick, etc until you’re done listing how everyone’s relationship with everyone else is like)

You can add others (Owen, Axel, Evan, etc) if you want, but this question is mostly aimed at the main Rogues.

2. I swear I saw a post from someone on this platform, I don’t know if it was you or somebody else, but they basically said something along the lines of: “You’d think that it would be out of character for Barry to leave his villains in Iron Heights, knowing how unethical the prison is and all. But the more I thought about it, the more I agreed that no, it isn’t actually that out of character for Barry.”

That thought has been stuck in my head ever since, and as someone who doesn’t really know Barry’s characterisation all that much (a crying shame, I know), I just wanted your opinion.

Is this statement true? I’d like to hear your reasoning for if you agree or disagree.

I didn’t know if I should keep these two questions on separate asks or not, so I just combined them both onto one. Hope you don’t mind all that much. I know it will probably take awhile to answer my questions, if you decide you want to that is. If you do then no pressure, take as much time as you want. If you decide you won’t answer, that’s also completely fine with me. Either way, hope your happy and safe wherever you are and have a good day/night.

Buckle up, because this is a long ride. To start, I'm leaving out stuff like when a Rogue was mind-controlled into doing something, or when they weren't in control of their actions due to being puppeted by Neron or Nekron (although the Black Lanterns were speaking from their victims' memories and thus may have had relevant things to say. It wasn't that person committing evil acts, however). That stuff wasn't voluntary, though of course the people harmed by them during those periods might not see it that way.

--Pre-Flashpoint--

Lisa and Len: Their relationship has varied depending on the era. In the Bronze Age they were often indifferent and sometimes hostile to each other (she didn't seem upset about Len's purported death), but occasionally got along well. After Crisis they frequently worked together and were generally friendly, but tensions built and things turned bad -- originally, Lisa was intended to have murdered her brother for his cold gun, but that was nixed in favour of her just stealing it. By the Johns era she was dead and Len was overtly mourning her, and we'd see in retconned flashbacks that they were very close due to their shared traumatic upbringing. One flashback showed her saying she'd become a criminal to be like her big brother, although Bronze Age comics were quite clear that she did it to avenge her dead boyfriend.

Lisa and Mark: They didn't interact much (just a few issues), but she poisoned him in one story to get him to do her bidding. It doesn't seem like they were close.

Lisa and Digger: Again, they didn't interact much, but she poisoned him in one story to get him to do her bidding. After she died, the tabloids claimed that she and Digger had a secret love-child -- which wasn't true -- but maybe they had more interactions that we never saw. Or maybe the tabloids just assumed Lisa was the mother because she was the only female Rogue in those days.

Lisa and Sam: They never interacted with each other back in the day, but in a later retcon Lisa wanted to be introduced to him because he was "cute".

Lisa and Roscoe: They were dating, and were very close. Eventually death separated them several times and they didn't get back together for unknown reasons.

Lisa and Mick: She and Len once tried to kill Mick in the Bronze Age, but he doesn't seem to have held a grudge; the three of them got along fine after Crisis, and they worked and socialized together. In the Johns era we saw an early flashback of Mick being exceptionally rude to Len about Lisa, so maybe their early relations weren't always great.

Lisa and Hartley: They only appeared in a few stories together, and in one (Blue Devil #30) they didn't interact much but seemed friendly. In DC Retro-Active: The Flash: 1980s they got along quite well, and seemed to get along when the heroes were rescuing Wally from the Turtle Man. Overall they were civil and friendly with each other.

Lisa and James: They co-existed well enough at Len's party, but she later poisoned him to get him to do her bidding. And the relationship between James and the Rogues (including her) was rather sour in Blue Devil. They seemed terse with each other at best.

Len and Mark: Len's been kind and supportive to Mark over the years, especially since taking over the team's dad role, but interestingly he didn't list Mark amongst the Rogues he liked. (There was also a panel in which Len listed Mark amongst three Rogues who were his "real family", but that was right after saying he was glad Lisa was dead -- it was from Johns' first arc and he quickly retconned his own work). Mark seems to like him, and trusted him enough to confess to Clyde's killing. The two had a good relationship of mutual support in Rogues' Revenge, which was probably the best they've ever had and the closest they've been.

Len and Digger: In Len's spotlight issue, he claimed Digger was one of the few Rogues he liked. They did get along well, including working together outside of the Rogues/Central City, though Len didn't treat Digger very kindly near the end of his life. Len was also cool-to-hostile to him after he returned from the dead and wanted to rejoin the Rogues, and actually beat the shit out of him (admittedly Digger had just done something stupid). That said, Len wistfully said "what are friends for, eh, Digger?" when Digger was dead and told Owen that Digger "was one of…my friends", so it seems Len always did retain a soft spot for him even despite his growling. He was probably taking a tough-love approach, even if he was a jerk about it.

Len and Sam: They got along fine before Sam was killed, and even liked each other enough to work together outside of the Rogues/Central City. They didn't seem close or anything, but Sam was one of the few Rogues Len said he liked in his spotlight issue.

Len and Roscoe: They seemed to get along okay or were mostly indifferent to each other before Roscoe died, but after his death Len made it very clear he didn't miss him (although interestingly, Len seemed sad at his funeral). This may be because Roscoe had recently tried to kill the other Rogues if they messed with his plan after he'd died (which they did), but the fact that Roscoe dated Len's sister surely didn't help. By the Johns era the two of them hated each other, and Len opted not to treat Roscoe like he did most Rogues -- leaving him to languish in prison and not helping him when he clearly needed it. Things eventually devolved to Roscoe threatening to mind-control the other Rogues to make them fall in line, and Len killed him. Afterwards, we learned that at some point in earlier history Len had turned the other Rogues against Roscoe to become the group's leader, but unfortunately we don't know the details of what happened.

Len and Mick: A very complicated relationship, which goes from friendly to openly hostile and back again…sometimes within the same issue. Mick said he got along with all the Rogues but Len, which is basically true, and Len was a major reason Mick spent long periods estranged from the Rogues. In the Bronze Age, Len (and Lisa) tried to kill Mick, and previously Len had tried to traumatize Mick by manipulating him into killing an innocent person. Len's been openly insulting to Mick at times, who'd then retaliate in kind, but Len has also been supportive and helpful with Mick's many psychological issues. Sometimes Len watched out for his well-being in ways nobody else did. The end result is a complicated and not very healthy frenemy relationship between them, though they generally work well together with their complementary tech.

Len and Hartley: They seemed to get along okay until Hartley reformed (though there was a flashback to Len being callous to him in the early days), but Len's been low-key hostile to him ever since. There must be an underlying reason for it, because Len didn't really treat other reformed Rogues that way (even if he wasn't always thrilled with them) and I think he just doesn't like Hartley.

Len and James: In Len's spotlight issue, he said James was one of the few Rogues he liked. Which is interesting because I've never seen a particular bond between the two of them, but Len did accept James back quite readily after a long period of reform (which even involved fighting against the Rogues as part of the FBI). James doesn't seem to have much fondness for Len though, and has cheerfully tricked and pranked him a few times.

Mark and Sam: They seem to have gotten along okay, though they didn't interact much.

Mark and Digger: They were generally quite friendly to each other, though Mark didn't have the nicest things to say about Digger after he'd died. The Rogues can be like that with each other, however, so it might not really mean anything.

Mark and Mick: They didn't interact much but got along well when they were on the same side. However, the two of them have frequently been on opposing sides (or at least one was reformed and one wasn't), so there may have been ongoing tension between them from the time of Mick's first stint with reform. But things were fine between them when Mick rejoined the Rogues after that, so it seems like there was no lingering grudge.

Mark and Roscoe: They didn't interact much but seemed to get along okay. In Blackest Night, Roscoe's zombie (which wasn't actually him, but had his memories) spoke flatteringly to Mark and reminded him that at some unspecified point they'd once planned to take out Len and run the Rogues together, which was a bombshell never addressed again. They probably would have turned on each other if the plan ever came to fruition, but there was either mutual respect or some intended backstabbing going on there.

Mark and Hartley: They seemed to get along reasonably well back in the day, though many Rogues were frosty to Hartley after he reformed and Mark was probably no different. Hartley didn't seem as though he had fond feelings for Mark after reforming, as he was pretty apathetic when he saw Mark distressed in Iron Heights and potentially exposed to a lethal virus, and Hartley was as cold to the Rogues when he 'returned' undercover as they were to him. It's not clear whether Hartley knew Mark was part of the Rogues who'd killed his parents and framed him for it, or if he'd even blame Mark for that since Mark wasn't directly involved in the scheme. But it's fair to say that they didn't get along well from at least the Johns era until Flashpoint.

Mark and James: They got along well before Crisis, and socialized in a friendly manner up into the Waid era. But things had probably changed by the time James joined the FBI, in which he was working to take down the Rogues (including Mark). James rejoined the Rogues in the aftermath of Rogue War and interacted civilly with them, though he was openly contemptuous of their behaviour in Countdown and we later learned that he was there undercover. I think it's likely James didn't have particularly warm feelings for Mark or most of the others, and perhaps there was just too much bad blood before James was killed and the universe soon rebooted.

Roscoe and Mick: They didn't interact much but seemed to get along okay; they looked cheery when chatting during a flashback in Mick's spotlight issue. However, Mick's narration stated that he got along with Roscoe even though Roscoe talked over everyone's heads, so it seems probable that Mick tolerated him more than liked him.

Roscoe and Digger: They got along well before Crisis, but haven't been shown interacting since. Both have done personality 180s since Crisis, and I can't imagine either of their newer personalities would like or even tolerate the other, so they probably wouldn't get along and likely avoided each other. Roscoe did attend Digger's funeral, though.

Roscoe and James: In the Silver/Bronze Ages they never actually interacted with each other on panel, though they must have met behind the scenes because James was at Roscoe's funeral and complained about his sense of humour. (We've also seen a flashback of them together from a comic published later.) And James spoke dismissively of him after his death, calling him the least of the Rogues. It's difficult to say what their relationship was, though James clearly wasn't impressed by him, and probably wasn't thrilled with Roscoe when his mind-whammy was undone…and Roscoe died soon after, so they never spoke again before the universe was rebooted. It doesn't seem to have been a good relationship, but we've seen so little of their interactions.

Roscoe and Hartley: They seemed to get along okay before Roscoe died, but things took an ugly turn after he'd returned and Hartley had reformed. Roscoe tried to goad Hartley into killing a presidential candidate and then tried to frame him for it, and did so by being a homophobic asshole to him and Hartley understandably thought he was a monster. My opinion, based on what Roscoe said in the issue, is that he was trying to seriously rile up Hartley to accomplish his plan and might not have actually believed the stuff he said…but it doesn't change that he said and did it, and was in fact acting like a monster. What's interesting is that later (in the Johns era) Hartley was lamenting having no living family left, and Roscoe told him "You still have family. Me for one." Which was probably cold comfort and Hartley wouldn't agree, but it's still very interesting that Roscoe would say that.

Roscoe and Sam: Roscoe was generally quite friendly to Sam, but Sam tricked him into losing a million dollar bet and left him to die in a booby-trapped prison, so Roscoe resentfully helped Barry ruin Sam's plan. Roscoe secretly swore to get payback, but never seems to have acted on it and Sam screwed him over again by later stealing his loot. For whatever reason, Sam was the Rogue that Roscoe chose to inform of his death, though he also had a scheme to blow up the Rogues if they messed with his revenge plan (which they did). They had a weird relationship, but I think Roscoe liked Sam more than the other Rogues.

Sam and Digger: They were generally great pals, despite some hiccups here and there -- Digger was a dick to Sam in Gotham and then tried to hypnotize him into doing his dirty work. Sam was pissed enough that he tried to get a cop to shoot Digger dead. But otherwise they got along quite well and worked/socialized together even outside the Rogues and Central City, and after Sam died his costume and tech ended up in Digger's hands and he used them to commit incognito crimes. The other Rogues were furious (not knowing who was doing it), but Digger thought Sam would appreciate the joke, and he was probably right.

Sam and James: They mostly got along okay, although Sam robbed James of his loot once, and all the Rogues of the late Bronze Age tended to snarl at each other for some reason.

Sam and Hartley: Their relationship didn't seem particularly notable until Hartley was hospitalized for a nervous breakdown, and then Sam and Digger went in disguise to free him. Both were somewhat dismissive of Hartley, claiming he wasn't a great pal or anything, but the Rogues sometimes do that to downplay their feelings (perhaps to seem like tough guys?) and they went to a fair bit of effort to spring someone they didn't really care about. They obviously cared.

Sam and Mick: They seemed to get along well before Mick had a traumatic experience and left the Rogues. We don't know what Sam thought about Mick's reform.

Digger and James: They generally got along in a friendly jocular manner before Crisis, though one time Digger disapproved of James trying to unmask an apparently-deceased Flash and kicked him for it…they ended up squabbling and yelling at each other. After Crisis, Digger turned his back and suggested that the Rogues should let James fall to his death. Later, after Digger had been away from the Rogues a long time and James had reformed, Digger repeatedly begged him for money and James completely cut him off, calling him a "mooch". So perhaps relations soured after their time apart.

Digger and Hartley: As noted above, Digger and Sam went to some trouble to free Hartley from lock-up. That aside, they didn't have a good relationship; Digger criticized Hartley's battle tactics and Hartley thought poorly of Digger's intelligence even before Crisis, and we know that Digger made a lot of shitty comments/jokes about Hartley's sexuality. And Digger was openly hostile when he saw Hartley at Linda Park's funeral. Post-Crisis' Digger's personality is obnoxious enough that he'd definitely get on Hartley's nerves (and vice versa, to be honest), so it's no surprise they don't get along.

Digger and Mick: They seemed to get along well, though as noted above Mick could get along with almost everyone. Digger may not have appreciated Mick's stints of reform, but he still accepted the situation when Mick sometimes returned to hang out with the guys, so maybe it didn't even bother him. And Mick was willing to lend him money (likely knowing he wouldn't get it back) after James cut him off, with a bit of gentle chiding about getting his shit together. They appear to have had a good relationship.

James and Hartley: Best friends, at least when they're being written properly; we'll leave Countdown out of this because we all know how OOC it was. James was friendly with Hartley when they were both Rogues (it's not known whether he knew Hartley's sexuality then, but he might have), and he accepted Hartley once Hart had reformed and become a pariah to the Rogues and was openly gay. Later Hartley was accused of murdering his parents and James refused to help him when he was on the lam, but it's very possible that was due to the general mind control James was under, so it's debatable whether that was really his fault. Ditto for James basically press-ganging Hartley and Mick into the FBI. Either way, all those shenanigans aside, they're very good friends who like, accept, and trust each other. James also left his will and data for taking down the Rogues to Hartley, and told him that the information was hidden from everyone else by invisible ink.

James and Mick: They've never seemed particularly close, but later in life developed the commonality of reform or semi-reform and both are quite easy to get along with. As stated above, James drafted Mick and Hartley into the FBI and that may not have been their choice, but James was supportive of Mick's mental health and ensured he received plenty of psychological support…which was definitely necessary. He also encouraged Mick to train and remain physically healthy, so overall he was very considerate of his needs and well-being. They weren't close after the two of them went back to the Rogues, but that may have been because Mick sincerely wanted to return and James was (apparently) undercover. Overall they had a friendly and supportive relationship, despite some occasional bumps.

Hartley and Mick: Their relationship before Crisis wasn't particularly notable one way or another, but in the Johns era they were firm friends and allies during a time when most of the Rogues neither liked nor accepted Hartley. Hartley was a fugitive at the time, and Mick was the only person willing to help him with no questions asked. They later worked well together at the FBI, but weren't close when Mick rejoined the Rogues.

--Post-Flashpoint--

Digger and all other Rogues: Only Digger and Len have had significant interactions, and that story inexplicably depicted them as not knowing each other. However, a later issue showed Len offering Digger a place with the Rogues via text message.

Roscoe and all other Rogues: He's only interacted with them in passing, although Len tried to kill him again so it seems their relationship hasn't improved :>

James and all the other Rogues: He's only interacted with them in passing (aside from Axel), and he mind-controlled them into doing his bidding so there's probably no love between them and him. A past version of him also worked on the Legion of Zoom with the Snarts, but they were cool towards each other.

Lisa and Len: For a while she blamed and hated him for giving the Rogues metahuman powers, which left her seriously injured/ill and her boyfriend trapped in the Mirrorverse, but those problems are over now and the two are fairly close despite occasional differences. She opposed his regime during "Year of the Villain", but still cared about his safety and his conscience, and she broke him out of custody after his defeat. For his part, Len made a lot of mistakes during the New 52 and was selfish at times, but he went to great lengths to keep her safe and healthy during her illness.

Lisa and Sam: They almost got married and were very close through many struggles, but eventually broke up and she's been cool towards him since. He reacted by becoming a sullen hedonist, and their breakup is probably a big part of why he's not been with the Rogues for a while.

Lisa and Marco: He admired and respected her and wanted her to be team leader before seemingly falling back towards Len's leadership. They treat each other with mutual respect, though he put her life at risk in Rogues Rebellion when he'd had enough of the ongoing shenanigans. He later returned to do the right thing and help her and the others.

Lisa and Mick: He's frequently been surly towards her as he is with everyone else, but clearly cares about her and treats her with about as much respect as he has for anyone.

Lisa and Hartley: The first time they interacted on panel, Lisa got revenge on him for being a "traitor", but later that was forgotten and he went to a fair bit of trouble to keep her safe from danger. His narration stated that she'd supported him and helped him come out to the other Rogues before the New 52 began, indicating that they'd been good friends, so I don't know if they ever reconciled the 'traitor' thing or he simply let it go.

Len and Sam: They had/have something of an uneasy relationship because Sam was dating Len's sister, and Len was responsible for tearing them apart and nearly getting her killed…and after getting through all that, Lisa and Sam broke up and left Len somewhat in the middle. But Len has much better relations with Sam than he had with Roscoe before Flashpoint, and they mostly treat each other with friendliness and respect. But there's obviously anger and tension at times too.

Len and Mick: An extremely hostile relationship throughout most of the New 52, though Mick calmed down somewhat in Rebirth. All the meta Rogues were angry at Len, but Mick took it to another level of resentment and bitter violence. That's mostly behind them now, but Mick's still somewhat surly and it's probably a legacy of what happened to him. Len, on the other hand, didn't really take much responsibility for what he did to the other Rogues who weren't Lisa, and it's not surprising his relationship with Mick wasn't good. However, when the Sage Force was sorting out Mick's trauma it (or his mind) conjured up 'Len' to talk sense to him and calm him down, and by "Year of the Villain" Mick proclaimed that Len was his best friend, so obviously the situation significantly improved over time.

Len and Marco: They formerly had a terse relationship due to resentment about metahuman powers, though they seem to be on good terms now that it's behind them. Marco can be moody though, so that's probably a challenge at times.

Len and Hartley: They haven't interacted much, though Hartley saved Len from dying in an accident and Len seemed happy to see him -- but he also wanted Hartley to let him go, so maybe he was just buttering him up. Hartley was working as a hero at the time, so he wouldn't budge even for old times' sake.

Marco and Sam: Their relations have ranged from friendly to antagonistic during times of stress, but overall they treat each other with respect and have a brotherly relationship. They seem like actual friends.

Marco and Mick: Mick's intense anger issues and Marco's brooding moodiness was kind of a match made in hell and probably why they've never been close. They seem to get along okay now that Mick has mellowed a lot.

Marco and Hartley: They haven't interacted much.

Mick and Hartley: They haven't interacted much.

Mick and Sam: Mick was surly to everyone for most of the New 52, though his relationship with Sam in Rogues Rebellion was surprisingly positive and friendly. Sam tried to talk sense and the brotherhood of Rogues to Mick, who mostly dismissed him but still sacrificed himself to save the others, showing that Sam had gotten through to him. Mick later turned up alive, and was afterwards restored psychologically and physically by the Sage Force, which calmed him down significantly. But Sam turned into a jerk after he broke up with Lisa, and Mick yelled at him for it and finally got through to him somewhat, indicating that both of them listen to the other and are the better for it. Their relationship has never been warm and fuzzy, but it seems like there's enough respect to get the other guy to be better, and for both to accept advice.

Sam and Hartley: They were friendly during their interactions, which makes sense because Hartley was helping to save Lisa.

Question 2: I swear I saw a post from someone on this platform, I don’t know if it was you or somebody else, but they basically said something along the lines of: “You’d think that it would be out of character for Barry to leave his villains in Iron Heights, knowing how unethical the prison is and all. But the more I thought about it, the more I agreed that no, it isn’t actually that out of character for Barry.” That thought has been stuck in my head ever since, and as someone who doesn’t really know Barry’s characterisation all that much (a crying shame, I know), I just wanted your opinion. Is this statement true? I’d like to hear your reasoning for if you agree or disagree.

This is a bit of a tricky question, because Iron Heights was introduced and got most of its panel time when Barry was dead, so he wasn't around for the 'heyday' of its development when Ashley Zolomon and Wally West grappled with what was going on inside. We don't know what his position would have been before Flashpoint, though I don't think he would have liked it. Classic Barry was very much a law and order type (a cop, obviously), but that was in the days when prison brutality generally wasn't addressed in comics. We do know he was horrified by what was done to Clive Yorkin, which was an experimental and arguably cruel treatment of a prisoner.

But there's no question that Iron Heights has been around since Barry came back, that there's been abuse shown on-panel since then, and he hasn't really done anything about it. He was shocked by what happened to Axel in solitary and seemed like he was going to rescue him, but that just kind of petered out and it was Kristen Kramer and David Singh who did the work to stop Wolfe. I do think that's out of character….to a point. There's no question he's a cop and someone who follows the rules more often than, say, Wally. But that can also work both ways, and overt cruelty and harsh punishment isn't following the rule of law either. I think Barry wouldn't lose sleep if Wolfe took away prisoners' material comforts and privileges, even if we think that's wrong, but IMO he should find a beaten prisoner or a prisoner with his prosthetic arm removed unacceptable and take action. He's a person who has shown mercy towards reformed and even completely unrepentant villains before, and he's not perfect, but nobody is.

TL;DR I don't agree with how Barry's Iron Heights plot was handled.

[imogen-eye]

( hello ! Thank you all so so so much for interacting with this. I cannot put into words how grateful and happy I am)

(I have decided to make everything easier to manage and understand for people who missed previous things. While most plot related things under the tag #//conversation.

I have sorted the most important details under #[ the performance ] -> so I advice going through this tag if you want to understand what is happening without going through individual invites and such. )

( now! Some quick answers!

will this blog be over once the performances are ? : absolutely not. I could never . No matter the ending, i will continue the blog - this is not an admission of a happy ending however!

what's happening next?: the prologue will take place today and probably early morning tomorrow (for me) because my sleep schedule is horrible. Then there will be an epilogue , presumably on Sunday (however it is Easter so I'm not sure how free I will be )

Can I / my character be involved in the performance?: The prologue (as its name suggests) has happened in the past -> so it is unlikely for there to be any characters intertwined with it. However! The epilogue will be having audience participation! You will be involved : ). But! That is only in the performance. Outside of those, (eg asks, reblogs, comments) go crazy. I try to reply to everything. If I forget, tag me, send it again- I really don't mind. I love every interaction.

Is there a time limit to interacting?: Nope! I understand most of my mutuals are not on the same time zone as me, and while I try to post around a time most of my mutuals are online, I understand it will not line up perfectly, so feel free to interact whenever, even if the prologues out, feel free to interact with the main performance !

About the director, sending asks and what they say: The director is not meant to be understandable. From my perspective, asks sent by them are over the internet or some form of non face to face conversation. Presume you cannot see or physically touch them unless it is stated they are physically there (it is likely they will not be until the epilogue) . Anything characters say is not to be listened -> if for example the director says 'stop asking about the actresses' or 'please don't use such vulgar language' , it is not something you have to listen to. I put things like that in the tags or comments.

Finally! I want to especially thank @helpimanidiot for translating all the morse and code ! I am sorry I made a few mistakes with it. I will try be better with that

thank you all so so so so much. Genuinely. Feel free to ask me or the characters anything. you are all lovely )

[zsakuva]

How do you come up with so many intricate plots and characters? They seem so… human? I’m very surprised you don’t read much! I guess what I’m asking is, what’s your creative process? Do you take inspiration from aspects of yourself, or is it more of a form of escapism? When you write your plots, do you imagine yourself as the character, the audience, or both? 

Another thing that truly amazes me and makes your channel stand out a lot is the way you give the listener a voice. It feels like each listener is so different and unique, and *actually* interacts with the character. It also feels like you’re never spoon feeding us information? All the questions do get answered, but it’s different style imo. Usually, in most ASMR RPs I’ve heard, the speaker will repeat what you said verbatim, (eg. “You think XXX?”, or “You want me to XXX?”), and the frequency at which these types of phrases are used makes it *seem* like a RP. Of course, it’s a challenging medium - the audience needs to know whats going on somehow, but you manage to achieve the same in a much more subtle way. It makes me wonder how long you spend planning out your content haha.

Final question, do you prefer to type or handwrite your plans, scripts, etc? I’ve always preferred planning on paper, even though it’s a bit impractical haha. Also, would you mind showing us your handwriting? I think it says a lot about a person! There’s the stereotype that people usually have a certain handwriting that corresponds to their major/occupation, and if I remember correctly, I think you studied film? I’m just curious hehe. No pressure, of course!

Sorry for sending you an essay, I hope you have a restful and comfy Friday! 

Thank you!

Honestly, I don't know how I do it myself considering my memory is absolute shit! Though I don't read much, I learn about characters through other mediums such as television shows and movies. I'll try and break this down for ease of reading!

~My Creative Process~

When making a character or series, it all depends on where my initial inspiration began. For example, with Niall, I wanted to create an M4M series exploring a character who carries trauma of being forcibly outed, betrayed by someone he confided in, and how those events affected him through his adult life. The core of Niall's story was confronting fears that manifested due to the Listener's actions in school, and finding that there was a way to heal, albeit slowly, and a hope to love despite external animosity. Niall exists because I wanted to tell a particular story.

With Zaros, he first came about because of The Noble Trials plot. I knew that he would be different from other characters, so I'm using this series as a means of testing my skill with a new editing style, story format, and new world setting. Although it's more work, I have the most fun with The Noble Trials and making its lore (though I'm always a sucker for that)!

I go into creating characters with the belief that they are all extremely flawed. Whether that be by nature or nurture, there will inevitably be some slew of events in their pasts that shaped the way they act in the current timeline. This also extends to the Listeners so they aren't rigid, boring, and an empty shell. Characters can clash, but they can also change with and for each other. A good example is Isaac's story. He was scarred by his past, and was willing to confine Pickle in the house if it meant not losing someone he cared for again. Pickle was also scarred with abandonment and instability, wondering if they would ever find a home. Isaac gave them a place to belong, and Pickle gave him consolation and courage to face the unknown.

When I write, the character's actions must reflect the backstory in which they were crafted, so I always need to dive into their heads.

~Listener Dialogue~

This requires much more thought to make interactions seem authentic, but there's a fine line between repeating words verbatim and not alluding to any sort of context. I dislike repeating the Listener's words so I try to indirectly insinuate what they were saying whenever possible. If I can do so with SFX alone, that's a bonus! But when scenes contain heavy dialogue, it can be difficult to get the message across without being heavy-handed with repetition, unless that's the purpose of a specific moment.

~Handwriting vs Typing~

I always handwrite my outlines! On some occasions, I can start and finish a script without the help of one, but my workflow tends to include writing an outline of some kind, and it has to be done on paper! I feel like the ideas manifest quicker that way.

However, I always type my scripts. It's much easier to edit, share with other voice actors, and there's a level of professionalism in formatting that motivates me to write more!

Here is an example of my writing. This screenshot was part of a Twitch stream!

[loonyoz]

Part of what I love about Wyll is how he feels like a character you have to keep pulling back the layers on. Like one of those 3d puzzles you think you’ve got figured out and then you realize you’re right back where you started. Which I guess is just the long way of saying he's a well made character. I’m gonna do a play by play of my first interactions with him to illustrate my point:

When you first meet him you’re like omfg who is this boy with the dramatic theater kid entrance lmao. Wyll, you are so dorky (affectionate).

You next see him helping tiefling kids learn to fight. Not in a harsh militaristic way, more in a gentle and even playful way (eg. When you play as Wyll you can tell them dramatic stories about how Wyll slayed a dragon.) You're like oh yeah this guy has the whole hero thing going on. Very disney prince over here.

Then you talk to him and he talks about an evil devil that must be killed with such adamance and determination. You're like oh wow he can get pretty intense. He's so determined about this, he's willing to put aside the pressing threat of ceremorphosis. This kind of unmoving moral stance, this very good and serious abt it thing, it gives off paladin vibes imo

Ok so thats two sides of him, dramatic storybook hero and strong willed paladin.

Then you get to the confrontation with Karlach, and pretty quickly realize this flaming hot cheeto (idk why I called her that ok, but im leaving it in) of a tiefling shouldn't be killed. Wyll takes some convincing and you're like Wyll you dumbass you're seeing what Im seeing right? The tadpole is showing us she's innocent, why dont you believe that?

Then its only till later you realize he had so many good reasons to hesitate:

He has been doing this job for 7 years now, to break off from the script he's used to, is a risky thing. If he cant trust his 7 years of experience he's left floundering. If he cant trust that he's been only killing evil, then he's broken his moral code too. (If I were in his shoes id for sure be having an existential crisis)

He's learned the hard way to distrust devils, what if Karlach is tricking everyone into thinking she's innocent?

Or maybe he's scared of what it will mean if he doesn't kill her, he'll be breaking his pact, and the consequences for that will most definitely be harsh. I don't think that's selfish or cruel of him to consider killing her out of fear of what will happen if he doesn't. I think Wyll would be unfair to himself for those thoughts tho. Like the whole airplane oxygen mask analogy is a good way to talk about it. Wyll would go to every passenger on the plane and make sure their masks are on, then collapse from oxygen deprivation because he never put his own on. Perhaps an extreme and unrealistic scenario, but illustrative of his admirable but harmful self sacrifice.

In summary, his hesitation and need to be convinced shows a lovely amalgamation of his character, his life experience, and his values, and how it results in a moment of conflict and indecision.

But it takes very little to convince him not to kill karlach. You tell him twice that Karlach is no threat/innocent, and he stops panicking, and pulls himself together with the kind of emotional control/repression that makes you go "uh oh babes has unresolved trauma and needs therapy"

His ability to listen to others when people tell him he's wrong shows that he has a flexibility and emotional maturity that is unlike the stereotypical paladin. Once he realizes Karlach is innocent, the rules he follows no longer matter to him.

He resigns himself to his fate because for him there is no other way for it to be. This shows that no matter how theatrical his heroics appear, it is not merely a guise. You can trust that he truly cares for people because he is willing to sacrifice himself for the sake of a stranger.

Then Mizora shows up and his response is to argue against her, to say, "you told me no innocents". Which shows once again where his priorities lie, now that injustice has been pointed out to him he will use every ounce of his will to fight it. It also shows that human weakness again too. His fallibility (I mean who can blame him devils are great manipulators) and his worried questioning of the rules that he has followed for so long.

And then when you put all the drama aside, and listen to his lighthearted dialogue you remember/realize he’s also very goofy and the kind of chill guy you’d want to invite to every friend hangout.

asfgjkl; anyway I have way too many thoughts and feelings abt this guy. If you read all this damn. But lmk what you guys think about my reflections!

Also shoutout to all of the fic writers and random fan posts ive read that have inspired some of these thoughts

[sayakxmi]

[Magi reread] Night 87: The Royal Prince and the Imperial Prince

Love them all training here <3

pfffff this is so cute

My beautiful daughter Kougyoku and her stupid brother, who will fuck up their entire family, ruin her life, and then leave her to clean his mess.

Love how they're all ???

GET HIS ASS, SINBAD (not literally)

Can't believe I'm saying it

Once again, Hakuryuu, he is NOT your friend nor your ally. He owes you nothing. And he is right to call out your naivety. It doesn't matter if you're prepared to risk your ife, because, you goddamn egocentric moron, you're risking the lives of your countrymen, too. You're thinking only about your stupid vengeance quest and accomplishing it. You never. fucking. consider. the consequences.

His entire reaction and rush prove it, really, how Hakuryuu doesn't actually understand what he's doing. He think he does, definitely, but he doesn't, actually. No shit Sinbad doesn't accept. Sure, it's an opportunity, but given the thoughtless way Hakuryuu acts, at this point he'd be more trouble than he's worth as an ally.

Back to my overanalyzing glasses, I don't think Alibaba looks particularly mad here, I actually think he's nervously smiling, or at least attempting to.

Aladdin is smiling, too, and I like how Morgiana is judging. She has to keep her softies safe.

Yeah, to be fair, Ugo did kinda die. Can't blame him for that.

Also, ah, yes, that scene. Later, later, much later we'll get some random extra, that Aladdin and Kougyoku supposedly became friends after that, even Kougyoku saying something like him being the first person to accept her feelings outside of Kou, I think... Yeah, no, no they didn't. That's a retcon. Alibaba is her first friend outside of Kou, and she refers to him as such (eg. Second Balbadd Arc, before Sinbad takes over). Even aside from that, in general we see how Kougyoku acts with people (tbh Alibaba only...) she consdiers her friends, and even BEFORE they are officially friends, searching him to spar etc. They only hung out and Alibaba taught her how to make flower crowns, and it was enough for her. Plus she doesn't acknowledge Aladdin at all in Magnostadt Arc, but she flies up to Alibaba immediately and introduces him as her best friend. On the opposite side, Aladdin also doesn't see her as his friend. Aladdin is friendly. He would have approached her himself.

It's a pretty funny reaction, ngl.

Also, he is rather chill about Kougyoku in spite of all that had happened. Like, obviously, he's not interacting with her etc, but he doesn't, idk, glare at her or anything, either. On the contrary, he finds the shenanigans he's just witnessed rather funny.

And then there's Hakuryuu watching him closely. Insert he wants this cookie so bad, lmao.

All of it deserves to be here. And there will be more.

Hakuryuu is... extremely biased. Even aside from the fact that Sinbad's just told him that Alibaba is similar to him, Hakuryuu immediately expects Alibaba to feel the same way he does. He hates Gyokuen and his cousins for what had happened, and since he knows what Kou'd done, he expects Alibaba to hate him for it. It doesn't matter if he was invovled in it or not, the fact alone that he's related to the imperial family should be enough, right? Since that's how Hakuryuu sees things, then that must be how everybody sees things, right?

Wrong.

Quoting Yudja: "Boy excercizing his free will and agency, choosing mercy, kindness and forgiveness"

And I want to pay attention to the wording. Alibaba doesn't just say "I don't hate you". Alibaba says "I've decided not to hate you"

I genuinely feel like this is one of the most important character-defining moments for him.

He chooses not to hate Hakuryuu for something he, frankly, isn't responsible for. He chooses not to let his misplaced anger direct his choices and actions. He chooses to be kind. It's not about him being a shounen goody-two-shoes, it's about him looking at this shitty world and being like: I won't let you ruin me.

Not to mention, the fact that he chose not to hate Hakuryuu means he thought about it. Alibaba isn't above feelings like hatred and resentment, but he knows how to actually handle them.

Alibaba might have his silly and petty moments, he is just a normal guy after all, but it doesn't change the fact that he is, especially by Magi standards, incredibly emotionally mature.

And I really love that. For a bunch of reasons: 1 - it's a good thing in general, 2 - we have a male character be emotionally mature (and intelligent) instead of a female one, and being good at emotions is something that's usually assigned to women, 3 - it isn't Alibaba being blindly optimistic and naive - Alibaba makes an effort to see for himself what kind of person Hakuryuu is (as far as he knows), and upon seeing him interact with Aladdin, and interacting with him a little himself, he decides that he has no reason to hate Hakuryuu. It's not kindness offered carelessly.

As I've said, he recognizes Hakuryuu's not responsible for what happened in Balbadd.

And Hakuryuu cannot comprehend that at all.

And as I've said, Alibaba is emotionally intelligent enough to recognize that it still might be awkward between them, so while he wants them to speak frankly, he does acknowledge that it might take them some time.

And Hakuryuu's even more baffled.

Me trying to read the expressions when they look like this. But I'm going for "soft smile" here.

Lmao

Household Vessel explained.

Darn, Zagan's Dunegon is young. Amon appeared like 10 years ago (prolly close to 11 now?)

And, welp, that's the end of the arc.

At some point I was on a different reread, and I was kinda scoring the arcs, and I figured, why not? I'll post abt the other arcs at some point, and I'll focus on this one here, but the scroes for the other ones would be: Dungeon Arc - 7.5/10, Kouga Arc - 7.5/10, Morgiana Arc - 8-8.5/10 (loses a lot by being this short and the Morgiana Problem that I keep talking about), Balbadd Arc - 9.5-10/10 (second best arc in the series iirc, I'd say the only thing it loses a bit for is the slow beginnig, but, well, it was necessary).

Sindria Arc - 7/10 but I'm being generous.

I can't rate it higher, since it's a transition arc, but it gives us a lot of character interactions, and foreshadowing here and there as well as parallels, and, well, for the most part it's good. Just nothing crazy. It's a breath of fresh air between two bigger arcs, but especially right after the emotional punch that was the Balbadd Arc. It's overall a very chill arc, and that's fine, it adds to the world-building as well, and finally officially introduces Hakuryuu as the key character that he'll become later. The beginning is… You've heard me complain about it. The whole fat Aliababa and Aladdin wasn't very good.

Other than that, we've got introduced to the generals, learn a bit more about Sinbad, we see, once again, that Sinbad is far scarier than he usually seems (his talk with Hakuryuu). The birth of Team Zagan, with Alibaba being Alibaba. Honestly, the interactions between the trio were all so very precious, especially Alibaba and Aladdin's. Morgiana with them as well, but hers get a small minus, because even here Ohtaka has a slight tendency of pushing Mor aside. It's a "can see it if you squint" situation, but, yeah, knowing what'll happen later, you can see the signs.

Still, I mean it when I say that I'm being very generous here with that 7, because the whole plot point with Kougyoku and Ka Koubun... It's really, really tasteless, and it's a mild way of me saying it. You've read my thoughts on it, so I won't repeat myself. But aside from these, it's also really... weird? As in, what did these chapters bring to the story? The only relevant thing is that Kougyoku went to Sindria, but that probably could've been arranged differently, so all these chapters really serve is to inform us that: 1) Sinbad is a molester when he's drunk, and it's such a prevalent issue thet the moment somebody accuses him of doing something, the Generals believe it immediately, and they need a literal proof through magic to be convinced otherwise. 2) Ka Koubun is fucking awful, and it really makes you wonder how the fuck is he Kougyoku's Household if he's willing to do something so cruel to her, 3) Kougyoku is too kind and forgiving for her own good, the world doesn't deserve her, and also that she's reasonable and willing to put her feelings and hurts aside for the sake of Kou. The only "good" thing coming out of it is the last one, and even then half of it we've found out in Balbadd already, and the rest could've been shown us in a different way, and nothing would've been lost.

[auntieinthemushroomhat]

I have no one irl I can discuss Miss Scarlet with (it usually doesn't stop me though, but I do try to limit it to a sane amount), but no matter how much I talk to my friends about it, they won't ever grasp the true extent of everything related to it, because they never watched and never will watch the show, and that's okay. So here I am speaking into the abyss. Hi!

You know, I've been thinking about Stuart's departure. And I'm really starting to think he was right in leaving. Don't get me wrong, I'll miss him immensely, he's a great actor and somewhat of a comfort in the show since we've known him, we know his motivations, we've grown to like him, etc. I like his and Eliza's banter and bickering, but I never did like their romance all that much.

Looking back, in my opinion, they acted more like older brother/younger sister than familial friends with romantic attraction. And I probably would have liked them even more if they never even had that romance aspect, but I'm not sure, since I'm thinking about this retroactively not way back when, when I first started watching the show.

I'll miss William coaching Fitzroy, but I'm also curious how Phelps will approach the subject, since they seem to be on better terms, and maybe more professional than what William and Fitzroy had.

Perhaps William's absence will also provide us with more opportunities to see our favourite side characters and Eliza interacting, eg. Fitzroy (Does he still have a crush on her? Has he moved on? If he still hasn't, will Phelps notice? How will he react?), Ivy and Mr Potts (Will they get married this season? Will Ivy move out? [I know lots of us have been pondering this specific question, as quite a few fanfics imagine this scenario.]), I'd love to see Moses return along with Solomon.

I've seen people mention that Eliza is in dire need of a female friend, and I have to agree. I'd love to see a past female character return, with a vengeance (not literally). My top candidates would be Clara Simms from season 1 or Arabella Acaster, which might be controversial. I'd love to see them make up and move on. Because, I might be wrong in thinking this, but aren't they the two sides of the same coin?

I realise I haven't mentioned Nash yet. I'm excited to see his trial and all the difficulties they will have to deal with it during and after. Once he's free and Eliza rejoins Nash & Sons (if she even will, who knows?), will he leave for Paris, or will he stay? Will Eliza go with him perhaps? So many opportunities. I love it.

I wanna see Patrick and Eliza get closer, whether in the form of friendship or perhaps more, I'd be happy with whichever.

I just want to see Eliza thrive with people surrounding her who love, cherish and support her. (Obviously realistically still and deservedly so, it would be boring if it were all sunshine and rainbows, ya know?)

I hope all the pitchfork action on the internet hasn't put too much of a damper on the Miss Scarlet team's excitement that the show's been renewed and they get to work together again.

[mandy4ever69420]

1. idk how many people process mickeys unwillingness to tell anyone or describe ian's symptoms as a form of protection but it's so swag. Like straight up no it is embarrassing to have your business out like that even if it's family. also how his mouth was SHUT while everyone was explaining ian's symptoms to those like. military cop whoeverthefucks 👍

2. mickey being like one of two people to comment that lips construction job was probably for a gentrification business. hm. anyway it's cool how easy he finds it to manipulate lip into wanting his approval and then also deny lip his approval for not blasting the fuck out of that cafe.

3. like i know that "gay and homophobic" is a joke but i think it's missing a big piece of context that the vast majority of the time when mickey is violent towards gay men it's in more or less direct response to him or ian being sexually harassed -> ned / macy's bitch / i'm not the one licking and groping on underage boys huh / dude not taking no for an answer after telling mickey ian left with someone else.

a) and walking into a straight bar and being a bitch non violently to a woman who also won't take no for an answer. bc of different ideas about how women are which btw are misogynistic but in a way that's not that big a deal.

so frustrating to me that people can't understand that mickeys pimp plot Wasn't really misogynistic bc it makes it harder to point out how he Does interact with misogyny eg he can't understand that women can be perpetrators or thinks maybe they inherently need protection. not too extreme a case of this even bc he also knows how to back off. more complicated bc tbh it is obligation to protect marginalized people that you love. see: mandy in s1.

so funny to me when people take mickey being into redheads as a character trait instead of him just saying he's already in love with someone

4. mickeys learning of ian's porno is like. so good. also owie

a) ian and the audience are aware mickey literally doesn't Care abt screwing other guys if it's for Money.

b) mickeys pivot from being hurt to being worried about ian's safety. Yeah it IS true that walking off with some random bitch who says he'll pay for porn is a terrible idea.

c) they don't actually discuss ian cheating (cheating-cheating, not for money but because of hyper sexuality) but i assume mickey put 2 and 2 together with how rash ian's decision making was.

d) thankyou mickey for having the right priorities about condom usage and health before "omg porn is BAD". i know you're mickey but i have the internet and people are so annoying about this kind of thing

e) i really like that ian called mickey psycho. it's like so good. i mean not the terminology i'd ever use but i know how these characters vocabulary's work so like dramatic irony. well not dramatic irony the definitions not right. it's close to that.

5. again like ian taking yevgeny as a reaction to "oh people think i'm like monica you know what monica would never do??? take her kid with her!!". probably also the most touched i am in any episode about shameless' portrayal of bipolar bc kidnapping is some shit that universally is agreed not fucking cool && is in fact indeed often done by a loved one in crisis && at that you dont usually get a sympathetic look at it. i think the only other media offering smth like that is wolf 359 whose finale im still so so mad at so angry. anyway i looove being asked to and genuinely moved by sympathy for someone doing something it'd also make sense to never forgive them for. 👍

[dervampireprince]

dervampireprince’s Audio Request Guide

Since commissions are closed there's not an easy way for people to see what I am comfortable or not comfortable with being asked to record, so I'm just making a little post here that I'll add as a link in my pinned post. Frankly though, basic rule I think you should always follow is 'don't ask person to create something with a very triggering/serious topic when you don't know if it's a trigger for that person'.

And just because you're into something that's on my 'will not record' list does not mean I am judging you or think you're bad for liking said thing, this is my personal list of what I'm not comfortable with so please respect that and don't try and convince me into being okay with something on this list.

And obviously people change, boundaries change, things can be added or taken off this list but if/when they do it will be my decision and no one else's.

I will not record:

No matter the subject of the request, do not guilt trip me. Please do not trauma dump or vent in your requests. Telling me that you have no more money for Patreon, how ill you are, that I've never picked one of your requests, etc will not make me more likely to pick your request. I will just make me feel uncomfortable and guilt tripped. I get more requests every month than there are upload days, so I can't pick them all. I do not guarantee that I will fulfill your specific request by joining my Patreon, just that you will have the ability to leave requests. I pick which requests to do based on which comments get the most likes and replies, and which ones I just feel personally inspired by.

Scenarios

any nsfw scenario for my ocs that is on their hard-limits list

the listener being under 18 (even in sfw audios)

comfort for serious mental health topics (eg suicide/suicidal ideation, eating disorders, self harm) (panic/anxiety attack comfort is fine to request, general cheering up and comfort for low-self-esteem is fine to request)

incest (including step-families, adopted relatives)

abdl/sexual age play (daddy/mommy kink is fine, non-sexual age play and age regression is fine)

misgendering kink/detransition kink

alcohol/intoxication

drug use

non-con, cnc

raceplay

bestiality (monsters and anthros are fine)

scat

vomit

piss/omorashi/watersports

anything containing bigotry/slurs

gore/guro

feederism

pregnancy/child birth (whether sfw, pregnacy kink, the listener being pregnant, my ocs being pregnant, etc, just any mention of pregnancy) (breeding kink is fine as long as it's just mentions of cumming inside or breeding and no mention of potential pregnancy even in fantasy) (*Valentine's oviposition is a half-exception as even that is only in fantasy/with toys and not with real eggs)

taking care of a child/interacting with any characters/listeners who are minors

degradation (light degradation maybe)

pain play (including spanking and slapping) (*Valentine's pussy spanking is an exception)

violence and torture

anything mentioning/to do with any real world religion

yandere (I did a yandere audio once to test the waters and really didn't enjoy it and so don't want to again. I just prefer making more comfy vibes audios, there's other creators out there if you want the darker topics (I personally would recommend Dark and Twisted Whisper if you want monster and yandere audios)

NSFW audios where someone with DID switches between alters, switching is not an easy sudden thing like it appears to be in shows like Moon Knight, it's stressful and tiring and the person is dissociating, whoever comes into the body during the NSFW activity has had no way to consent to the NSFW activity due to not having any memory of what's been happening while they weren't fronting, it would be wrong and a violation of informed consent to continue any NSFW activity in this scenario.

any scenario that requires multiple listener characters in the same audio (it would be impossible for me to record without it being confusing or having to give the listener's canonical names and pronouns which removes their ability to be self-inserts for the audience)

Characters and Fandoms

any of my original characters that i haven't voiced yet, even if i mentioned them in an audio. let me plan them and design them without feeling pressured to get to them quicker, and without any outside ideas on what they should look or act like.

any female characters (genderfluid characters who also at times identify as male are an exception (eg Loki, Crowley) but I only voice them when they're identifying as male)

any character that is under 18

any characters from: the Harry Potter/Fantastic Beasts franchise

any characters from Hazbin Hotel, Helluva Boss

any characters from: Our Flag Means Death

any characters from: Good Omens, The Sandman or any other Gaiman properties

any real people (including Vtubers, SMP characters, etc)

FNAF animatronics that have dead children's souls inside of them (the animatronics from Security Breach do not and so are fine to request, Springtrap has an adult's soul so that's also fine)

specifically the ascended version of Astarion from Baldur's Gate 3

Cazador from BG3

Loki Series related audios (MCU film Loki is fine, but I will not be voicing the alternate version of him from the Loki Series or anything relating to that show).

Silco from Arcane. I have talked about this before, but in 2022 myself and friends spent time with Silco's voice actor in person at two comic conventions where he proceeded to make us uncomfortable, be inappropriate, threaten one member, and start a relationship with another (who was a fan, which is an abuse of that power dynamic). He was then also found to have been private messaging multiple fans, including sending them sexual messages. After all this happened I took a break from voicing Silco, tried to go back to it, but had to stop. Voicing the character brings all this back up and makes me too uncomfortable and distressed. Voice actors are not their characters and vice versa, but I can't think about Silco without thinking about all of this.

characters from these fandoms (I either don't know anything about these fandoms, don't know a lot, or just don't want to voice anyone from them yes even if I've voiced characters from them in the past, this list is especially subject to change): Dragon Age, Final Fantasy, Star Wars, Star Trek, Mass Effect, The Dragon Prince, Critical Role/Vox Machina, Stardew Valley, Best Served Cold

these characters are characters I like but don't want to voice (either because turning them into work would ruin the ability for them to be comfort characters, or I feel unable to do their voice or capture their personality) : Ares (Hades Video Game), Olrox (Castlevania Nocturne), Thranduil (The Hobbit)

ASMR and comfort content are not replacements for actual therapy. I am not a therapist or psychiatrist, I'm not qualified or able to give out advice on serious mental health and other issues. There are always people around to help and listen but this is not the place to vent and please do not ask me to make content about trigger topics and serious mental health issues. If you are in need of help with serious issues please reach out to qualified individuals or appropriate hot-lines.

Please do not send me asks/comments asking for me to do comforts for serious mental health issues, not only is it inappropriate to ask of a stranger, I am in no way qualified to offer real comfort to strangers for this and could end up saying something that makes it worse by accident, and I personally find some of those topics very triggering to the point it makes me upset/uncomfortable to see them mentioned.

Me not being comfortable recording certain kinks does not mean I am kinkshaming anyone into those things, they just make me too uncomfortable for me to even act out in fiction.

Do not ask me why I don't want to record certain things or certain characters. Do not ask me why things are on this list. Everyone has different things they're uncomfortable with and their own boundaries and that should be respected.

This list is subject to future updates. Last updated: 26th February 2025.

[merbear25]

Hiii! I’m really glad to see that the hetalia fandom is still alive!! I would love to do personalised/match up form thingy!! Thanks for doing this again btw :^D

I did some characters and then looking at it now-I hope it’s not too much (if so, i apologise in advance fhvhsk I’ve never really submit a matchup before!)

I go by She/Her and I hope I can be 🌻🐸 anon!! Some basic stuffs about me: INFJ-T, 4w5, sun sign is libra and both moon and rising are aries.

For Allies:

Canada - Honestly, he is one of the countries that I can imagind myself getting along with. I’m quite introverted but I can be quite animated and high-strung (eg. having social anxiety and all that jazz) which ironically are hard to grapple with when I have limited energy. So sensing Canada’s overall demeanor - I probably will match his quieter energy though I can be a little high strung or animated at times. Also, I would appreciate people who are more sensitive as well!! And lastly?? Dude has a pet polar bear that talks - as an animal lover, I will be gushing over Kumajirou 😭😭 Yes, I’m that friend that will beeline to the host’s pets etc. in a party unless I have people familiar with to include me in conversations with more unfamiliar acquaintances and introduce me to new people :, ) I think I would also try to help include Canada in stuffs since its honestly sad that he’s pretty invisible to everyone around him and p much lives in his brother’s shadows. Also!! I would love to go to his country and sightsee - I do sometimes hike casually with my friends and I like strolling around, especially places with animals to spot e.g. national parks, gardens, etc. and hes probably really experienced with hiking and even surviving the wilderness (I have a horrible sense of direction - all my friends literally know me infamously for being directionally challenged isivhfsdb, I got lost in a classroom before)

America: This is kinda a tricky one because it really depends on how I met him e.g. the settings and circumstances but I’m just gonna assume we have good first impressions! I honestly think I will be more reserved and shy (Think Japan and his interactions) but will eventually warm up as long as he doesn’t push me into uncomfortable social situations or drained my social energy a lot. It could be like a case of an extrovert adopting an introvert :, ) I would bond over and geek out on comics and games with him. Also ngl we may just be meme buddies especially with the silly Gnarp gnarp memes (I got an aftonsparv ikea alien plush because of all these memes dkhwghv)

England: I think this is a little more straightforward - I will reel back my energy and would be quite polite. However, I can foresee myself needing time and more interactions to get used to his sharp-tongue or blunt way of speaking at times before I can actually be friends with him. I guess one of the shared interests I have with him may relate to supernatural as I do,,, have the ability to see spirits (I have so many ghost stories to share, mine or from others’ experiences). I think leveraging on that shared interest - I will open up and have more to talk about :^)

France: He gives off big brother energy and can be quite affectionate even platonically. I may be overwhelmed with his openness to show affections e.g. touches and compliments at first but ultimately will grow to appreciate his ways of showing care. I think he’s really attuned to people’s emotions and empathetic too and I would definitely appreciate his support?? Totally exude king of self-care and I definitely need help with that because I have a tendency to prioritise school + work over my health (got admitted to the emergency for the past 6 months because of that :, ) )

Russia: I feel like he’s an enigma for me to discern if I will get along well with him? It depends on the first impression and contexts? ? I can see myself getting intimidated if I witnessed his interactions with the Baltic countries. However, we would get along well if he’s gentle and nice to me and others?? Because of my social anxiety, I am very perceptive and sensitive to someone’s vibes, so I am always on the look out for how someone interacts with me and their interactions with others -I feel like I will be wary of Russia out of gut feelings or seeing how he casually intimidates people wordlessly. However, I think we will mostly be amicable to one another :, ) One of our shared interests I think we can bond over is probably sunflowers? I personally love them a lot and in fact, I love the colour yellow a lot to the extent most of my items even what I wear is mostly yellow. I really like cute things too and honestly I remember that scene of him getting rejected by a hamster- that was rlly honestly sad even though its supposed to be funny dhfkfhdhb

China: Aaah another big brother and also grandpa energy (I guess England does exude grandpa energy to a certain extent too-) my ethnicity is Chinese so that’s already kinda ‘entry point’ to befriend him or stuff :,) I can honestly imagine him chiding and nagging me from my bad habits of not taking good care of myself and also dishing out blunt yet wise advices. I overall will respect him but may tease him like a little sibling because I do have gremlin sibling energy according to my friends, especially those who are older, but I am actually quite mature despite my childish antics. Also, totally will bond with his love for hello kitty because I love cute stuffs and my fav Sanrio character is pompompurin 💛💛

The Nordic 5 -

Iceland: It’s another case of oh wow !! You have a pet?? AND THEY TALK? Kinda scenario like Canada and it’s a puffin??? I may be a little cautious and polite at first because he may appear quieter and reserved but I think we will kinda click as friends. I think it’s canon that he wrote letters back then to make friends and I actually do have penpals to write to like sending snail mails and cute stuffs e.g. stickers, stationery and keychains!!

Norway: It may be a little hard for me to approach him as he seems withdrawn?? And his expression is usually unreadable so coupled with my social anxiety - I may not initiate or approach him on my own unless I have someone introduce me to him like Denmark to facilitate. From there on, it’s really kinda like up to how the interactions roll from there? I think we would be amicable and may bond over supernatural and stuffs too because I personally love supernatural related media and stuffs (I am also quite a horror junkie and don’t get spooked easily) It would be cool to learn various mythical creatures from his culture!!

Denmark: It’s another case of extrovert adopting introvert but I don’t know if it’s because of the way the fandoms perceived and write about him (one of my fav writers is alfredosauce!!) but I honestly can see myself hanging out with him and find him fun to be around especially with his love for legos. (I would love to get the bonsai tree lego kit ;; the leaves are frog legos??? How cute is that??) and I do have an extroverted friend that lowkey reminds me of him and we have been friends for very long. I feel like we will be meme besties too - collectively sending 10+ reels at 2 am and going why are you awake??

Sweden: It’s kinda like Norway but even more likely that I won’t approach him and if I do, I will be really polite and reserved (also social anxiously struggling with small talks and reading his expression/body language) I probably need someone to introduce me to him and hang out in a group or with someone along with Sweden to actually familiarise with him. With his hobbies being art-related and furnitures?? I think that will be the main interest we share and bond over because I am a self-taught artist (though I don’t exactly have time these days to do art) but I love drawing stuffs for my friends and admire people’s DIY and crafting skills so I would be impressed by his abilities.

Finland: He exudes mother friend energy based on how approachable and gentle he is?? ALSO HANATAMAGO, I’m going to kidnap his pupper /j I think we will become fast friends?? And I would appreciate his caring demeanour. I think hes the kind of person who may not be close to you but finds out you're struggling, will do regular check-ins and I think I will honestly cry/touched by that.

Axis: Germany: I think at this point you may see a pattern but I tend to not initiate or approach people who may be hard to read and it goes the same with Germany. I think I would however work well with Germany because I actually tend to prioritise my work to be good quality (though I can imagine I can be quite stressed too sfhkdhs) After warming up and also knowing he has doggos, I think we will bond?? I have a goblin of a dachshund,, but I love both cats and dogs and all other animals :) I also realised how loyal he is as a friend and would rlly appreciate that trait!!

N.Italy: Maybe a case of extrovert adopting introvert again. I think I will be flabbergasted at how carefree he is??? Just him in his own world vibing. I think his energy will rub off on me though and we would eventually get along but I may act as a motherly friend unlike some other countries mentioned earlier because I'm quite an overworrier-

S.Italy: I know it’s canon that he’s more friendly and kind toward ladies so I think based on first impression - we would be amicable. I think this is pointed out by many hetalia writers and also its canon that he is jealous and feels inferior to N.Italy - I honestly think that depending on circumstances e.g. If I know him first before N. Italy, our relationship will fluctuate like a lot and it would be confusing why he’s hot or cold after I know his brother?? Unless he does eventually confide in me about his concerns or I will be left confused and rather drained on his behaviours :, )

For what I would do:

1) I think I will actually specify that I may return at a certain timing after accepting the invitation and hoping for their understanding. It’s really likely I will leave rather begrudgingly on the time I decided to leave but there’s that tiny tiny chance that I may stay an extra hour or two before really leaving.

2) As much as I would love to help and also my social anxiety, my first instinct is to apologise and say I can’t [and this situation will probably bug me the rest of the day ngl on how well I approached it-]

3) first day off in forever? I’m sleeping in and being a homebody my g. There’s a small chance of my friends that I don’t see often that may invite me out and I would often try to meet them for at least a few hours and the rest is just me vibing at home like listening to music, watching animes or reading mangas and even movies,, or just browsing through YouTube to watch videos especially those niche 2 hours + long videos in an obscure media to hyperfixate for the coming months.

Thanks for doing this again!! 🫶🫶 totes appreciate you taking the time to do this and I hope you're doing well and if not, I'm manifesting your days to be better 🥺 I look forward to matchups (they can be both platonic and romance) I'm chill with either!!

I feel like this took forever, so thank you for being patient! But, hello 🌻🐸 anon! I will gladly grant these emojis to you :) Thank you for sending in your request. I hadn't really considered having a kind of matchup side to this, but perhaps you've inspired me to change that ;p

I think the person you'd get along with best would be...

Canada

You have a good balance of calming and energetic moments that would pair well with his introverted personality. You'd be able to bring him out of his shell a bit and he'd be able to share the more tranquil moments with you out in nature or just relaxing at home together.

What they think of you...

Allies

Canada: When we first met, she took such a strong liking to Kumajirou that I wasn't quite sure if she'd noticed me standing there. She was very sweet though and started up a pleasant conversation. Even though she has some bursts of energy, I don't mind it. I actually like when she gets animated about her interests and wants to share them with me. I appreciate how often she includes me in whatever activity she has planned, even if I don't always go along with it, it feels great to be thought of. She's mentioned a few times how much she'd like to visit my house and I've already thought of some nice activities to do together. It might be nice to return her kindness with showing her around my home.

America: She's pretty cool to be around. Mattie actually introduced me to her and she seemed kinda shy at first, but she comes out of her shell more easily when Mattie's around. Got the impression that she needs to be around people she knows to really be able to get to know her.

England: Generally speaking, she's fine to be around when she's quiet. I haven't had many one-on-one conversations with her. From the ones we have had, it seems a bit hard to find common interests. I get the impression that I put her off based on her reactions to my responses to the others' tomfoolery. Perhaps my sarcasm is a bit much for her.

France: I've noticed she takes awhile to warm up to people, which is fine! She's so sweet when she's shy, though. I'd love to get to know her more. I've seen some of her art and admire her creative mind. I heard her mention her hospitalization and went into shock. If she lets me, I'd be more than happy to show her how to take things slowly.

Russia: Can't say exactly what I did to make her nervous, but I find it hard to approach her. Thinking back on it, maybe my conversation with Estonia put her off. Whatever the reason, it's made talking to her harder. It might be better for me to observe her and see how the others approach her.

China: She's a nice girl but needs to take better care of herself. I was floored to learn about her habit of putting her personal needs aside for work and school! It's unexceptable, so I've decided to bring small boxed lunches whenever I know I'll see her. At least then I'll know she's got one of her needs taken care of. If she needs help finding way to cope with stress, I'll gladly offer my advice.

Nordic 5

Iceland: I have to admit it was quite odd to see how animated she got seeing Mr. Puffin. She actually startled me, and I couldn't help staring at her while she gushed about how cute she thought he was. The only reason we had a conversation was because she changed the subject. I know she can have quiet moments, but honestly, I'm still recovering from that first instance.

Norway: She's too loud sometimes, especially when Denmark comes around. As long as he stays away, I don't mind her company. We mostly just exchange pleasantries, which is fine for me. She's asked about some of my home's fairy tales, and that was a little nice to chat about.

Denmark: She's fun once you get to know her! Yeah, she seemed a bit nervous at first, but we quickly moved past that. I love how excitable she can be! It's always funny to see her get animated, and when some of the others get shocked by it, I can't help but laugh! I want to bring out more moments like that from her.

Sweden: *stares* Hm....We don't talk much...Maybe I scare her. *stare intensifies* She makes nice art though... (He doesn't have an issue with you, but we all know how quiet and intimidating he can be!)

Finland: Oh, I'm so glad that Hanatamago helped introduce me to her! She's so kind and I always enjoy our conversations. I know that she gets a little anxious around others, but I hope she hasn't felt like that around me. I'd be happy to be the bridge of communication with Mr. Sweden. I know how scary he can be!

Axis

Germany: She doesn't cause any problems, so I don't mind her. She's fairly hard-working and responsible, although she needs to learn how to properly look after herself. I will say that Italy seems to have a negative influence on her. His happy-go-lucky attitude rubs off on her and she gets a bit distracted. I have to help snap her back to reality sometimes, but it *sighs* isn't too often, thankfully.

N. Italy: Oh, she's so nice. Sometimes she gets so nervous, though! I like helping her relax. I can't believe she has a habit of putting work and school before relaxing. The stress of work can wait, right? It's fun to get excited about art and other hobbies together! Germany doesn't always like how much time we spend together. I don't remember exactly what he said, but I'm sure it was something about discipline.

S. Italy: She's fine when she's not around my idiot brother. At first, I found it easy to talk to her, not really noticing her social anxiety, but I've seen her hanging around him more often. I don't really like his influence on her, but it's not my problem (he's very much made it his problem). She's asked a few times why I've been acting 'strange', but I don't really know what she means. Sometimes I just want to admire her art and be around her without having to talk to her, what's weird about that? (He'd try telling you something is wrong without actually telling you)

[atomicduckthefirst]

Was talking with @gameguy20100 and sort of discussing the nature of Kagami's creation, and what the heck Tomoe was thinking, and came to the conclusion that what made Kagami was the idea of honesty, or the desire for it.

Neurotypical vs Neurodivergent

Small disclaimer: I would like to apologize to anyone this might hurt, feel free to correct me at any time.

It's been basically established throughout the fandom that Kagami is HEAVILY autism coded (eg making lists to explain friendship, misunderstanding social cues or not picking up on them at all, needing the truth and nothing but the truth, etc.). We talked about why Tomoe would want to intentionally make Kagami autistic in a world that (I assume) is generally hostile to neurodivergent people. After all, perfection is generally associated with a rise to the top, so wouldn't being neurotypical make that easier? And with someone who is obsessed with perfection and believes their word is law, you would think they would make their daughter more like them, right? There are three reasons that we came up with.

1. Control through other people

First off, it allows her a better grasp of control over Kagami's free will. Though iirc it's unknown why she ever gave Kagami free will (likely because she values honesty), Kagami being autistic allows her to have a better hold over her. It isolates her from quite a few of her peers, at least at first, and it encourages her to interact with people like her mother, who is blunt (making her easier to understand for Kagami) and aggressive (which normalizes this behavior to Kagami). Additionally, she seems to find her mother hard to understand, but other, less abusive people can also be hard to understand, so even when exposed to better people she still believes her mother is a good person.

2. Control through the system

Since misunderstanding social cues and her own traits being misunderstood can screw Kagami over, why make her autistic? By intentionally kicking her down, she prevents her from getting to the top, and by association, prevents her from realizing Tomoe will never be happy with her, and that striving for perfection is an impossible goal. Once again, it allows her to keep control over what Kagami expects from her mother, and what she expects from herself.

3. Honesty is the best policy

To someone obsessed with perfection, who considers herself above all and who clearly doesn't like beating around the bush, it's possible Tomoe thinks the exact opposite of ableist people and considers being neurotypical a flaw. To someone who values honesty, arbitrary social cues, arbitrary expectations, and an aversion to saying what you want or mean, might be read to someone like Tomoe as making up rules, making up expectations, and twisting words. In other words, she might consider being neurotypical as being dishonest. As someone who is disabled, she's likely had quite a few people try to take advantage of her, especially considering the community she interacts with, so she might have reservations of her child being the same as those around her. It could quite literally be an act of rebellion. And considering Kagami's theme within the show is heavily implied to be truth (possibly directly paralleling Luka), it's possible Tomoe made Kagami desiring honesty. Which makes a lot of sense considering her character.

What's ironic though, is that she's friends with a lot of people who are... less than honest. Marinette and Adrien, sure, but also Lila (who she knows is a liar) and Felix (who iirc she also knows is a liar). So she directly goes against her mother's wishes.

She's very interesting to me, Kagami is love, Kagami is life.