#she's VERY cynical about our relationship lmao

[beloved-child-of-the-house]

my college roommate (who i was rlly close with at the time until she dropped out to get married to The Worst Man In The World) wrote a novel about a group of people who were close in college and drifted apart and there's a couple in it based on me and my spouse

[vigilskeep]

omg thank you for the support... feeling emboldened to return and be gay in your inbox but i was just thinking about how neve might actually feel a bit put off by a more uncaring/cold assassin rook. she has that conversation with harding in the ign gameplay where she says that authorities being corrupt is how she is employed essentially, but given her character descriptions, i feel like she very much does care a lot and corruption is something she Really Wants To Fix, Actually. but authorities being corrupt is actually great for business for an assassin. i mean lucanis was literally introduced to us as "the magekiller" and one thing we know about him is he specifically targets corrupt magisters. like taking down corrupt officials is definitely great for neve, but i feel very interested in the toxic yuri potential of her butting heads with someone who doesn't care about saving the world beyond putting down an obvious threat because their background relies very much on the world being broken. if this makes sense? femme fatale rook also adds an extra level of distrust which is fun! but there's also so much yuri development potential here... learning to care through neve or rook always secretly caring and neve bringing that out in them. cynic4cynic and all that. this doesn't have to be about a romantic relationship either, it's interesting to me even for a platonic neve/rook relationship!

and this also could be a potential point of contention for neve and lucanis, depending on his own world views. this group being referred to as a found family makes the idea of them not getting along (at first at least) pretty interesting to me LMAO anyway yeah if lucanis shares this kind of view then it really is as you said: (crow rook voice) no lucanis you're not insane. and neither am i.

SORRY FOR THIS. but also thank you for supporting the lesbianism.

YES...

the thing that i certainly believe about neve is what’s been emphasised over and over in marketing: she’s a cynic, but a cynic with a heart of gold. she may be our hard-boiled detective who’s seen the worst of people and the worst of her city, but that’s never made her love her city any less or fight for it any less. she’s intensely idealistic in her ambitions and her commitment to the job, putting her own comfort aside to doggedly pursue any mystery she’s taken on.

i think that conflicts delightfully with an assassin who is more self-preserving in what they are willing to take on and has no such high ideals or sense of community, but has it in common with neve that they’ve come face to face in the same way with the worst of people. they could make each other better—neve could definitely stand to take better care of herself and perhaps even take more direct action, and this type of crow rook could probably do with a moral or two beyond World Destruction Is Bad—or worse! i really like your read on crow rook being dependent on the world being broken, and corruption being good for business. i also think the kind of worldview that the crows teach is that nothing ever really can change. it doesn’t matter what you do or who you kill, because someone just as corrupt will always take their place. there are no moral obligations because there is no fixing the world even if you did try. i’d be so curious to see neve’s impact on that... whether she could get them to believe in something, or their jaded outlook would rub off on her

neve definitely has trust issues and high walls up for whatever reason (i still believe in venatori ex-husband theory) so i love the idea here of really playing into that and making a rook she actually shouldn’t trust. i love that for you. yeah why put this all on her. why make anything easy

i’m definitely interested in lucanis and neve’s dynamic. they have a lot of similar worldviews when it comes to, say, the venatori, but i wonder if neve necessarily approves of lucanis’, uh... impulsive and destructive approach, to dealing with that kind of problem. or if lucanis’ sympathies necessarily mean he takes the shadow dragons’ chances of achieving anything seriously. super excited to see them interact

[nyxfaei]

Yo wait ur a system? Is it ok to ask? Mind introducing us to everyone?

I am!!!

I’m always kinda confronting so I’m always here but at least one of these guys are usually in the drivers seat with me!

They’re like if facets of me became their own people- or if imaginary friends became their own people. they both are and aren’t me? Hard to explain. ANYWAY

Doxa- protector. You’ve seen me post him a lot. Very chatty and loves being perceived. Silly. Flirty. But is dead serious about looking after the rest of the system that he views to be his coven. Somewhat omnipotent about the other members of the system. He’s in a relationship with dragana and is a total wife guy. He uses pet names a lot in conversation. He doesn’t mean anything by it and will normally ask you if you’re okay with it first. He’s currently very interested in Arthur Lester as a person and concept. I’ve already made a post about him as a character.

Dragana- a mediator. A lot more quiet than Doxa but good natured. A lot more introverted though and has a low social battery. She has a much better impulse control and will jump in when doxas being stupid and I can’t stop him. She may or may not be as omnipresent as Doxa but she won’t tell me. She at least has the ability to kick whoever is confronting aside if they’re getting to be too much. She enjoys wearing elegant yet comfortable clothes and listening to 90s indie women artists lmao. I should just make a post about her in general

Ren- chaotic goth punk. They’re Doxa and dragana’s son. He has a weird rocky relationship with Doxa due to happenings in their story. He has a good relationship with dragana though. Although I’ve done a lot of projecting onto them, they don’t front very often because they hate the idea of being in control of so much. He’d mostly enjoys to pop in, listen to loud music and tease people and be a menace- although he’s a well meaning menace. He enjoys going to places with lots of people and just exploring- such as boardwalks and downtown areas. He loves DIY and taking things apart and making new things out of them. Horror movie fan. He’s in a polycule with Lewis and Felix.

Lewis- very introverted and usually keeps to himself when fronting. Horror fanatic. Very into monsters and mysteries. He’s probably the facet that first got interested in malevolent. Bad abandonment issues so when he’s fronting ren and Felix are pretty close by. He enjoys wearing comfy clothing rather than making any sort of statement as opposed to his partners. Enjoys writing, reading (usually graphic novels because I am dyslexic as fuck), and listening to gothic metal. Can come off as rude by accident.

Felix: definitely Lewis’s foil and yet they get along very well seeing as they’re in a relationship together lmao. Loves his friends and is very enthusiastic about everything all the time. Has a killer gut instinct. He does have an originality complex and Will Die if someone shows up wearing the same thing as him. He’s a scaredy cat that prefers spooky movies over scary movies but will put up with them for ren and Lewis. Huge fan of slushies, junk food, and early 2000s emo music. He’s far too easy to tease but we love him with our whole heart.

Callum- constantly wants to be out exploring and adventuring and traveling. Pretty damn social and did a lot of fronting two years ago but he’s been taking a bit of a break- although I still see him show up quite a few times. For the most part he seems to be very well put together but in reality he’s very competitive and has poor impulse control and definitely has his chaotic moments and will just do things on a whim. Big fan of 80s new wave. Has cried over Duran Duran. He’s very good friends with the polycule. Australian?????

Moyra- oldest in the system and has been with me since about 5th grade. Very cynical and has middle manager energy. Used to be the protector but now she just does her own thing. She’s kinda rude and finicky but means well for the most part. Perfectionist and very easily stressed. Just turn on some New Age music for her and she’ll be fine.

Then there’s my fictives-

Arthur Lester- you know him. You know Arthur. He’s a mess. He’s very bad at concealing his thoughts and feelings and Doxa is constantly aware of them and is driving him crazy with his repressed homosexual issues. Is in like. A constant state of internal screaming but he talks and types like a polite young man save for all the fucking swearing he does LMAO- surprisingly gets along with Doxa since Doxa keeps Kayne away from him. Still trying to solve his podcast counterpart’s issues and is very invested in the mysteries of it. Good for him. Somehow always manages to get me hurt while fronting.

Kayne- yes that’s right there’s a Kayne in here. You also know Kayne. All of my chaos goes into that guy for better or for worse. Used to front a lot but since I’m going through a rough time he’s been taking a back seat since he isn’t very good with delicate situations OBVIOUSLY. When he fronts he’s always up to some fuck shit. Really likes playing among us LMAO

Melkor- from the silmarillion. Tbh this guy has been dormant for a few years which is a relief because he’s like if Kayne and the king in yellow were one person. If you don’t know what that means, just imagine if a goth metal head with anger issues created the concept of chaos itself and has the powers of a god. Anyhow, he’s been locked in his mind palace room listening to metal for the past few years and I prefer to keep it that way

[glowingbadger]

LET ME TELL YOU ABOUT MY HOT OCS

A few of you beautiful people gave me permission to talk about my OCs for a bit (not that I need it but it's nice to have), and for that, there shall be consequences. I wanna show y'all a few of my beauties, tell you about them, and brag about how hot they are and all the thoughts I have about their sex lives lmao (also featuring, btw, a major DnD npc who is.... VERY inspired by Seteth lmao though his story definitely ended up going its own way from that starting point)

**Also note because I know a couple IRL friends of mine follow this blog- if you play any tabletops with me, don't you fucking dare read this I will be SO mad because there will be spoilers I'm being so serious rn lol

((Also if you don't care that much about my OCs (fair lol I get that's not what most of y'all are here for) but just wanna see some of my art maybe, feel free to just scroll through and look at four hot anime people looooool))

First, we've got Rhys Ledger! (Cyberpunk Red ttrpg) Full art here

Rhys was born with severe chronic illness and a desperately poor family. Because of this, every issue and flair up got pushed off until it absolutely HAD to be addressed by a medical professional- and this lead to both of his arms and one eye eventually becoming infected to the point of requiring the cheapest and crappiest cybernetic replacements on the market- and even these still pushed his family into horrific debt. To get the debt collectors away from his mother, he staged a big interpersonal blow-up with her, ran away, faked his death, and started sending money to the debtors anonymously on her behalf, so that he could make the payments while separating himself from his mother so she wouldn't feel compelled to try to find and help him anymore.

So basically, he's cut off his entire family, in his mind for their own good. He's in crippling and seemingly insurmountable medical debt. Plus, his cybernetic eye and arms are cheap and shitty and keep breaking- his eye even plays ads at regular intervals, and you can imagine how maddening that is. All he had to rely on was the beginnings of a medical education received from Dr. Banting, a man who provided routine checkups at minimal cost to him as a child in addition to periodically tutoring him. So he leveraged that to test into a medical education program that would basically fast-track him into indentured servitude to a major corporate medical cybernetics company. And on the side, he takes odd jobs for extra cash- which is how he ran into the rest of our tabletop party.

He's a deeply, deeply empathetic and caring person deep down, who's just been beaten down by the trials of life and grown cynical and sarcastic as a result. Unlike most quality cybernetics, his hands completely lack a nervous suite, so he has no sense of touch there, and he secretly misses that sensation desperately. All of these factors contribute to him having been in a multi-year dry spell, sexually (he's had a tendency to pull away from romantic relationships before they got more than skin-deep), and at this point he'd likely faint if confronted with a naked boob. He's incredibly touch-sensitive, and while he probably doesn't even realize it, deep down he absolutely yearns to be touched gently and intimately by someone who actually values his falling-apart body. Rhys probably needs someone who's very vocally encouraging during sex, and who will communicate clearly what they want and what they like; with that sort of person, he'd be the ultimate service-whatever. Top, bottom, all that matters is that he's doing a good job and pleasing his partner, he's not capable of taking someone for granted once they've shown they truly appreciate and desire him.

~~~

Next we have Shaeleigh Sommers (unofficial Pokemon tabletop; also a cyberpunk setting) Full art here (also some spicier pics of her here and here)

Shaeleigh, or Shae, is from a Cyberpunk Pokemon tabletop that my husband has been running for three years now with friends, so she predates Rhys, but in retrospect she's like... a perfect foil for him lol

Shae was born to a fairly well-off family with a corporate, ladder-climbing father and a trophy-wife mother (she has respect for the former and very little regard for the latter). Her older brother is following their father's footsteps, while Shae pursued... basically Pokemon veterinary studies lol. After college, she worked for a Pokemon shelter for unwanted and retired Pokemon, but it was shut down for taking on more cases than they were supposed to (not wanting to turn away any Pokemon in need), and as a result, Shae's dream is to gain the money, experience, clout and sponsors to open her own private shelter. She has an enormous soft-spot for lesser-loved Pokemon, and has no interest in the "popular picks" who will have no trouble finding a trainer to take care of them. She's somewhat naive, though she's learned a lot on her adventures, and she has a good heart despite being a bit spoiled.

Shaeleigh is also desperately in love/lust with the professor overseeing her and her allies on their journey, Professor Shoot. He's a young Professor, still technically the equivalent of an "adjunct," and Shae and her buddies are his first group of assigned trainers. Shae was immediately attracted to him physically, and overtime this has slowly developed into a deep, deep crush and potentially even love. He's gentle and kind in a way that's extremely rare in the dystopian cyberpunk future, and while he insists that, as a professor he's less a man and more a cog in a machine, Shae sees a warm and beautiful humanity in him that she clings to, as it represents her desire not to lose herself or her values despite how hard her battles may become. Also he plays piano, so like, those hands... hnnng.

Anyway, I've always viewed Shae as someone who has had a lot of flings and passing relationships, but nothing very serious. Lately, she's been hooking up with a gang leader (really closer to a warlord) from the wild, untamed underground of the city, but while she does respect him and admire his free way of life, she's truly only seeking him out as solace while she can't have her beloved Professor. With a few more badges under her belt though, she'll be considered to have a level of authority within the Pokemon League that may finally allow her to openly pursue Professor Shoot... fingers crossed for my girl lmao. In the meantime, she insists that she wants him to make the first decisive move, and they live in a surveillance state, so her desired Professor-romance has been an AGONIZING slow-burn thus far. Sexually, I think she's a bit vanilla, but very warm and encouraging, even if she doesn't care that much about the guy she's with. With someone she does care about, she's relentlessly devoted to their mutual pleasure, with incredible stamina and focus, all towards the goal of expressing even a fraction of what she feels in her heart.

~~~

Okay guys, I hope you're ready because I have SO much to say about Saul (NPC, DnD 5e) Full art here

Guys. The way my brain has been soaking in the essence of this character for like two years. And I have no outlet for this because there's SO much about him that my players in this campaign don't know about him yet. (btw this is a follow up warning to my players in my dnd campaign that I will be so, so mad if you keep reading after this point lmao)

OKAY so. On the surface, Saul is a stern but reasonable man who acts as head steward of the Temple of the Allfaith, a place where every deity in the pantheon is given due worship and respect. The philosophy behind this is that reality is formed through the interactions of countless contradictory forces, and by giving regard to all deities of all domains, we assure that each is mollified. This also makes it a place welcoming to all kinds of people from all walks of life- for the most part. Saul is, as one can imagine in such a chaotic environment, kept enormously busy at all times with paperwork, supply forms, requests, ceremonies, festivals, and all of the various needs and conflicts that arise among the clerics, priests, and so on.

Now, in truth, Saul is a Cambion- the offspring of an Incubus and his victim, who was eventually consumed by the demon who sired her child. While the Incubus moved on to terrorize some other locale, Saul was left in the small hamlet where he was born, and it was only out of regard for his late mother that the people here bothered to care enough for him to keep him alive. With time, though, their natural fear and resentment for the literal hellspawn they'd been saddled with caused constant and open mistreatment, and he was only offered the food, water and shelter he needed to survive, and absolutely no more. All the while, even as a child he potently felt the hatred evident in their eyes when he dared show himself in public.

Now, Cambions are functionally immortal, but they do age at a more or less "normal" rate until they reach maturity. When Saul reached his early teens, another young girl from the village asked to meet with him in a secluded grove beyond the town limits. When he arrived, he was cautious and on-edge, believing this to be some plot or ambush for the townspeople to finally do him in, so when the girl came to see him and made a sudden move towards him, he lashed out. His inherent fire magic abilities sparked out at her, and he killed her in an instant without ever consciously understanding his own actions. What he'll only find out through magical means later in the campaign, is that this young girl actually had grown affectionate towards him, and had hoped to confess her feelings to him that day.

After this, he fled the village and subsisted in the wild for some time, until he was of-age. During this period, he learned to harness his innate magic to disguise himself as a half-elf, but he also learned to hate and resent the people of this world. He grew to believe that they were all as cruel and corrupt as he himself was, and to prove it, he spent the following few years essentially fighting and fucking his way from town to town. Rumors of a demon of vengeance were whispered among the towns dotting the countryside, and in Saul's eyes, any who showed the slightest moral weakness was subject to his personal brand of judgement. A shady business might be burned to the ground overnight, the corrupt mayor (and potentially his wife) might suddenly become swept into a quite public and humiliating affair, the cleric skimming donation money from the congregation might be hung from a nearby tree. His reputation in the region became so fearful that a band of Paladins was sent to exorcise this demon and free the people from him.

It was then, bloodied and beaten near to death, that Saul dragged himself to the doors of the Temple of the Allfaith, where an older man named Erasmus took him in without question. Erasmus was the founder and master of the temple, and he nursed Saul back to health with his own hands, no questions asked. He took Saul in for the following years, and while he was a difficult and petulant guest at first, eventually Erasmus' open and earnest care broke through to what semblance of a soul he still possessed. The unconditional love of a father-figure gave Saul not a second chance, but the first chance he'd ever had, and over time it transformed him completely. While he remained as serious and stubborn as ever, Erasmus never gave up on Saul, and with his nurturing mentorship, he became a deeply empathetic man, and learned to open his heart and view others as worthy of kindness and compassion.

At the time of the campaign, Master Erasmus has long passed, and Saul has been the Steward to the Allfaith Temple for decades. He's known to be highly competent, deadly serious, and relentlessly stubborn, but ultimately kind. His life now is one that he lives in a constant state of repentance. He hopes that, by serving a temple to all of the gods, some day one of them may open their arms to him despite his hellish nature, and offer him the salvation he so desperately craves. The tragedy of it all is that, in all likelihood, several of the gods would now welcome him as-is in light of his life of dedicated service to others at the temple, but Saul himself has yet to view himself as redeemable.

Now, for the juicy stuff- believe me when I say that few men have ever needed to get laid like Saul does. While he was of course quite rakish as a younger man, once he took on the mantle of responsibility at the temple, the idea of engaging in intimacy with one of the priests or clerics here became unthinkable. There would be rumors, accusations of favoritism, and worst of all, the potential that his true nature might be revealed. So he has kept himself very strictly at arms-length with others for several decades now, and this combined with his normally uptight demeanor has made him the top candidate for "ready to go absolutely goddamn feral if he ever gets the chance to really fuck again." Plus, I mean, his birth father was an Incubus, so.... there are a lot of assumptions that can be made about Saul's equipment and technique, even while in his half-elven form. He's the type of man who would relish just about any form of kink with the right person; his sexuality is a dam with a hairline fracture in it ready to burst open. In particular, he would find the use of power-dynamics to be downright therapeutic. Tying him up and forcing him to surrender his control and his body, then teasing and tormenting him until his over-worked mind is finally blank? Sublime. Offering yourself to him so he can fuck you like the demon he truly is, using all of his strength and power to reduce you to his whimpering toy? Also incredible. A more structured sort of power-play session with ropes and edging and punishment and vaguely religiously toned lectures? Divine. And, as we'll see, he's just primed for a good ol' fashion enemies-to-lovers arc just LOADED with sexual tension.

(I need y'all to realize that for how over-long that was, I skipped over a TON of info and worldbuilding and additional details, seriously, I have such brainrot about Saul you could ask me what he was doing during any single second of his life and I'd have an answer for you lmao)

~~~

Lastly, let's talk about Anya Lisianthus (NPC, DnD 5e) Full art here

Anya, at the time of the campaign, is the High Priestess of Beshaba (goddess of misfortune and bad luck), and, like most who worship such deities, she does so to pacify her goddess and free herself from the shackles of excessive misfortune. Before coming to the Temple of the Allfaith, she had been from a noble family, but one falling in its standing. She'd had many siblings, but nearly all succumbed to illness, leaving Anya to shoulder heavy responsibilities for her family that she'd had no interest in and no preparation for. Due to complicated political shifts (that we don't have time to go into here or Anya's section will be even longer than Saul's lol), her family started getting involved with some political dissidents. Anya took to their philosophies, and soon joined in with rebel groups who sought to overthrow the local religious leader who had begun exerting immense governmental control beyond their normal purview. However, a tiny instance of misfortune lead to her downfall; a coin dropped from a guard's pocket, and when he abandoned his patrol route for a moment to follow it as it rolled, he caught sight of Anya and her rebel allies. After this incident, her family labeled her a traitor and an upstart to save the remains of their own reputation, and she fled the city as a wanted criminal.

At the Allfaith Temple, she found acceptance, peace, and the promise of a goddess who could protect her from capricious misfortune. But, as Beshaba is an "evil aligned" deity, Anya is kept to the underground portion of the Temple for the most part- both by her own preference, and by the looks of suspicion and discomfort that her presence draws when around those who worship gods of light and goodness up on the surface. That said, she still carries the undeniably noble bearing of her upbringing, and is fond of hosting others for tea, provided they are able to supply interesting conversation.

She feels some resentment towards Saul, not only for being boorish and stubborn, but also for his holier-than-thou bearing, which she finds intolerable. However, as she falls in with a group of other underground clerics and priests with dubious plans of their own, she agrees to attempt to learn more about Saul for their purposes. So, she's been spending time trying to get through to him. For now, this has mostly taken the form of arguing bitterly in his office just about any time our group of adventurers pass by there, but with time, the two are going to start noticing other facets of one another. Saul views Anya as a strikingly brilliant woman, beautiful of course, but more importantly someone incredibly engaging to talk to, well-read, well-informed, and who thinks through all angles of a subject. Meanwhile, Anya will come to see that Saul's dedication to serving the people of the temple is no mere mask of piety, but a true and wholehearted desire to do good and protect those who rely on him, and that sort of genuine earnestness is hard to come by. So, y'know. We're definitely headed towards a "oh no I accidentally fell for and slept with the man I was meant to be investigating and/or manipulating oh fuck oh no I guess I'm betraying the bad guys now" kind of situation lol.

Sexually, Anya is confident, capable, but choosy. Her natural charisma may give the impression of a flirt, but in truth, not just anyone is deemed worthy to share her bed. She was nobility once, after all- there was a time when men took a knee for the privilege of an audience with her. That said, once she's decided someone meets her standards, she relishes in learning their turn-ons and desires and exploiting them mercilessly. She's every bit as sexually open and flexible as Saul, but in a far more proactive way; the lusts of her partner are intel, precious secrets to be learned and utilized to the fullest. There's nothing she finds more satisfying than seeing a lover look at her with worship in their eyes as she fulfills them absolutely. Saul, with all of his pent-up libido and sexual baggage, is going to make for an absolutely delightful partner for her. She'll never tire of learning the thousands of ways she can make his stoic facade crumble.

Anyway if you actually read all of this, please know that I hope only good things ever happen to you for the rest of your life, that someone you like kisses you on the mouth sloppy-style, and that you find twenty dollars <3

[janiedean]

I read your metas on why you think GRRM always meant for Bran to be KITN, not King of the 7K as per what he told Benioff and Weiss during their decades-long intimate working relationship on the show adaptation and I have to say I disagree lol. I don't really understand how someone can think that Benioff and Weiss were told 'yeah Jon sits the throne and the irrelevant 8 year old fourth son of the Stark family becomes KITN' and D and D were like, 'ummm no we're going to blow our legacy by putting BRAN of all characters on the IT, and not giving our fan favorite character his shining moment on the IT.' I don't like Bran as King and neither did D and D, but they had to maintain that GOT was some semblance of an adaptation so they had to use Martin's endgames. It blows my mind that people still deny this. I do think the north being independent and Sansa being QITN was fanservice tho. She will likely be Lady of Winterfell, not queen. Anyone that thinks she ends her story in the Vale is deeply unserious.

Jon's a chosen one deconstruction because once he finds out about his parentage, it's not going to be a good thing that gives him a renewed sense of self like in the thousands of other chosen one fantasy arcs. It will be a devastating revelation for him and cause a very negative identity crisis. Also, his parentage was always meant to be a red herring, why do you think GRRM set it up in a way that there is literally no way for Jon to prove he's actually R and L's son? Much less prove he's a legitimate son born from a valid, legal marriage? I don't think anyone outside of Jon's very close inner circle will ever know the truth about who his real parents are, it's not something he will want to ever be made known lmao. The show conflating Jon with YG, not adapting YG, and basically being a Jon Snow is So Great Fanservice vehicle in the last few seasons has made the fandom think that's where his arc is leading, it's not. Not that GRRM will ever publish another book, but anyway.

Also, Jon is not AA, it is Dany. The thing is.....that's not a good thing lol. The AA prophecy is basically prophesizing the coming of Khal Stalin, not a savior lmao. That's the twist and the double edge sword with prophecies that is so very Martin. The constant debates among the fandom as to who is AA is so hilarious because they fundamentally don't understand that it's a negative prophecy. The dramatic irony of house targ thinking they need to bring about the AA prophecy to save humanity when in actuality they are unleashing a new evil that needs to be defeated is deeply delicious dramatic irony. But the fandom is too bogged down into the most basic fantasy tropes to see it and refuses to acknowledge that GRRM is cynically deconstructing these tropes. Almost as if he's trying to say that being the son of the crown prince actually sucks and will make the supposed 'chosen one's' life hell, the ethereal looking princess with the sympathetic backstory is actually an authoritarian tyrant who's bloody conquest for the iron throne using her hordes of brainwashed killing machines will cause destruction not restore some great dynasty, and the 'broken' disabled boy with special mind powers who is able to look into all of history to learn from the mistakes of all the monarchs that came before him is the 'best' ruler for a 'broken' realm.

I'm uuuuh, gonna try and reply to this as briefly as I can but like with the premise that everyone can agree or disagree with anything and text interpretation can't be set in stone until like the entire thing is over... in order

I don't really understand how someone can think that Benioff and Weiss were told 'yeah Jon sits the throne and the irrelevant 8 year old fourth son of the Stark family becomes KITN' and D and D were like, 'ummm no we're going to blow our legacy by putting BRAN of all characters on the IT, and not giving our fan favorite character his shining moment on the IT.'

anon I don't wanna sound rude but.... they lit set jon up to kill the night king and then made arya of all ppl do it NONSENSICALLY just to make ppl surprised, they literally shat all over the entire text since S2 if not S1 already, just the robb storyline shows they didn't understand anything about the point of the red wedding which they said they WANTED to adapt and they basically made shit up since s4 onwards without anything making literal sense including making c*rsei the ultimate boss when there is no shred of text evidence she's that important and grrm is pissed with the ending so like... I can 100% think that both of them didn't gaf about what grrm had to say and just understood what they wanted to, also because we're talking abt the ppl who made stannis go agamemnon on shireen because they hated his ass when if shireen dies like that no way it's stannis ordering it by any shred of textual sense so I absolutely will say dnd didn't gaf about what grrm said and threw their legacy in the trash, that because.... everyone thought the finale was trash and they haven't had a gig like that since bc no one wants them after got, with good reason, so like ppl can say that because there is nothing dnd have done as showrunners that shows they gaf about the og text, end of story

I don't like Bran as King and neither did D and D, but they had to maintain that GOT was some semblance of an adaptation so they had to use Martin's endgames. It blows my mind that people still deny this. I do think the north being independent and Sansa being QITN was fanservice tho. She will likely be Lady of Winterfell, not queen. Anyone that thinks she ends her story in the Vale is deeply unserious.

except the jc endgame is obviously not the book endgame, lit no one's endgame except imvho jon's (hahaha) and possibly tyrion/davos is the actual book endgame and I'd like everyone to remember there's no shred of textual evidence rickon doesn't die in the books but anyway like... sorry but dnd not wanting to put jon on the IT for shock value (which is obvious since everyone expected it) and not giving bran kitn to give it to sansa so ppl who wanted her to be queen would be happy makes absolute sense to me, also like... again I'm not gonna go over it again bc you said you read the meta but: bran is a deconstructed version of a kingly arthurian archetype which by himself means that he has to become king while being disabled/in virtue of having lost his legs so like sorry but bran being king is absolutely in the text but no way it makes sense it's 7k since he's directly tied to his land and its magic same as the fisher king so......

Jon's a chosen one deconstruction because once he finds out about his parentage, it's not going to be a good thing that gives him a renewed sense of self like in the thousands of other chosen one fantasy arcs. It will be a devastating revelation for him and cause a very negative identity crisis

I agree and I wrote a longass meta about jon being a chosen one deconstruction but being AA/his inheritance absolutely does not rule out it being a deconstruction imvho

Also, his parentage was always meant to be a red herring, why do you think GRRM set it up in a way that there is literally no way for Jon to prove he's actually R and L's son?

howland reed was there when he was born and lyanna could have told him and ned they were married, also bran can lit travel in time and prove it/see it happen, but even if he's not legitimate wrt rhaegar it doesn't matter because in the book he's legitimate wrt robb's will so he's gonna get kitn title at some point even just for that but like... point is if howland reed corroborates it and he gets a pet dragon or smth and no one has reasons to disagree esp because they'll need to kill zombies whether r/l were married doesn't matter at all

Much less prove he's a legitimate son born from a valid, legal marriage? I don't think anyone outside of Jon's very close inner circle will ever know the truth about who his real parents are, it's not something he will want to ever be made known lmao. The show conflating Jon with YG, not adapting YG, and basically being a Jon Snow is So Great Fanservice vehicle in the last few seasons has made the fandom think that's where his arc is leading, it's not. Not that GRRM will ever publish another book, but anyway.

we can't know about wrt grrm publishing something else or not but again: howland reed knows and he's still around and kicking and there is no reason for people to not make it known especially when it comes out and they have to treat with dany, also the show conflated young griff with both jon and cersei and jon connington with jorah and daenerys which makes no sense whatsoever so like that argument holds zero water bc they didn't know what they were doing and it shows

Also, Jon is not AA, it is Dany. The thing is.....that's not a good thing lol. The AA prophecy is basically prophesizing the coming of Khal Stalin, not a savior lmao. That's the twist and the double edge sword with prophecies that is so very Martin.

anon the second maester aemon said on page AA is daenerys out loud it went out of the window, the way asoiaf prophecies are structured everyone who's rumored to be X by other people/themselves before it actually happens won't be that, and jon only ever was deemed a candidate by a vision melisandre had... which she immediately discarded bc she didn't understand what the hell her own god was telling her so sorry but I don't agree and it's not gonna happen

The constant debates among the fandom as to who is AA is so hilarious because they fundamentally don't understand that it's a negative prophecy. The dramatic irony of house targ thinking they need to bring about the AA prophecy to save humanity when in actuality they are unleashing a new evil that needs to be defeated is deeply delicious dramatic irony. But the fandom is too bogged down into the most basic fantasy tropes to see it and refuses to acknowledge that GRRM is cynically deconstructing these tropes. Almost as if he's trying to say that being the son of the crown prince actually sucks and will make the supposed 'chosen one's' life hell, the ethereal looking princess with the sympathetic backstory is actually an authoritarian tyrant who's bloody conquest for the iron throne using her hordes of brainwashed killing machines will cause destruction not restore some great dynasty, and the 'broken' disabled boy with special mind powers who is able to look into all of history to learn from the mistakes of all the monarchs that came before him is the 'best' ruler for a 'broken' realm.

anon I don't even disagree with all of this but:

i do not think that in any way shape or form jon is not AA - there is no way he's not, he's lit the only one who actually came back to life in the show if we wanna show truth and there's no other character who lit resurrected and no one else will so there's that, he died according to the prophecy and no one in text would ever put a cent on AA being him, like.,........ what we know is not what they do and for westeros jon snow is the least likely candidate soooo like sorry but I don't think it makes sense that anyone else is AA, you can think it's dany but idt there's a chance in hell

I think the evil is already there and it's zombies, like... ik the show made it look like the long night was nothing but it's the actual ultimate big bad so there's no need for AA to be another evil, rhaegar would have misunderstood the og prophecy well enough as it is without getting that far

jon being the chosen one and AA would still make his life hell

idt dany is written in the book as an authoritarian tyrant and idt it's where she's headed and I'm saying it as someone who doesn't gaf about dany and doesn't care either way but the show version was just ridiculous and nothing in the text says she's headed there whatsoever

I also agree this fandom cannibalizing itself over who is AA is ridiculous... because it's jon and there's no reason to further argue over that ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

bran can absolutely be the best ruler for a broken realm,..... the north, which has been mauled and will be further mauled by the zombies, and it makes no sense he is 7k anyway given his background and stuff, again you can disagree with it as you want but idt anything that happened in the show except an extremely selected amount of things which are absolutely out of context has a chance in hell of happening in the books and from the way grrm reacted to the finale it seems obvious to me, then... again you can agree or disagree with me but I wrote so much meta on the topic I honestly feel like I'd be rehashing myself over and over if I went about it again but like

of course everyone believes in their own interpretation but there's no way I'm gonna be swayed by any argument agains kitn!bran and 7k!jon who then abdicates and goes to the wildlings by anything that's not grrm publishing ados and writing differently, godspeed and that's mvho ;)

[cee-grice]

it is once again blorbo thursday and now I have a bunch more new blorbos so we're gonna talk about them >:))

Some relevant info:

All the following characters are gonna be essentially Quil's co-workers. They're all part of the same project team which the A plot is about

They've (mostly) all been handpicked by Mistress Silvoir (the Academy's current Headmistress) for being outstanding in their respective field

The Cielle Academy has two major study programmes: magic and medicine

The Research Team (part 1)

Celeste Ekelie

the project's resident pathologist!! she's not a mage herself and is instead a graduate of the Academy's medical course

practically the only non-mage on the team lmao

probably the most Normal™ out of everyone, but that's not saying much, I'll be honest

very sweet and conflict-avoidant, will try to cool things down (but Will stay out of it if the conflict's between higher ranking people than her lol she's sensitive ok :()

a bit of a people pleaser tbh.... also kinda neurotic lol aee

LOVES to gossip and sometimes forgets that maybe she shouldn't around some people uhhh

very passionate about what she does and will talk your ear off if you let her :))

she and Quil may have the most well-adjusted relationship out of everyone LOL

also may or may not have a crush on another member of the team....

36ish, short, has glasses, dark-haired, pretty disheveled because she just. doesn't notice lol, pretty much always has her doctor's coat on, trans gal

quote:

“But they are a bit frightening,” she said, dropping her voice conspiratorially. “Especially Mistress Aukateshka. Oh, the way she can just look at you… Ah, but I shouldn't gossip!” she all but squeaked, her voice once more taking on a nervous tone. “They're all very capable professionals. Yes, very respectable.”

Akhel Yachek

a transfer student from an isolated northern country, currently in his third year

Mistress Silvoir's new mentee ✨✨✨ (Quil's replacement question mark ?..)

MAJOR imposter syndrome vibes lmao, he's been put on this project by the Headmistress as part of his specialized curriculum but he's just a student...and all these people are PROFESSIONALS....yeah idk how he's managing it

an aspiring conjuration mage!! (which is basically portal magic)

is actually very intelligent but is scared to say anything because what if he's wrong and everyone will think he's stupid and then he'll get kicked out and

a walking anxiety disorder basically

is intimidated by everyone and everything

both reveres and is frightened by Mistress Silvoir, qualities that Quil absolutely does not possess, so their convos get a little. interesting

19, tall boy, long, near-white blond hair, perpetually pale, wears mostly Academy-issues clothing, so baby blue robes

quote:

“I'm sure you would, but seriously, don't hesitate to put Akhel to work,” Celeste said, flashing him a grin. “He's like our… communal… personal… assistant. Headmistress's orders. I make use of him the most, though, because the others scare him.” “They do not,” he hissed in protest, and immediately flushed in embarrassment. He mumbled something under his breath, glancing away with a wince.

Avriele Kaelion

an abjuration mage that has a scientific specialization in freecasting (the ability to use magia intuitively without a magia conduit; unique to specific venemagiks)

a venemagik herself 👀 and a bit more on the eerie side appearance-wise...maybe a bit personality-wise, too...

extremely blunt. will not sugarcoat her words. she just says how it is and you can't really be mad even

absolutely unreadable tone. good luck figuring out if she's complimenting or criticizing you

is the most cynical about this whole project and its success. thinks they're trying to play with something they don't and can't understand. still does her job, though

is impossible to intimidate. you'll probably get intimidated yourself if you try

a master at catching you off-guard and making you say what you didn't want to. yeah she knows what she's doing

Quil is both on edge around her and can't seem to stay away, she's just Such an interesting conversationalist to him

43ish, very sharp and bone-y stature (you see bones where you probably shouldn't), jet-black hair cut to her chin, paper-white skin, entirely black eyes and lips, likes to wear pastel colors, though

quote:

“The Headmistress has spoken,” Mistress Kaelion cut him off, her voice fit for a music box with how soft and melodic it was. The marbles between her long fingers started to clink again. “The only appropriate response you may have is amen.”

taglist (lmk if you wanna be +/-): @writerfae, @tate-lin, @iriswords, @sternenmeerkind, @thecrookedwriterspath, @pure-solomon, @moonshinemagpie, @arowanaprincess, @scribe-of-stories, @thesorcerersapprentice, @stuffaboutwriting, @doriians, @sam-glade

[yloiseconeillants]

24. How did they fall for eachother? (Quad of Cope >:))

so i cannot answer for the rest of the quad but like - good god this got long sorry -

Louhi enters the War of the Magi plot after losing Tursas, the Nymian Marine she was partnered with in most senses of the word, to the rising waters of the incoming flood. Rather than return to Nym, she makes it to the mainland - and to Mhach! where she runs into Balor, a black mage who is the embodiment of every piece of anti-Mhach propaganda she's heard in Nym (and actually full of demons) but like, he's in Trouble and healer instincts override wartime politics and she patches him up and they decide to travel together - away from Mhach, and toward Amdapor - where it is rumored that the White Mages may have a cure for the mysterious illness sweeping through Nym.

Balor has only really dealt with members of the cult he was raised in and he's has only ever really been friendly with voidsent, so there's a whole thing about the two of them learning how to act around each other - and the one thing that both of them understand is a vow (though levels of reciprocity remain nebulous). Balor promises to protect Louhi and Louhi promises to protect Balor. It's not something she really thinks he's going to commit to until he actually rips someone (heh) to shreds when they threaten her.

This like. rearranges her brain I think. I don't think she ever thought anyone would do something that violent for her again, in like, the way that Tursas had vowed to protect her as part of the holy bond of SCH/WAR, and she's still Very Much lost in her grief over that, and maaaaaybe starts conflating Balor and Tursas in her mind - which, I think, he recognizes and leans into because he thinks it will help her? A couple of Romance Tropes Later (like! idk! untangling underbrush from his horns? Maybe they cuddle for warmth in a cave!! maybe he ends up needing to take his shirt off so she can attend to a cut in his side and ends up blushing through the treatment when she's never done that previously idk!!) and they do end up being intimate, but Louhi is starting to recognize with growing horror that she's like. Ignoring her duty to Nym AND sort of washing her relationship with Balor with her feelings about Tursas, which isn't fair to Balor or Tursas' memory in her mind.

GOD BUT LISTEN the thing is that so much of that thinking is her just deliberately trying to distance herself from like, the Actual Feelings she's developing while traveling - not for the vow to protect each other or the ghosts of Tursas she sees in him, but for like. Balor. Being Balor. A joy.

ANYWAY - at some point, Balor shows back up to their camp with ANOTHER injured man in tow: Leanashe. Leanashe has some malady (he's a vampire, Leanashe is a void-aspected vampire) and Balor begs Louhi to treat him - of course she agrees and Leanashe reluctantly begins traveling with them as well (he knows of an Amdapori cult leader who may be able to help Louhi cure the Green Death). Both Louhi and Balor agree that the best thing for Leanashe is for them to volunteer their blood (Because These Are Our Barbies and We Say So) so that he doesn't have to attack any Unwilling Victims.

So like, between Balor and Leanashe and Louhi things are getting very bloody lmao. They are doing their utmost to Ignore Their Problems and the Upcoming Apocalypse and the fact that both Balor and Leanashe are living on borrowed time (ueueueue) - Leanashe is cynical and Balor is earnest and Louhi is indulgent - at least, that's. how they're dealing with their individual issues. How they are, uh, Coping.

Ah, but I am getting away from the question of how did Louhi fall for Leanashe - it takes a great deal more time and effort, I think. They're sleeping with each other long before feelings get involved. I think with Leanashe it's more that as time passes and the circumstances get more desperate, they realize (through the power of friendship!!!) that their methods of coping and ignoring the truth isn't helping anyone - least of all each other. There's a certain type of love that comes with being vulnerable with someone. They are both processing loss and being kind and honest to each other in ways that they couldn't have been without the uh. upcoming doom. Also, most importantly. They are having the worst fun.

And ANATU. Beloved Anatu. Anatu joins their party before they reach the Amdapori cult, and she's just. So passionate and full of life, trying to prove herself and her theories and like, I don't know how anyone wouldn't instantly fall in love with a field scientist explaining that she's trying to stabilize the aether in the forest while the world is falling apart. Louhi absolutely does - they collaborate on the aether healing, she eases Anatu into the quad, she would keep her safe through the apocalypse and whatever else comes their way. It is Kismet.

anyway they are all bonded in this life and every other and they give me hives

[jules-of-the-sea]

I would love to see a Blorbo ranking for your blorbos from Les Mis, if you are willing to share :)

so i made a character tierlist, i dont actually hate thenardier but its funny to hate him. for side characters: m mabeuf would be guy!!!, fauchlevent would be eh (although the graveyard scene was funny), and marius's relations would all be in eh/mildly annoying because i have no strong feelings about them.

you did say blorbo ranking though and i have no idea what exactly that entails so im just going to do everything i can think of. so heres a list of everyone on the tierlist and a few thoughts on each of them

enjolras 12/10 love of my life, top kin, red <3, hes literally just a guy god i wish i was him its all i ever want hes so !!!!!

grantaire 10/10 love him, probably more like me than enj lmao, jaded, alcoholic, cynic, ao3 always makes him an artist but i dont remember them saying that in the book??? maybe i missed it though, it did say that he knows all the best spots in paris though so thats pretty cool

feuilly 10/10 self taught king, he makes fans, he wants to deliver the world and i support him. we all need a feuilly in our lives

combeferre 10/10 (these ratings are a little redundant at this point) fan interpretation always makes him a bookworm nerdy guy (which i have also done) which i understand bc in the book hugo talks abt how he wants to learn everything and he loves progress and education, but honestly i feel like hes a lot warmer and more social than people characterize him. like they talk about how compassionate he is and how he focuses on the actual people in the revolution more than the movement as a whole

gavroche literally just a little guy, hes got his two children in his wooden elephant what more could a street urchin want

courfeyrac party guy, literally tholomyes but if he wasnt a dick, love him for it. actually thinking abt it, tholomyes was a poet right?? and hugo compares him w courf so,,, poet courf???

bossuet unlucky, actually named lesgle, bald, in a poly relationship w joly and musichetta

eponine bro she was not that close with marius in the book, and i dont think she even knew the amis. its fun to pretend she did though. also the musical makes marius actually care that she dies which is sweet i guess. also i love every queer eponine interpretation.

jehan jean provaire, medieval enthusiast, just a little guy i guess. trans/nb jehan is one of my favorite things actually

joly happy guy, apparently nicknamed jolly because of that, doctor(?), likes self diagnosing, must suck being a germaphobe in 1832

bahorel tbh i forgot like everything the book said abt him. im pretty sure he was the guy who saved marius from being kicked out of law school though?? and also visibly expresses disgust when he passes by law school??? king.

javert single-minded policeman, love the themes and internal struggle, javerts soliloquy and stars are some of my favorite songs in the musical

jean valjean all around a good guy, white bread personality but like,, nice. so i guess hes more like the pre-made pound cake you can get at the store. certified girlboss tho

cosette pretty? i like the cottagecore interpretations but also shes literally just a lonely child from 1832 so i guess its just by default. she seems like the type of girl who would be a pleasure to have in class

fantine sad lady, cosettes mom, i wish she had just gotten cosette back from the thenardiers when she had her job but oh well.

marius annoying little bitch boy mf i swear to god he deserves very little of what he gets. also isnt he like 10 years older than both cosette and eponine??? 1832 moment i guess. anyways hes not that bad but its funny to hate on him.

madame thenardier me when child abuse, kinda a girlboss in the musical but in the book shes just kinda there

monsieur thenardier little rat bitch man, fuck that guy, but also hes literally a cartoon villain and its funny

also the tierlist is made in mspaint, i would have found pictures for everyone but a lot of them arent in the 2012 movie long enough for anyone (me) to know whos who so. crunchy mspaint version

[cookinguptales]

1-2-3-7!

https://www.tumblr.com/cookinguptales/752727268420452352/music-asks-these-are-actually-pretty-fucking-hard?source=share

oh I forgot I did this ummm

sorry all these answers got long rip

1: A song you like with a color in the title

YO LISTEN UP, HERE'S A STORY--

okay look I won't do that to you even though that song slaps every bit as hard now as it did when I was nine.

ummmm serious answer, probably Under A Blanket of Blue by Louis Armstrong and Ella Fitzgerald. A few years ago, I wrote an incredibly long WWDITS fic where Nandor went on his journey and Guillermo eventually found him... I didn't finish it; s4 came out and kind of put a damper on all that, but it still has a very special place in my heart, and that was the song that I used for the title.

I had Nandor's first stop be in America and I thought... well, if I had to say one thing in America is really worth seeing, it's probably our national parks, and the Grand Canyon is kind of emblematic of that... So in the first chapter, I made Nandor take this cross-country Amtrak train so he could ~see America~ and he was still really crabby and depressed about Guillermo abandoning him and this little old lady took him under her wing and taught him how to get his frustration out via cross-stitch. I actually made a whole cross-stitch pattern for that fic, haha. But they talked to each other a lot on the trip (she couldn't sleep, so she was always up pretty late) and he learned about her life and the people she'd loved and lost and it ~really made him think~. Then he finally got to the Grand Canyon and flew out to one of the areas where people aren't allowed, right in the middle, and camped out on one of the little plateaus and looked up at the stars and felt monumentally small in a huge world. And I was thinking about that song as I wrote. It ended up becoming a thematic song for the whole fic.

Also last year I listened to it while watching a meteor shower and it was really nice. :)

2: A song you like with a number in the title

Seventeen (Heathers the Musical)

Seventeen (Reprise) (Heathers the Musical)

Ohhh I really like this musical, and Seventeen is a banger. While the original song is beautiful and fun to sing, my favorite line is actually from the reprise, "We can be seventeen, we can learn how to chill, if no one loves me now, someday somebody will."

Because... so much of the show's message really is about the cruelty of youth and pushing through all that to be kind anyway. To find meaningful relationships anyway. And not to allow yourself to become too cruel and too cynical to find those meaningful relationships. You're not unlovable, you're just a mentally ill teenager. And even if it feels like things are untenable now, life goes on and we can make that life kinder for everyone until you do find that place you belong and the people you belong with. :')

3: A song that reminds you of summertime

Hmm. This is more an artist than anything. There's a Japanese singer that I've enjoyed since I was a teenager named Suga Shikao. I think some of his work used in anime is best known, but all of his music is really kinda chill and funky and I really enjoy it. Sooo many of his songs feel like summer. Kind of hot and sticky and slow and laid-back.

Boiling it down is difficult, but I think I'll go with 午後のパレード (Gogo no Parade -- Afternoon Parade), ８月のセレナーデ (Hachigatsu no Serenade -- August Serenade), and uh. June. That last one is about the month but also a person named June, lmao.

(I'm including the kanji because that's how these songs are listed on Spotify if you want to find them.)

7: A song to drive to

uhhhh well I cannot safely drive due to my tendency to pass out at random intervals, but I am a slut for a road trip and I usually end up controlling the music while we drive. My dad and I go on a lot of really lengthy road trips and I play a lot of music while he drives. Some of it's music he likes, some of it's music I like. This is the one I play when I want to make him laugh.

Movin Right Along (The Muppet Movie)

[goblins-riddles-or-frocks]

Okay! Just copying over my Hadestown thoughts from twitter. Because these were just initial musings they’re a little all over the place:

I ended up liking the show much more than I anticipated! I'm always incredibly wary of anything involving Hades and Persephone these days lmao. people manage to make that myth the most insipid thing sometimes.

The story was honestly far more cynical than I was expecting? It's definitely one of the harshest recent takes on Hades I've seen, and a lot of issues I would've otherwise had with Orpheus are mitigated simply by just how often he's compared to him. Especially when Hades is framed as the unequivocal antagonist, if not outright villain. We get the impression that Orpheus, if given that sort of power and influence, could very well become him.

And for that reason, even though I usually dislike it, I think removing the kidnapping aspect of Hades and Persephone's entire backstory and having it be a relationship that started out on good terms actually works? Because that way it’s such a clearer foil to how we see Orpheus and Eurydice’s relationship unfold. And of course there are many things like in Wait for Me reprise where we see both couples take each other’s hands in identical movements. It’s not a subtle mirroring.

I’m not saying Orpheus is meant to be unsympathetic, that’s untrue. but I think there’s enough acknowledgement of faults and negative tendencies that it doesn’t feel like a blind idealization. The cyclical nature of the story also honestly works for me in that regard, because the implication is that Orpheus will always make these mistakes. He will always be too idealistic, too neglectful, and at the end be ruled by Hades’ same fear of abandonment.

Similarly his song doesn’t work, because in order for the story to repeat, Hades is going to be just as awful every time. and his relationship with Persephone isn’t magically repaired by the song. They need to be at odds just as they are for any of those events to take place. In that way it succeeds in being bittersweet and heartfelt without falling into really neat white male savior territory or narratively excusing Eurydice’s suffering because of Orpheus’ neglect bc idk his work was just that important or some such thing. Like no, it’s all his fault and he fails to make it better and he’s going to do it again lol but he’s also going to try again, and so is she. And they both mean well and will always mean well, despite this terrible cycle. And I do think that sort of idealism, or like grace for fatal flaws, when not blindly upheld is. nice?

That being said, I would have definitely liked more focus on Eurydice? But also Orpheus is clearly framed as the protagonist and I think we actually do get more about her than most retellings (that I’ve encountered anyway) bother to give us. So I’ll take it.

And she does very much get an arc herself, that’s the inversion of Orpheus’. She starts out as this very untrusting, wary person, and it’s sheer tragedy that her learning to trust, and finally putting her faith in someone else directly corresponds to Orpheus succumbing to paranoia. Or she is given more agency to have the choice to go to the underworld, or again later to choose to follow Orpheus back despite his failings, when in the original myth her compliance is taken for granted. She’s not an object.

I initially didn’t really understand the purpose of We Raise Our Cups, considering how damning the depiction of Orpheus is? Because I was reading it as a song that’s solely celebrating him. But seeing how it and Road to Hell reprise are staged just before it helped a lot. Idk seeing the entire cast onstage for it, and realizing that Eurydice also sings half of it, recontextualized it for me and hammered home the show’s main theme of forgiveness and idk. good intentions.

I would say the plot operates on an axis of idealism and trust vs cynicism and paranoia. But underlying that, the cyclical framing device and the story itself, in the way that it is structured as a classic tragedy, highlight forgiveness and just trying your best, in a fourth wall breaking sort of way that ends up being fairly poignant imo

[bakerolivias-archived]

Out of Hosie or Hizzie what ship do you think is the most like Klaroline?

hello, tumblr has literally deleted my answer for this ask THREE TIMES, DAMNIT (and they were kinda longish meta answers too), so fourth time’s the charm i guess? i’ll probably butcher my explanation of my answer to this question so sorry if i sound incoherent LOL, there’s just so much klarohizzie evidence. also i'm about to go off on a tangent, you awoke the beast.

content warnings for klaroline (because i know for some of my followers that’s not really your cup of tea), slightly hosie critical but not anti hosie, slightly josie critical, etc.

to me the answer is str8 up hizzie, hands down, because they parallel klaroline faaar more than hosie (minus the weird lamp stabby and tyler!klaus scene because that was a gross miscalculation on the writers’ parts, but whatevers). and it goes so much farther than the fact that lizzie is a blond and bears more Obvious resemblance to caroline in her physical traits and mannerisms - which, first of all, isn’t true, because while josie is maybe more quiet and reserved she’s equally as much caroline’s daughter (regardless of hair color) and it has been shown in canon that they both inherited some of caroline’s personality quirks and strengths, as well as her supposed “flaws.”

and i guess that, if it’s simply limited to the fact that lizzie is a blond and is caroline’s daughter and hope is the spitting image of her father, by that logic hosie would be equally as much like KC. lizzie is so goal driven and stubborn and opinionated, but also incredibly optimistic. josie seemed a bit more cynical and reserved in the first season but she really grew into herself (if we discount the rampant ableism) and became more confident and outspoken like her sister and mother - and the way these two girls share their mothers’ qualities, and how they approach/view romantic relationships similarly to caroline, is so fascinating to watch. lizzie has many insecurities about “saying the wrong thing,” (see: lizzie having no filter and telling raf “we’re all glad to know you’re single” after she finds out his gf died, lmao) and judges herself harshly for making mistakes and being, sometimes, irrational and a control freak. she thinks her romantic mishaps are because of her own flaws and in her lacking perfection. josie’s insecurities about relationships is more centered on being chosen second, not any self-loathing/ rejection based off any of her flaws, and how she’s “never the one,” whether it’s because of another potential romantic partner (see: the whole love triangle nonsense between hope/landon/josie) or because the relationship, and getting attached to her, is a risk (see: finch’s valid and reasonable but still hurtful concerns about her and josie not having a future together due to the MergeTM; josie wants finch to choose her and take the risk of all the problems and inherent baggage she comes with, for the chance at being together; she wants to be worth that kind of pain, and is open and honest about how she deserves that, and there are so many ways it parallels caroline's love interest scenes it's a crime fandom doesn't talk about it more).

so yeah, it’s been established that the twins are Very Much similar to their mother and hope also shares a lot of her father’s characteristics, but despite that hosie and hizzie are very different relationships, especially when compared to KC. hizzie is more central to the story than hosie is, and they have entire episodes, and even the whole of s4 dedicated to the development of their relationship. they are integral to each other's arcs lizzie was the one who remembered who hope was first, hope was the one who said “everything is right in the world, lizzie and i are friends again,” and i think that their relationship is far deeper and more fleshed out than hosie’s (”you have no idea how deep our history goes” - lizzie). and, imo, hizzie might be what KC could have been if they were done right and their dynamic was actually properly written, because i’m watching tvd right now and there are entire eps where KC’s dynamic isn’t explored and goes unnoticed despite their mass of potential, and it’s clear that the writers didn’t really want to develop KC as much as they wanted to focus on the boring love triangle between their main character and the salvabros but they needed to pander to a somewhat rabid KC fanbase, no offense y'all.

the difference between hosie and hizzie is that while hosie started off as slightly antagonistic, same as hizzie and KC did, they eventually became friends, however it didn’t feel like they truly got under each other’s skin the way HL did, or had a lot of animosity between them that they themselves put there to disguise their hurt the way hizzie did. hosie’s animosity and passive-aggressive behavior just kind of... disappears (and if you’re wondering how that in particular relates to KC, in TOs5, while KC were in a much better place, caroline didn’t hesitate to lecture klaus and be brutally honest about the fact that he was letting down his daughter, to adopt a "harsh" tone because that was what he needed, what he responded to, and hope and lizzie kind of interact in the same way - there are so many instances, so many eps on legacies, where lizzie and hope help each other through the emotional breakthroughs and conclusions they need to get to so they can both properly grow as individuals: see at the 80′s dance when hope tells lizzie “we don’t exist for just one fate” and lizzie in return reminds her “we don’t just exist for one boy,” which hope really needed to hear since she had become very codependent on her and landon’s relationship to an almost concerning degree; in short, HL and KC are never afraid to tell each other the difficult truths and express themselves, which HJ don’t do for each other as often, if ever). HL became friends too, like hosie, but it’s so much more complicated than HJ, which, yeah, while i do like the understated relationship where two characters gradually become friends without any whirlwind dramatics, KC had a very tumultuous relationship, similar to hizzie's, and hizzie need that kind of volatile and brutally honest dynamic because when they’re soft and compassionate, but at the same time challenge each other, they truly thrive. and even after they got past the whole “you told ppl about my episode” thing, when hope and lizzie got to know each other, she was always quick to see lizzie’s supposed flaws as strengths, to defend lizzie to others who would criticize her (”she can’t control her brain chemistry”) and she sees so much good in lizzie in the way klaus saw in caroline despite everyone writing lizzie off as being too much, too insecure and too controlling - klaus, like caroline's good love interests, doesn't see her as someone to be "put up with," or interactions as some kind of charitable action, but "enjoys" her for her strengths and flaws.

josie and hope’s relationship wasn’t even really that antagonistic at the beginning, there was no raw tension the way hizzie and KC had - they were simply acquaintances who felt alienated from each other, because hope seemed more closed off and emotionally unavailable (which is perfectly understandable since so many people in her life died). but hope and lizzie’s initial friction was far more personal, their conflict way more intense and loaded like klaroline’s, and lizzie was legitimately angry at hope for, allegedly, spreading sensitive information about lizzie’s mental illness (which was actually a deliberate lie and act of manipulation on josie’s part, but that’s a moot point lol). and even when the misunderstanding was cleared and HL became friends, hope and lizzie still get under each other’s skin, and are “frenemies” because they’re far more similar than they’d like to admit (reminding me of the scene where klaus told caroline he and her were the same). they confide in each other because they bond through shared experiences, being locked in an 80′s video game together, hiding hope’s secret from the super squad and landon, etc, and through this, as they get to know each other, they begin to see parts of themselves in the other - in the same way caroline was able to see through klaus in s3tvd, which allowed klaus and caroline to have really transparent and honest conversations that i don’t think klaus has had for quite a while, or even knew he needed.

holding on to that thought, on tvd, klaus was a paranoid and untrusting maniac who alienated his family out of his selfish grabs for power, and caroline, who is far more emotionally perceptive and intelligent than anyone (except maybe tyler) gave her credit for. she saw through klaus’s self-destructive tendencies and his loneliness that he brought on himself through problematic behavior (i get it, your father didn’t love you so you assume no one else will either... “you don’t connect with people because you don’t try to understand them.”) and i think lizzie serves that purpose for hope in the same way, because she does not hesitate to be absolutely straightforward and will call hope out on her bullshit - but in a slightly different way, refreshingly honest without being slightly aggressive like her mother was (which i don’t blame caroline for because klaus was trying to make a hybrid soldier out of tyler and rule mystic falls lol).

it’s because lizzie understands hope in a way that she hasn’t really been understood and truly seen since her parents died, that she’s also able to confide in lizzie during difficult times, because like caroline lizzie’s a good listener as well, and lizzie and caroline both put hope and klaus in a position where they’re more relatable, more comfortable and fun and youthful, and they can be comfortable and human and emotional without being such lone wolves all the time.

i’m going to need to wrap up this little rant to a close soon - honestly if you’ve gotten to this point at all it’s a miracle XD, but s4 really is the most representative of hizzie’s complicated and borderline dysfunctional dynamic and it's relation to KC. based off what i’ve seen from spoilers and gifsets and leaked scenes, i think they kind of leaned into klaroline a little bit. i mean the show is called legacies, so i think it would make sense that hope and lizzie follow a similar path as klaus and caroline and repeat the same cycle - “history repeating itself,” and all that. from what i understand of s4 since i haven’t actually gotten to see it yet, hope turns off her humanity because she killed landon, then goes on a murderous rampage similar to her dad, and lizzie wants and even make plans to kill hope (which, really, is peak klaroline lol). but the thing is hizzie repeated the events of klaroline in a different order - hope and lizzie got to know each other and become close, forming a strong bond before hope went on a grief driven murder spree and lizzie lashed out at hope in hurt and anger and grew the Red Oak tree to build a Murder Hope weapon, while KC’s relationship started evolving only after caroline was being the Bait that was intended to lead klaus to his death. but there’s still the same concept here. it’s because lizzie saw so much goodness and PerfectionTM in hope, in how kind and compassionate she was, because she and hope had feelings for each other (sirebond for the win!), and because she considers hope to be her family and has so many complicated feelings for the woman that hurt her, that she couldn’t kill her. lizzie’s putting faith in hope choosing a new path and one day being deserving of forgiveness the same way caroline put that same kind of compassion and faith in klaus because she saw goodness in a man who was a complicated monster ("i find myself wanting to forget the bad things you did, (TVD)" "i saw the goodness in klaus, (TVD)" "this [being good and selfless] is all i ever wanted for you (TO)"), and it was up to klaus and hope to show their BlondesTM that they’re worth it (which klaus did: “i happen to think you’re someone worth knowing”).

aaaand that's a wrap on what was probably a bunch of incoherent ramblings lol.

[laufire]

(CW for mentions of csa)

A lot of Commonly Accepted (Often Through Uncritical Repetition) Wisdom in fandom leaves me baffled, when not straight up ticked off, but one that's been on my mind lately, that never fails to bring a scrunched up expression to my face, is the idea that Bela Talbot's backstory was some last minute add-on to her character.

You might argue that the reveal was rushed since the writers caved in and killed her off against their original plan (or at the very least, earlier than). Or that using abuse is a trite way to raise sympathy for an antagonistic character. You could even say that some of the finer details might’ve not been set in stone until they sat down to write her exist, although that one is dubious. But I’m never really going to buy that Bela’s backstory hadn’t been already planned, likely in big part.

The reason why is Season Three Episode Six, “Red Sky At Morning”, Bela’s second episode, co-written by Eric Kripke himself. As all episodes with Bela were, may I add; which means he had a hand in crafting her story from the beginning, as creator, director, and writer.

There Dean, a character that has been shown as sharp and intuitive (although his success rate ain’t that great when it comes to Bela, admittedly xD), immediately pegs her as someone with Issues TM, asking “how did she get like this”. He even taunts her by referencing her father, showing off his talent to hit where it hurts by asking if he “didn’t give her enough hugs”, ‘cause he’s classy like that. This visibly affects Bela, changing her demeanor in their conversation, from more playful to defensive. Hell, I remember during my first watch in real time this moment, especially paired with the rest of the episode, was when I first thought it was possible she came from an abusive family.

Because, c’mon. This whole episode is about parricide. The monster of the week is a ghost who haunts those that “spilled their own family’s blood”. We get two other examples: a woman whose accidental car crash killed her cousin, and two brothers who killed their father for the inheritance. Clearly, the ghost doesn’t have a narrow criteria when it comes to means or culpability -which makes sense given his particular story: he was tried for treason and his brother, the captain of the ship, issued the sentence.

And just as we find out this information... Bela sees the ghost ship that foretells her death. This, paired with the insinuations about an unsavvory past and her discomfort at the mention of her father, aren’t a wealth of information, but they start to paint a picture. We now know for a fact that Bela caused the death of at least one relative (mom and dad); that she wouldn’t have needed to do it directly (she made a crossroads deal); and that she might’ve had a sympathetic motive (her father sexually abused her and her mother turned a blind eye).

That scene offers some more tidbits of information about her past that seem too in tune with 3x15 to be coincidental, and that absolutely break my heart: Bela’s “You wouldn’t understand. No one did.“ and “I’ll just do what I’ve always done. I’ll deal with it myself”. See, I always thought Bela must’ve told people, when she was a kid. That she reached out for help not just to her mother, but to everyone around her that she thought could’ve help: teachers, maybe even law enforcement; adults that should’ve being worthy of that trust and protected her. Except no one did (and the fact that her family seemed to be not only very rich but influential paints a very bleak picture that surely contributed to her cynic view of the world). So she took matters in her own hands, and sold her soul for ten years of relative safety and freedom from her abusers.

To tie it all up, her final scene in that episode offers some more moments that again, are very in line with her backstory. We see how she treats relationships as transactionals: she pays ten grand to the Winchesters for saving her life, like she paid with her soul. Dean, again, draws attention to her likely messed up past by calling her damaged, and she replies that “takes one to know one”. Terrible childhood, ammirite. The show wasn’t been subtle here: it’s telling us Bela has a terrible past, like the Winchesters do, but of a different kind that has resulted in a different kind of person. So yeah, I think all the facts were hinted at back in 3x06.

We could go even futher back and point out 3x03, Bela’s introduction. One of the very first things she says in the show, during her first face to face with Dean (a character that just condemned his soul to Hell), is “We’re all going to Hell, Dean. Might as well enjoy the ride”. Sure, it could be an incredibly fortuitous coincidence; as a writer, I’ve had those and they’re damn great. But it seems VERY lucky, and more likely to be a case of the kind premeditated, well-placed foreshadowing that Kripke excels at.

So, okay. I’ve established why I think Bela’s backstory wasn’t a spur of the moment decision. But why is there a notable narrative in fandom that it IS?

First thing first, I want to get something out of the way: you don’t have to like it even if it was planned ahead. I understand it’s a very thorny subject, and to make matters worse, it’s inherently tied to her death. You might even be fine with the what, but not with how it was dealt with (although personally, I appreciate that neither the abuse nor her death were shown onscreen. In fact, the worse violence we see Bela on the receiving end of in her run is Dean’s threats and manhandling, which seems like a very purposeful choice ngl. Even Gordon freaking Walker was gentler lmao).

But I do disagree with some extended fandom opinions on the topic, and I guess that’s what the post is about. For one, I don’t see how the show “condemned” or morally judged Bela in this scenario. If anything, they clearly wanted to make her sympathetic, AND they showed Dean as being in the wrong by robbing him of information. Dean’s opinion on Bela couldn’t count for shit, for once, because he didn’t have the full picture; because Bela had deemed him UNWORTHY of the full picture, and thus anything he had to say on her couldn’t be taken at face value (except this is Supernatural, so I guess this was a little too much to ask of some people?). I think saying that just because Bela died and went to Hell as a consequence of her deal, IN THE SAME SEASON the same happened to our co-lead, because the writers deemed her evil and irredeemable is simplistic at best, and the audience projecting their own feelings (or being unable to see past Dean’s) onto the writing.

All that said, to go back to the initial point of all of this xD: WHY does fandom seem to insist on viewing this narrative choice as some cheap last minute addition?

There might not be one explanation that fits all, but I have a few ideas. One is that, if this wasn’t planned for and hinted at from early on, some people might feel as if this “absolves” them of their previous (and disgustingly hateful and misoginistic) reactions to Bela. Others will see this as absolving Dean, and maybe even Sam to a lesser extent, for not helping her and for being callous towards her; if her tragic backstory was this artificial, rushed choice made by Those Writers, then Dean wasn’t responsible for reprehensible attitudes towards someone who deserved his compassion (and it can’t be denied that this fandom loves absolving Dean of responsibility lmao). And a lot people are probably only repeating what they've heard from others as the accepted narrative, especially those that didn't even watch all of s3 if at all (Castiel is my fave too, but seriously, s1-3 are worth it).

It’s like they’re creating this imaginary separation between Bela pre-reveal, and Bela post-reveal, to make the situation easier to themselves. See, Bela pre-reveal was this annoying bitch who inconvenienced and embarrassed our leads (not to mention dared have chemistry with them), and thus deserved to be punished for it; or, if we’re going with more modern fandom sensibilities, she can be made to fit into the shallow #GirlBoss mold, with a side of “Secretly A Lesbian And Therefore Not A Romantic Threat” flavour -the current preferred method to make controversial female characters more palatable.

The reveal throws a wrench into this narrative. “Bitch who deserves her comeuppance” is a hard sell when you’re talking about a character who survived csa. And a shallow #GirlBoss reading doesn’t work if you have to acknowledge that Bela was one of, if not the most tragic characters in the entire run of Supernatural.

She spent over half her life at the mercy of her abuser(s), hurt by those who should’ve loved her and protected her most. The rest of her life was extremely lonely, with seemingly only a cat as company, and a surface-level freedom that hid under the sentence that loomed over her head. She died without a single friend, or a simple show of kindness and compassion, without anyone bothering to fight for her. And then she ended up tortured for who knows how long until she became one of her torturers.

All of that is extremely difficult to digest. And when things are hard to swallow, people do as people do, and they try to simplify them. So, sure. Bela’s reveal wasn’t ever hinted at, it’s completely removed from her character and the person we met, and is not even worth trying to fit into the narrative. Sounds easy.

[lizacstuff]

Hi! Your thoughts on the epi? How emotional was the ending? I also loved that the stories came full circle (Apollo and the little prince). With how much they were discussing the strawberry allergy, I knew it was a matter of time before an allergic reaction emergency would occur. Serkan is not perfect but honestly who's parents are? I'm glad he got the reassurance he needed from both Eda and Kiraz. I'm also glad the truth about Aydan and Kemal's five year relationship is out to Serkan.

My apologies in taking so long to answer this, but LOVE, LOVE, LOVE. For me, this was a very gentle, but very enjoyable episode of television. I think you'd have to go back to season one episodes 4,5,6 to find three episodes in a row that were as good as 43, 44, 45 (coincidentally episode 4,5,6 of the 2nd season). How delightful that cliffhangers in season 2 are emotional plot points for our dynamic duo, instead of the nonsense like falling off of boats or getting caught by a gunman while playing detective, or non-stop, third-party psycho trauma like we endured during 29-38.

The ending was very emotional! As you say, it was always a matter of time before the strawberry allergy played a role, they've mentioned it too many times this season for it not too. Here it played two roles, first putting Kiraz's life in danger thus cementing their burgeoning family unit AND being the genetic tie between three previously hidden generations. Potent stuff.

I was thrilled by all the domestic Edser in this episode. Outdoors, kitchen, living room, bedroom, kid's room, we got it all! I just loved the family time, and the sexual tension and the way they grew closer throughout the episode. I saw some criticism that they made no progress in this episode, but I disagree with that. Just because they didn't make out or have sex, doesn't mean they didn't progress. In this episode they went from being on opposite sides of a custody battle to agreeing to buy a car together, travel together, work together, not to mention having a romantic dinner together.

So buckets of progress was made, however, more on that later, first the supporting characters...

(more under the cut)

What a relief to have both Eda and Serkan treating Aydan and Ayfer as the meddling interlopers they are! Serkan wordless, furious glares were delicious, seriously I don't know how AA had the courage to stay in the house with him looking at them like that, he couldn't have been less welcoming. And Eda actually questioning her aunt about why she was there was a surprise. Of course Ayfer continues to be super punchable. I really, really wanted to hit her right in the face when she gloated over Kiraz calling him Serkan Bolat. Seriously, bitch? You know that's your grandniece, right? And you know that she must have some issues about her dad being absent from her life (which you are partially responsible for) so the fact that you're gloating that a man who was prevented from knowing he had a daughter (again, partially your fault) and a girl who was prevented from having a father (again, you bear some blame) have an emotional barrier in their relationship is beyond shitty. What happened to her personally that made her such a cynical asshole?

Aydan on the other hand is still annoying but she has her own problems, lmao. I'm dying because early in the day the episode aired, I said to both @echoapothecary and @melly326 that it was a shame that the show had decided to waste the potential of Sinan's resemblance to Kerem. I have been hoping they would do the Serkan father storyline since the moment the character was introduced, but the day I give up hope for it is the day it happens! I legit had no expectations that there was even a chance it could still happen.

Personally I'm excited, It's nice that the writers gave Aydan some cover, she didn't lie, she simply didn't remember they had hot baby-making sex back when she was having problems with Alptekin. Imagine what might have happened had she remembered at the time. If Aydan had come clean and left Alptekin, Serkan never would have been sent away, Aydan would have had the support she needed when Alp died and Serkan would have grown up loved. I hope Alptekin suspected the truth, because it would go a long way in explaining why he was such a shit-stain to Serkan his whole life.

It was obvious what direction the story was going from the conversation between Kemal and Aydan when he told her they'd "you know'd" that night, but I still let out a squeal when he revealed his strawberry allergy. Three generations of aversion to frangeria. Google tells me that severe strawberry allergy is rare so this really is an obvious flag they've been waving in front of everyone.

The story also dovetails nicely with Serkan's own journey with surprise fatherhood. We know he hasn't taken to Kemal, has been suspicious of him, however hopefully his own experience being kept out of his daughter's life will make him sympathetic to his newly found father.

Engin and Piril... were there. I can't tell you how much I don't care about Engin's out-of-the blue catering business, or Piril's suspicions. However, I did enjoy the 3 way family phone call, once again Can comes through with the right bit of info for Kiraz, he's definitely the most useful member of that family.

Pina and Kerem were also... in the episode. I did giggle when Asst Kerem admitted he was stunned into silence by Serkan's charisma. Tell me about it.

As for Melo, she stole the show among the supporting characters. Her heartbreak was palpable, but WHYYYYYYY did she have to fall for such a no-personality sad sack? Seriously, even drunk that guy is boring. Also why is he lurking outside Eda's house like a creeper, staring in windows? What does it take to get through to him? Serkan and Eda are following a court order and living together, they are in the process of making their first lunch together, you, sir, are not needed at their home for their first meal as a family. GIVE THEM SOME SPACE!

I really don't get what Melo sees in him. However her crush gave us the funny scenes with the mug turning red and also the heartfelt friendship scene with Eda. It's about time Eda is shown taking an interest in her life, it was really lovely how Melo got over the awkwardness of telling her and Eda was supportive and kind. Also hopefully it made Eda aware of the problems associated with not drawing hard boundaries for someone she knows has feelings for her. Draw the boundary, Eda.

As for Eda, she was a bit softer this episode, you could see Serkan getting to her. One of my favorite things about the episode was how Serkan was subtly planning their life together as a family, and Eda being swept away with the tide and going along with it. (gif set here) Family car? check. Family trip to Italy? Check. Sharing an office and working together at Art Life again? Check. Answering questions and giving preferences about one specific house Serkan is designing? Check.

This is significant because no matter that Eda still (understandably) needs time to forgive Serkan and to trust him with her (and Kiraz's) heart again, deep down she knows it's inevitable. She knows they're inevitable. There's no reason to seriously fight the inroads he's making into their life, because she knows he's going to succeed. In the deep recesses of her mind, she knows she's going to forgive him, and that they're going to be together, not just as co-parents to Kiraz, but as a very much in-love couple. However, she still needs a little time to get there. And that's okay. You don't erase five years of loneliness and heartbreak in a few days, nor should you try to. There's no reason for her to rush to let him back in her bed or into her heart, there's time for her to heal and for him to prove she can trust that he won't leave her again, even for noble reasons.

The bet was a clever way to extend their time living together. And I liked the detail that she was secretly so pleased to have him there, and still so attracted to him, but she knew she couldn't let him know because then it would be game over. He'd settle in and never leave. Not that I think she wants him to leave, she doesn't and that's what scares her. She clearly wants him, and wants him there, she got melty every time she looked at him with Kiraz, but she can hardly be blamed for needing to take it slow. That being said, while putting Kiraz to bed, I loved how Eda's plan to put Serkan on the hot seat completely backfired on her. Hee hee. She decided to tell Kiraz that they're being honest and to ask whatever she wants (that could have gone really wrong, by the way, if she asked if Daddy had really been in space) but daddy's-girl Kiraz immediately turns it back on Eda and wants to know if she loves Serkan Bolat and then sets them up in the same room. Good girl, Kiraz!

I immensely enjoyed the tension of Eda and Serkan sharing a room and sparring about which side they have to sleep on and OF COURSE they can only sleep facing one another. And OF COURSE Serkan migrated to the bed in the middle of the night. Funny how these two keep waking up all wrapped up in one another, almost like... they not only gravitate to one another, they also calm and comfort one another.

Once again, every scene between Edser and Kiraz was gold. I can't say enough how tiresome I usually find children on screen, but here I'm just delighted by her precociousness. Even her making a giant mess in the kitchen was endearing. As I said, I loved how much domestic Edser we got this episode. Them running around the kitchen with their daughter, having a flour fight? Pure delight. And I swear Maya Basol looks more like a mixture of Hande and Kerem than their own child would. It's simply uncanny.

Beyond their domestic scenes, it was lovely to see them both just falling back into a spot where their lives were intertwined. Loved Serkan driving her to work at the hotel, and then driving her home again when she quit. Not to mention how supportive he was, I'm not sure how she didn't either jump him right then and there or start crying in relief, when he was telling her she has the talent to be doing bigger more prestigious jobs and now that he was here to help she could do it. Eda's had support in raising Kiraz from Ayfer and Melo, but they really don't understand her career. Serkan understands. He is the life partner she's been missing.

Eda and Serkan seem to be on the same page as far as their families interference, being annoyed at both Ayfer and Aydan, I'm glad to see neither trying to defend mother/aunt to the other. Eda also seemed annoyed by Serkan moving his office to her house for the day, and she made several inferences, as she's been doing, about him putting work first. This is completely understandable, IMO. He left her on their wedding day for work, and he used "work is the most important thing to me" as the reason both times he broke her heart. Yes, after the fact, she found out that there were other, much bigger reasons and work was just the excuse, however that doesn't erase her deep-seated, pavlovian-like response she has to him seeming to prioritize work. She lived five years, raising their child alone, thinking he loved work more than her. It's completely natural that she's holding onto that for a bit. And it's okay if he needs to prove to her that he can prioritize her and Kiraz over work before she lets it go completely. I get it.

As I said, I enjoyed Serkan trying to trap her with the mood mug, that's the kind of gentle friction and comedy I'm here for. Of course he does catch her later on the phone admitting that she loves that he's there and it's game, set, match. For Serkan. I think we're all glad he won that bet. However, him removing his bed on the floor was a bold move and he pretty much deserved her locking him out after he did it. I read a lot ridiculous discourse on this, and my response is: you're taking this show too seriously again. This is a romcom move, it was done for comedy, and I promise you Serkan is able to fend for himself. If he didn't want to be kicked out, he shouldn't have tried to force his way into her bed again. Waaaaay presumptuous, man.

Buuuuut... how did Serkan get off the balcony? I don't know, but as I said he can fend for himself. Dude probably spent the night on the living room couch. Serkan's sneezing was cute, but being cold doesn't give you a cold. Maybe it's an allergy from too much time outdoors, lol. LOVED Serkan smoothly convincing Eda to come back to the office. If he'd approached that directly, it might have been a weeks long endeavor to get her to make ArtLife her office, but Serkan building the play school was genius! He never wastes time, that guy. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't, but this was impressive.

It warmed my heart how they fell so easily into working side by side. Casual conversations about what they were working on, and, you know, randomly deciding to go on a family trip to Italy with your estranged lover, as you do. Which all led to one of my favorite scenes... dinner! They got back to honest, open communication and it was lovely. Thankfully, Eda stopped letting him think she was running off to spend time with Burak and I adored Serkan coming clean and allowing himself to be vulnerable in admitting that he'd made the dinner for them and that he'd been upset when she didn't show. That's how you make progress. Just beautiful.

As for the "we need to all tell the truth" scene, that was silly, but if it gave us Aydan's secret being revealed I'm a-okay with it. About time! Buba was once again annoying and it was cathartic for Serkan to be able to tell him he doesn't like him. Same, Serkan. Seriously, can he and Ayfer fall in love and move to the country to run an Alpaca farm or something? The hospital scene was very poignant, I wrote more about it here. Now what I need is for Eda and Serkan to walk out of that hospital room and, out of relief, fall into the tightest hug. Crossing fingers!

[shimmershae]

My thoughts on Episode 3--Hunted.

 Most of you lovelies already realize this, but my thoughts tend to zig and zag quite a bit, lol.  So.  To save some of you the headache and spare you from seeing spoilers you’d rather not see yet, I’m again placing them behind a cut.  

First things first.  I have totally turned into Yvette Nicole Brown with her TWD notebooks, lol, and I’m not even sorry.  I just felt like it would be fun to go back when the final episode is in the books and see how well my thoughts from these early episodes line up with what I’m feeling when we say our (not-so) final goodbyes.  

But that’s enough about that. Let’s get to this thing.  

It really is insane how very much I love Melissa McBride.  Just hearing her doing the previously on TWD recap voiceover makes me ridiculously happy.  

Cole!  Dude!  We hardly knew ya.  

Not gonna lie.  That first shot of Maggie in all the chaos reminded of a shirt I’ve seen.  It says--”Well, well, well.  If it isn’t the consequences of my actions.”  

I have to hand it to Angela and the rest of her team.  These opening scenes--on all 3 episodes--have been BOMB so far.  They really hook you in right away.  At least IMHO.  

I realize I’m behind the game on this little tidbit, but how much do I adore the fact that Dog is now in the opening credits?  

Okay.  Alexandria might look like it’s been on some kind of post-apocalyptic bender but all our girls are looking beautiful as ever.  Maybe it’s Maybelline, lol.  

I love to see Kelly and Carol still gravitating toward each other.  It really speaks to each woman’s heart.  Carol wants to make amends so badly and Kelly just has the most lovely, warm, forgiving heart.  

Carol’s point about Alexandria still needing the horses to help with the heavy lifting and pointing out the walls and rebuilding won’t matter quite as much if they’re limited by their  hunger and what they can physically lift on their own isn’t wrong.  But I’m sure the same viewers that were okay with Daryl and Co. going out on Maggie’s suicide mission (using the same reasoning) and saying it made sense for the bigger picture will pretend not to recognize that the same element is there in Carol’s desire to go out there and look for the horses.  You know.  Because it was Carol’s idea and not that of their fave(s).  

Aaron, Man.  Or maybe I should say Angela.   You just had to put a pit of dread in my belly mentioning Buttons like that.  RIP, Buttons.  You deserved better.  I’m still traumatized.  

Look at all the babies bonding.  Look at RJ getting to sit at the big kid table.  

“My mom always comes back.”  She damn well better.  Those babies need her.  Until she does, though, Uncle Daryl and Aunt Carol (and Aunt Rosita and everybody else) are going to be there.  

Anyway.  Poor RJ.  He barely ever gets any lines, lol.  

Hershel and Judith are obviously the mini-adults in this group and baby Rhee is already more cynical and jaded than his sweet daddy was until they reached Alexandria and the wheels started to come off.  

So.  Does Maggie just think everybody’s already dead here or what?  Hmm.  

You know.  Any building can be creepy AF when the lights are off and it’s dark, lol.  Any building.  

So much darkness so far this season.  I’m going to have to invest in some blackout curtains.  I just know it.  

Where are all those stairs leading?  Why am I thinking of Hitchcock?  Am I mixing up my scary, suspenseful movies?  Probably.  

Of fucking course, Maggie dropped her flashlight.  Thank goodness she had that lighter at the ready just before Ghost Face Reaper took a swipe at her.  

Is that Father G with a screwdriver impaled in his thigh?  Listen.  These people deserve a Mega Bottle of pain killers and a week just vegging out in a soft, luxurious bed.  

All these horror movie tropes.  Some of them are cheesy, yes.  But I’m totally here for it.  

LMAO.  That’s it, Maggie.  A good old punch in the nuts works every time.  

Alden really is having a terrible, horrible, no good very bad day.  

Negan is still Negan.  Self-serving and looking out for number one.  But I believe the man really does feel the group is his group too.  He’s like that long lost, sketchy uncle nobody wants to acknowledge much less invite to the dinner table, but that bond?  However thin?  Is there.  

I am both hating that Maggie is being forced to work with the man that murdered her husband (my baby Glenn) and finding it fascinating the lengths she’s willing to go to survive.  This your plan, Angela?  

Rosita and Carol!  How sad is it that the last really significant scene I can remember the two of these women sharing was way back?  Before Rick and Co. attacked Negan’s outpost and Maggie and Carol were subsequently taken?  If only the show had done more of these kind of scenes.  

How much do I love all the girls working together?  Gimps would never.  They’d all be stuck back at Alexandria minding the kids and the community.  

Shallow aside--Rosita is so pretty in this scene.  

Rosita being worried about Carol honestly makes my heart hurt, because it’s about damn time more of them actually did.  Her saying Abraham is trying to tell her something in her dreams is interesting.  Angela sure loves her dreams, doesn’t she?  

Where are Daryl’s dreams, hmm?  No.  Seriously.  I guess they want to give some viewers plausible deniability until the bitter end.  

“Really?  We’re just gonna go toward the screaming?  Cool.”  Hahaha.  You know.  Even the smart people in horror movies sometimes bite it, Negan.  Just saying.  Maggie really does need to “stop running up the staircase” when she could just run out the front door though, lol.  

Poor Duncan.  I think you could have been another Tyreese, Jerry type for me.  

WTF does this show have against horses?  Those poor creatures.  

Kelly is totally me right now.  I’d be freaking inconsolable.  

Carol needed that hug.  Thank you, Magna.  From the bottom of this tired fangirl’s heart, thank you.  

Why give us that beautiful, golden shot with the horses when you’re planning to stab us through the heart later and twist the knife.  Oh.  Yeah.  That’s exactly why.  

Oh snap!  Father G’s delivery when he tells that Reaper “I’m not.  God isn’t here anymore.”  Cold as ice.  

Judas.  That the Reapers’ work.  Or.  Damn.  Either way, that’s harsh.  

Back to what Alden was saying.  All these oprhaned children.  Who’s going to take on Adam if he dies?  That poor kid has had a rough go of it.  Knowing that, makes you wonder what Alden was thinking volunteering for the suicide mission.  

Omigosh.  There went Agatha.  Terrible way to go.  Right, Beatrice?  

I’m sobbing.  Carol with the horse.  That hurt my baby so much but she hurt herself for her family the same way she has been doing since the Prison.  Melissa Mcbride?  When she cries, I cry.  Every effin’ time.  Aaron being there just made it hurt more.  But at least someone was there to see how and really take in how she continues to break pieces of herself off to keep her family as whole and safe and happy as she can.  

Rewinding a minute--that Magna and Carol conversation.  I get Magna’s reasoning too.  I do.  But Angela is just making everything so dire right now so that the sun when Connie is ultimate found shines a ltitle brighter.  

Those babies know they’re eating horse.  I could never.  

That’s got to be a different Coco.  She’s even smaller.  But she’s gorgeous.  

Fucking finally.  Angela having the other characters notice after an eternity of being blind to it, just how much Carol sacrifices of herself for them.  It’s so long overdue and I imagine Rosita’s even more worried for Carol now.  It’s a shame it’s taken 11 seasons.  My baby’s had blood on her hands trying to keep her family safe and whole and happy and fed for a long damn time.  So heartbreaking watching her try to scrub the blood away.  

Sweet, sweet hug that Kelly gave Magna.  She’s such a sweetheart kid sis to all of them, isn’t she?  

Interesting place of refuge.  A gutted church.  A visual symbol, Angela, of where Maggie and the rest of our people are now perhaps?  

“It’s easy for you, isn’t it?  Being reckless with sombody’s life...”  Maggie.  Maggie.  Those words would have hit so much harder if we hadn’t spent the majority of the last 2.5 episodes watching you ignore sound advice just because it came out of the mouth of somebody you (justifiably) hate.  

But will Alden be there when Maggie and Negan get back?  That is the question.  Or will he eventually Lucille himself?  

That little bit of lineup Negan music to remind the audience of Negan lovers and sympathizers that he once took great pleasure in murderously swinging a bag at people’s heads was a nice, subtle touch there.  Like agree with her or not, Maggie  is literally left to rely  on the hope, however small it is, that Negan has changed just enough that he won’t try to finish a job he taken on years before--killing what’s left of her.  

Oh lawd.  Next episode sees the return of a character literally nobody asked for.  How excited am I not?  

Dog better not be harmed or so help me.  

Now for Angela’s weekly explanations of WTF she/there were thinking because they been doing this plausible deniability thing so long some people out there watching with biased, muddy stan glasses can no longer separate head canon from canon.  

Is Maggie worried at all about Daryl or does she just assume his superhero powers are in full effect in this episode?  

“You can’t really say it wasn’t going to happen anyway.”  Not Angela pointing out that simply laying the blame for literally everything bad that ever happens at Carol’s feet isn’t the answer.  Say it louder for those in the back.  Alpha was going to do what Alpha wanted to do.  

“There is love there.  There is respect there.  However, there’s also frustration...”  You damn skippy.  Friendships and human relationships are complex AF.  Like Carol. She’s honestly one of the most complicated characters on this show and any show, IMHO.  That’s what makes her so memorable and such a lightning rod for discussion.  

I know I might be in a minority, but I really feel like they need more of those little scenes between the kids to keep things real.  

Kang saying she always feels like she’s going to get murdered in a staircase or parking lot is relatable, funny, and sad all at the same time.  It’s a girl thing.  

Why is Carol’s story giving me Dark Knight vibes?  Like I feel like she’ll gladly shoulder the burden of their distrust, their hate, or their judgment as long as the hard choices she makes keeps them safe.  And she’s still ultimately going to come back to save their asses even when they forsake her.  Just like Bruce Wayne/Batman.  Am I reaching too far, lol?  Because sometimes I do that.  

Anyway.  This is the third episode of the season and the third episode in a row that I mostly enjoyed.  I don’t know if I’m just so relieved and happy to have all the characters and my show back or what, but overall?  I’ve been pleased with the episodes and found something to love in all of them.  

There’s a much stronger horror vibe woven throughout Season 11 so far.  I feel like it’s a return to the roots of the show and I like that.  Literally none of the characters are making perfect choices and this viewer is here for it.  My only complaint so far is there hasn’t been enough Carol but what we’ve been given has felt like a gift and significant in a way that Gimps’ version was not.  Also?  I really hope the trend of the ladies working together and supporting each other continues because they rule the TWD world, lol.  

Hope you enjoyed at least some of my TWD word vomit.  

Until next episode.  

[sunshine-in-a-bottle]

I'm watching Beast Wars again for no reason and so you all have to hear me talk about it.

If I was personally given Rights I would first use them to erase Cheetors weird crush on Blackarachnia because it literally adds nothing to the plot or the characters. Instead I'd take full advantage of my personal headcanon and make Cheetor desperately want a big sister because I am always a slut for Found Family. Like, that scene with Una ?"Aw, she wants to be you!" Like c'mon viewing him reaching out to Blackarachnia because he desperately wants some semblance of a relationship is a lot more wholesome when it isn't romantically coded. Cheetor is Lonely, so horribly lonely, and so young seeming in comparison to the rest of the cast. He hasn't lost that love for the stars or spiraled into cynicism just yet, and I would much rather explore the ways he tries to reach out to his bitter, jaded teammates. And maybe he's left wanting, maybe he gets tired of being lonely, and maybe he fucks up trying to be like them because "he tried to prove himself." And maybe that scene where Optimus, Silverbolt, and Rattrap reach out to him has a little more weight because it isn’t just Cheetor trying to be an adult, but a Cheetor that tried to be them and post Feral Cheetor has real fucking consequences and isn't just a cool upgrade.

I want that episode where Rattrap finds out they spat on Dinobot’s memory by making him into a "dishonorable" clone and goes ballistic. I want him to find the memories Dinobot stowed away and be conflicted. Is it Dinobot without the spark? Could he live with only a shade? Would Dinobot even want that? I want him to try and fail and be utterly distraught over the whole damn thing. I want him to be angry every time he sees Dinobot 2. I want Rhinox to try and fail to comfort him. I want Cheetor to sit with him, neither speaking but both knowing they're in this fucked up mess together now. CONSEQUENCES. WHERE ARE THEY. GIVE THEM TO ME.

I also just really want Blackarachnia to have closer bonds with the team??? Idk, I'm vibin well enough with her and Silverbolt but tbh I'd really just like her to have an episode where she's hanging out with someone else and Isn’t A Complete Rude Person. I think that's something I actually really vibed with in Beast Machines (although my memory there is still pretty fuzzy, I'll probably have to rewatch that to say for sure) Blackarachnia could actually work with the team in a friendly and occasionally sweet way. She was capable of a blunt and angry sort of kindness. Should that happen right away? Nah of course not, she needs to get comfy with her shiny new Dumbfuck Teammates. But there’s no real Solid Connections there other than Silverbolt, which is purely romantic. (Once again I emphasize Cheetor and Found Family)

Rhinox just needs more in general. If I had to guess the reason he was made a villain in beast machines was because he is only Meh as a Developed character after Blackarachnia shows up and takes over tech wise, not to mention rattrap is also pretty damn techy when he wants to be.(it was also probably to increase tension since his whole deal is being diplomatic but that's a separate thing) Sort of an issue when you make them scientists but don't have them specialize in anything and, more importantly, have a weakness in anything. If your character is simply the backup scientist when the other one is out of commission u gotta problem. Rhinox is stagnant personality wise, I can’t honestly say anything about him changes in the whole series. He has functionally gained nothing from this perilous journey, no real trauma, no bonds he didn't already have with the team, not even an upgrade in form. Isn’t rattrap supposed to be his best friend???? SHOW ME MORE THEN. Seriously if this show had let me have Rights I’m not saying I wouldn’t have loved if we had actually Really Dug In to a character arc or something about Rattrap and the concept of Honor vs Loyalty but that’s exactly what I’m saying lets talk about that. Season One Rattrap they played with this a little (After the whole early on “I would not send someone to do something I would not do myself” and “double agent rattrap” WHICH NO ONE WOULD EVER BELIEVE IF THAT HAPPENED ANY LATER THAN IT DID SINCE RATTRAP IS SO ANTIPRED) and the whole Dinobot thing really wedged it in (”But at least you know where he stands”) AND THEN FROM MY SHODDY MEMORIES OF BEAST MACHINES ITS PLAYED WITH EVEN MORE WHEN HE FUCKING GOES TO MEGATRON BECAUSE EVERYONE WAS BEING A LITTLE BITCH TO HIM 

Where was I going with this? uhhhhhhhhhhhhh oh yeah LISTEN Rattrap and his morals are Very Fascinating and I really wished there was more about that. Like, he gives no shits about Doing What’s Right or Being A Good Person, but he rewards friendship and loyalty and not getting him killed by miles. And despite his Hatefest Dinobot he was actually really... shocked? Offended??? about Dinobot handing over the disc because you’re an asshole but you’re also our asshole what fuckery is this did all our arguments mean nothing to you. And then attempting to join Megatron in BM because he might be Evil and it might be Bad Moral Conduct but fuck morals his teammates were being shitty friends. Is that petty of him? Maybe, but if the maximals had been evil but still genuinely kind and caring towards Rattrap I don’t believe he would ever leave for a second, not for all the Morals or Its The Right Thing To Do in the world. And that’s why darkfics that still use Found Family are the best! The End.

All the characters would actually be the size of their animals because goddamit I want a tiny Rattrap that has to be carried around by the others while he screeches indignantly. Or at the very least make him just a little smaller. Just a bit. And maybe they all have a big Sleep Pile. I like physical affection and cuddling and things no I don't care if they're robots no I don’t take criticism. Dinobot would have feathers fight me.

Optimus has died, been tortured, and painfully grew to like 3 times his size why doesn’t he have ptsd someone give him a hug.

Could we have waited for Airrazor and Tigatron to get kidnapped???? We should have gotten more for them. Let me see them more often. LISTEN THEY’RE VERY CUTE I LOVE THEM SHUT UP. 

WHICH LMAO BRINGS ME RIGHT BACK TO CHEETOR BECAUSE HE CONSIDERED AIRRAZOR AND TIGATRON HIS BROTHER AND SISTER AND HE THINKS THEYRE GONE FOREVER AND THEN ITS NEVER REALLY BROUGHT UP AGAIN LIKE CHEETOR AND FOUND FAMILY REALLY SHOULD BE EXPLORED HERE

Silverbolt is fun, but suffers from the same problem as Blackarachnia where all you really remember about them Relationship wise is the one they have with each other. Who does Silverbolt like best among the maximals, who does he like the least? And if I'm erasing that weird Cheetor crush thing then their interactions probably have a lot less tension so... what else do they have.

Depth Charge is an unrepentant asshole and I love him. He is so hostile but it doesn’t stop him from begrudgingly helping out on occasion. He also gave Optimus some backstory??? Like not as much as my greedy Character Loving hands would have wanted but GIVE ME.

Other Stuff:

Nothing will ever be as funny as Optimus being like “Evacuate the base you’re all gonna die” and Rhinox grabbing his fucking plant

Blackarachnia Craves Power 

Cheetor suffer from Bad Bondage multiple times throughout the series, but specifically during the web I remember Tarantulas leaning over him and thinking “wow this is kind of... date gone wrong vibes??? What the fuck”

Rattrap and Dinobot: *Spot each other from any distance* Miracle Hatemance has entered the chat

Why is Megatron wearing roller skates. Who did this. Why.

“Spider/Bird dog is hetero nonsense” - everyone who has to bear witness to them ever, including me the viewer

Tarantulas is completely done with any attempts to seduce him. Ever.

Airrazor tries so hard to be cool and hip oh my god she is a complete dork i love her

“FOR THE ROYALTYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY”

please be nice to Waspinator he’s trying his best

Rhinox: exists

Me: hello yes sir I love u wise mentor sir

Holy shit Dinobot’s death scene is a gut punch. Rattrap honestly is what makes this scene perfect. I have never seen him so respectful or emotional is a way that wasn’t meant for comedic relief.

That scene, man

Tigatron’s speech about bringing beast mode and robot mode together is like foreshadowing to beast machines. Or it isn’t. Idk. Would have been really nice if they, yknow,

bothered to bring up literally anything from the previous series to beast machines

 (yes its been awhile since I’ve seen Beast Machines, but I do remember that being my primary complaint.)

This series is so cheesy but Thundercats is still cheesier so its fine

Rattrap was canonically a miner at some point apparently.

He’s also super prejudiced and honestly that’s interesting. HONESTLY SOMETHING I WOULD HAVE LOVED TO SEE DISCUSSED IN BEAST MACHINES IS THE SUPER MEGA DIVIDE IN PREDS AND MAXIMALS BUT I GUESS WE WEREN’T GETTING THAT OH WELL

The ‘Everyone is blind’ episode was always one of my favorites and it never gets old

Upon rewatching the series I have concluded Cheetor is Babey. Which is weird because I didn’t think much of him from what I remember. Shift in perspective I suppose. They really made Rhinox farting the thing that saves the day, huh. What even was season one.

BITCH THAT IS A TERRIBLE WAY TO TRANSPORT MEGATRON NO WONDER HE FUCKING CONQUERED CYBERTRON Y’ALL DESERVED THIS HONESTLY

Uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh in conclusion:

Rattrap is my new religion apparently

[chutzpahhooplah]

spop and one that one anime you've been complaining about recently

Apologies in advanced to my distinguished mutuals who hate seeing either of these fandoms on their dashes, but I’m not tagging shit in the event it winds up in the main fandom tag <3

Ok so:

Spop (lbr a lot of our answers are gonna be the same lmaO)

The character I first fell in love with: Adora, tbh. I’m a sucker for that kind of protagonist and I love watching the personal growth and journey of an abused character w/ Oldest Sibling/Daughter syndrome

The character I never expected to love as much as I do now: Scorpia. I liked her when she first showed up but I never thought that I’d get super invested in her growth and be actively yelling at the screen when the writers decided to take a nice steaming dump on her character development in s5.

The character everyone else loves that I don’t: Catra

The character I love that everyone else hates: Hordak, the fandom can pry the bat dilf from my cold dead hands

The character I used to love but don’t any longer: Entrapta. I still like her! But my love has cooled for a variety of largely fandom related reasons.

The character I would totally smooch: Horde Prime. I’m a simple ho who likes evil men that are dumb and dress slutty.

The character I’d want to be like: Huntara. She’s, loyal, got her shit together and is super tall and buff. Please it’s all I want.

The character I’d slap: It’d be faster to ask who I wouldn’t slap, but I’m gonna change it up and say Mermista.

A pairing that I love: Entrapdak, uwu

A pairing that I don’t: Anything w/ Catra tbh, but mainly Catradora.

---

That One Anime I’ve Been Complaining About Recently (aka BNHA)

The character I first fell in love with: Izuku!!! Again, I am a sucker for this kind of protagonist bcs I am a deeply cynical and emotionally traumatized individual who wants to see goodness and sunshine individuals thrive and make the world a better place. (Yes, I also like the reverse, I am capable of nuance thank you very much). He’s (Martin Bright voice) my boy!!! The best boy. Best of all boys.

The character I never expected to love as much as I do now: Probably Iida? He was such a fussy anal retentive nerd who was one of many people who were just. Fucking rude to Izuku for no reason (bcs that’s how the universe in this story works). But now?? Another good boy. Best boy. Tries his hardest, is the actual Type A perfectionist that the story should be including in the main focus as opposed to......that other one.

The character everyone else loves that I don’t: That Other One. (why is he part of the main trio, WHY?????? IIDA WAS RIGHT. FUCKING. THERE!!!!!)

The character I love that everyone else hates: Izuku. Rarely have I ever encountered a fandom that just fucking HATES the main character like the bnha fandom does.

The character I used to love but don’t any longer: Kirishima. Another good sunshine boy, but honestly after a certain point I wanted to tear my hair out because his entire character and backstory are contradictory to his relationship w/ That Other One and I have gotten to the point where I just skip around chapters and segments featuring him bcs he’s always w/ That Other One or talking about him and I’m just. So tires.

The character I would totally smooch: It’d be faster to say who I wouldn’t but for the sake of time, I would kiss Shigaraki on his horrible crusty contact dermatitis forehead (and possibly his lips UwU 👉👈 )

The character I’d want to be like: Mirio is another Best Boy who has his shit together and is a bastion of positivity (I could stand to be more like that. He is also Jacked As Fuck)

The character I’d slap: Who Wouldn’t I Slap??? I’m gonna switch it up tho and say Endeavor. We don’t have time or energy for abusive fathers on this blog (no matter how thicc they are). I would bury this man in ice for 1 million years and it would still be too short.

A pairing that I love: TodoDeku owns my entire heart and soul, this is the rivals to friends to lovers ship that the fandom seems convinced That Other Ship is (which just proves they have 1) no taste and 2) no critical literary analysis)

A pairing that I don’t: Izuku and his childhood bully