#so sorry if that part's ooc

[zizzy-rie]

Rock Monkies AU - Wukong's disappearance after the battle with DBK

How will Macaque react to this information?

"Liu'er Mihou knows Sun Wukong far more than anyone could imagine. After all, he did live his life for him and with him. He was his right-hand man, his other half, his husband... After learning what happened in the battle with DBK, Liu'er denies it. The staff was one of Wukong's most priceless possessions. He never leaves it behind... Unless... Liu'er runs to the hill. He doesn't believe it, he doesn't believe anything bad could happen to Wukong... To his xingan... And yet, as he stands there at the foot of the hill, his very eyes see the staff, standing erect at the top, with no owner in sight."

"The villagers trembled, hearing the screams. They thought another attack was going to happen. But it hit them, how mournful the sound was, devastation and despair thick in the scream.

It haunted them, almost as much as the Demon Bull King's roar."

- excerpt from a drabble @bogswell-kampilan wrote two years ago.

Yaling btw is Qiuyue's birthname.

[ask-the-rag-dolly]

// okay but actually knowing that the ending isn't totally tragic makes it way less scary to get involved. Certain "bad ends" can be terrible for people with past experience, so knowing that eventually it will get better is relieving to say the least.

yeah i do actually have phase 2's ending planned out and i'll say that it's a lot more positive and hopeful . i mean it's not a happily ever after or something but we'll see some character development

i guess i'm throwing out all of these reassurances because - i think it's apparent already but phase 2 will have considerably darker topics ( trauma , identity crises and whatever 00 has going on to be specific ) , and i fully believe that the message i'm going for will be shattered if it ends badly . she'll be alright /genuine .

[shakingparadigm]

In a modern au I think the wagyein would be like one of those gaint ass crocodiles that Ivan gets away with keeping because its technically a service animal. As long as its on a leash its all good and not a threat to the public!!

Ivan being rewarded with a more expensive and unique kind pet like a whole fucking crocodile honestly seems pretty in line for him 😭 especially since it adds a new "chic" flair to his photoshoots and his general aesthetic. Imagine Ivan's new photoshoot drops and he's in a suit posing with a fucking crocodile. Insane.

I really like the imagery of this large, scaly and dangerous looking reptile being tamed as Ivan's pet, something that could help boost his image and push that luxurious, enigmatic vibe. You know, like how stereotypical evil lairs have sharks or other rare and dangerous animals guarding the entrance or simply acting as accessory. That kind of vibe. I also like the imagery of this sharp creature being forced into submission and captivity. Forced to become a good, obedient pet, holding in its urges and keeping its teeth hidden. A being taken from the ruthless, grimy darkness, cleaned and maintained to perfection, forced to perform for the cameras. Ivan can empathize, he knows what it's like.

"Technically a service animal" is fucking hysterical. Ivan going Hello, sir! Please excuse my emotional support 12ft crocodile. Don't worry, he's very well-behaved.

I actually think Ivan would get along very well with his hypothetical crocodile. Just like the wagyein, he'd feel connected to it in a very personal way. Also just like the wagyein I think Ivan would be the only person it would never harm. In my head I have the mental image of Ivan petting and cuddling it as if it were a puppy.

[antidotefortheawkward-art]

how fucked up would you be if you were told the embodiment of the worst parts of you was capable of killing members of your family

[ID: A sketchy two panel sepia comic. In the first panel, Sun Wukong is dressed in traditional deep mourning garb and kneeling before a grave, back to the viewer. The second panel is a close-up on his face. He has a hollow, terrified wide-eyed expression and half of his face is in deep shadow. He thinks, "Could I have done the same?" End ID]

[rogueolight]

i am deeply afraid of the utena fandom just know i am absolutely terrified to follow any of you because of how the show is. What if i post a bad take and you have to kill me. What if YOU post a bad take and i have to kill you

[skunkes]

might sound weird to say as a person with a couple ocs who have Big Horrible Event(s) in their backstories or as a person who has like 3 ocs total bc he sucks at writing and as a person who hopes their ocs arent too Boring with [the thing im about to mention] but the thing about writing [characters] and [people] is that like.

any little thing a person experiences can take up their whole existence... its actually something "fun" to experience as i meet new ppl and do more things. My friend had something happen that she'll be talking about forever. I had several things happen last year that ill never stop talking about, some of which other ppl think werent that bad actually. In the same way I'll forever remember about the way my sister accidentally insulted me almost 10 years ago, it's really interesting and Fun to find and assign smaller things like that to characters...its really Real. some people's dealbreakers are other people's solvable problems etc etc

[zhongrin]

*taps mic* yes hi hello is this working. ahem ahem. testing one two three.

ah yes. we're back to normal now lol

..... were yall surprised ( •̀ ᗜ •́ )

long story short, i just wanted to do something for april fools… last year albedo made an appearance, so i thought of doing the same this year... but i felt like it would be repetitive. so given the recent developments and future events, this idea came up lol

in any case, it's the truth that i've been warming up to neuvillette.... i've been writing more for him, and if you saw my 2023 wrapped post you probably saw him as a 'runner-up'... and i really do mean it when i say he's been kinda occupying the back of my brain since last year hskdljfklsd at the end of his story quest... his tone when talking to kiara.... sobsob ueueue

however, i'm honestly still unsure if i can/want to have an actual selfship with him (ó﹏ò｡) i can't figure out how it'll work out yet... it just feels like with neuvillette's canon personality, he wouldn't even think of glancing my way in the first place, given the circumstances…. and zhongli... what do i do about him.... ough....

maybe he'll be a separate ship (e.g. zhongwrinth is one au, wrinlette in one au) on his own… maybe rinvillette will be a 'pining but not actually dating' kind of selfship.... idk..... on that note, i really should be making a selfship post huh lol

also, he's rerunning in less than 24 hours (like. 19 hours-ish for me) and i hoped this would be a sufficient offering for the hydro dragon to come home early… i'll play him twinkle twinkle little star on my guzheng while pulling or something, since it should arrive tomorrow afternoon lmao… i hope he likes the instrument that 'sounds like flowing water' hdlshdls

in any case, thank you for interacting in the short little event! it was more of a spontaneous decision on my part, but i hope you all had fun and i didn't butcher neuvillette's character too much, he's so hard to muse orz <3

lil doodle bonus of what could have been:

[candyredappledragon]

Does Furret participate in Pokémon battles or are they moral support?

both actually! furret is a support pokemon! he has a moveset to help others and- ah sorry i got a "little" into competitive but you know for fun! florian inspired me to make a team that involves with pokemon i love and build it from there. though furret prefers to be my moral support. i grab him, hug him tight and i forget about my loss.

though some of my pokemon do enjoy the quiet and relaxing life so its a win-win for us! i leave some of them with my grandparents to help them around the house or do activities. i am very grateful for them!

[ask-the-totally-real-peppino]

Has EG ever taken a bath?

(Eg has never had a bath with like the intention to clean herself, and she probably never will! Using soaps will wash off her protective layer of mucus, and it will not have an impact on her smell - She will still stink, ghdsjksdf. Her smell is a result of her diet, not a matter of personal hygiene (she grooms herself frequently, thank you very much!!!)

She is certainly not hydrophobic, tho! She loves swimming, sitting in puddles, and standing out in the rain

[youthslost]

HIATUS NOTICE — FEBRUARY - MID-MARCH

hi friends!! posting this to let everyone know i'll be inactive for the next month. me and the bestie ( @wingached / @hatesdogs ) are going to japan & south korea on vacation together!!

i have my queue set to run while i'm gone and i will get some replies & asks in there, but otherwise i will be inactive on the blog for around a month. if you'd like to chat or even write elsewhere, i'll be available on discord ( albeit very slow..... ) during this time. if you don't already have me on there, send me an IM and i'll pass along my user :3

i'll miss you all, and happy lunar new year!! <3

[millenniumdueled]

Thunder rumbles overhead once more as both Yugi and his Other draw their opening hands.

The two stand on opposite sides of the circles carved into the canyon floor, a mirror of one another.

It should never have come to this.

Yugi goes first and sets a monster face down.

"Partner, I don't want to fight you," the Other protests, even as he summons forth Gazelle, King of Mythical Beasts. As much as it pains him to, he orders the monster to attack Yugi's set monster. On the field, his Gazelle digs its teeth and claws into another King of Mythical Beasts. "The same monster--?!" Other Yugi gasps. He looks down at the cards in his hand and wonders.

Yugi draws for his turn, and again ends with only a single monster set facedown on his field.

Other Yugi draws. His heart pounds in his chest. He activates Polymerization, fusing his Gazelle with Berformet in his hand to form Chimera, the Flying Mythical Beast. He then summons Alpha, the Magnet Warrior. Chimera attacks, sending Yugi's Sangan to the graveyard. Sure enough, that card is in his own hand, too. The Other Yugi hesitates, staring at his Partner's empty field as Yugi adds a monster to his hand for Sangan's effect. Then he takes a deep breath, before ordering the Magnet Warrior to attack directly.

This doesn't make sense.

If they have the same hand, then why didn't Yugi use Monster Reborn? He should have ended his last turn with his own Chimera on the field. That's not a mistake that his Partner would make.

Yugi draws for his turn. "this isn't going to work if we have the same hand," he sighs. He sets a card face down, then plays Card Destruction, demanding both players to discard their hand a draw anew. "there. different hands, different paths, different hearts."

"Partner, why are you acting like this?!" Other Yugi cries. "This isn't you!!"

"of course it is. i'm the reflection of your heart. if your heart is filled with darkness, then so am i."

"No..."

"this is your weakness, other me. you're arrogant. you care too much about your pride, you only want to do things your way. you don't want to face me, so you think i should quit to protect your feelings. you can't save anyone if you're a coward who's afraid to get hurt!"

The cards in the Other's hand shake.

"and you were a king that ruled over people?? what a joke."

"Stop it, Partner!!! I don't want to fight you!!!!"

Yugi looks down at his fresh hand. A sad smile comes to his face, his eyes softening. He takes one card, gazing at it between his fingers. "why is this card in my deck....?"

Other Yugi gasps.

No.

No no no no no.

It can't be.

"oh yeah. i'm a mirror that reflects your heart... your choices..." The field card slot on his DuelDisk slides open, and Yugi places the card inside.

"Don't--!!"

Bright, teal light engulfs him. The Seal of Orichalcos spreads out across the field, trapping both Duelists.

Yugi's eyes turn red as he narrows them at his opponent.

"let's finish this, nameless pharaoh."

Yugi activates his set card, Monster Reborn. Dark Magician girl, discarded by Card Destruction, appears on the field. Like Yugi's, her eyes glow red as she stares down the Other. Yugi summons Obnoxious Celtic Guardian beside her. With the Orichalcos boosting their attack, they're more than enough to destroy the Other's monsters, bringing his lifepoints down to 3100.

Berformet returns to the field from Chimera's effect, and the Other draws for his turn.

He wants to scream. But he summons Big Shield Gardna in defense mode instead.

Yugi summons Queen's knight, then plays Magic Formula to raise Dark Magician Girl's attack. The Other's defenses are useless again, easily destroyed for Celtic Guardian to attack directly.

Now, Other Yugi screams.

"what's wrong, other me?" the way the words drip off Yugi's tongue turn the Other's stomach.

"Partner, stop--"

"no way. i'm just getting started. you wouldn't stop now, would you?"

The Other grits his teeth. It's his turn again.

He doesn't want to do this.

He sets one card face down and summons Giant Soldier of Stone in defense, then plays Swords of Revealing Light. He can stop Yugi's attacks for three turns. He can buy himself time to find another way out of this Duel.

But Yugi chuckles, and the sound chills the Other to his core.

"that's really cute, but i think you know this next one."

Yugi sacrifices Celtic Guardian to summon Catapult Turtle, and the Other watches in horror. He knows this tactic. It's the exact same move that he used against Raphael. The move that he had pridefully destroyed himself with.

"Don't do this. You don't have to do this!! Dont throw you monsters away, Partner, you're better than this! You're better than me!!"

Yugi smirks. "so you admit it then? you admit that you're evil? that you threw away everything you said you loved?" He sacrifies Queen's Knight to Catapult Turtle's effect, launching her past the Swords and into the Other's lifepoints, bringing them down to only 200.

The Other Yugi trembles. Is this what he looked like when he fought Raphael? That wicked, cruel look on Yugi's face now? Is this how all of his enemies have felt, staring down their final moments in his attacks?

"Partner, please!! I can't lose this, or-- Or everyone! Everyone will lose! Doma will kill everyone!"

"oh, now you care about other people?"

Yugi orders Dark Magician girl into the Catapult for his final direct attack.

The Other's heart breaks.

He doesn't want to do this.

He doesn't want to win if it means killing his beloved Partner.

He doesn't have a choice, though.

With a scream of frustration, the Pharaoh flips over his set card: Divine Wind. At the very last second, Yugi's attack is reflected, sent back at him twice as strong.

Yugi's eyes widen. Then soften.

A smile finds its way across his lips as the attack hits, and his own lifepoints drop to 0.

"you won after all, other me," he says as he falls to his knees. "i'm glad...."

The Other Yugi races across the field to scoop the fallen Yugi in his arms. Tears stream freely from his eyes now as he holds his other half close against his chest. Wasn't he just a hollow ghost before? He holds him closer.

"I'm sorry," he sobs. "Partner, I'm sorry."

"why? you passed the test, other me," Yugi says weakly as the Seal fades from his forehead, and the one that surrounds them closes in. "you beat me, even though it hurt you. you put saving the world before your own feelings. you won."

"What now though, Partner? What am I supposed to do now?!"

"keep going." The Seal grows tighter. As the light leaves his violet eyes Yugi utters three last words. "i love you."

The Other chokes. "Yugi--" He hugs his lifeless Partner close as he cries. "Yugi--"

"Yugi--"

Wait.

That's not him calling his Partner's name--

------------

------------

"Yugi!! Yugi, wake up!!"

The Other Yugi groans. His eyes open slowly, only for him to wince against the blinding light above.

"Oh thank god, you're alive!!!" Téa cries.

He sits up to find her kneeling beside him. Surrounding them both are pieces of jagged and twisted metal, not far away lie the larger remnants of the mangled train where he'd dueled Weevil.

"Was that... A dream...?" he wonders aloud as he rubs his head. Every muscle in his body aches and screams. Then he gasps. "Téa! You're bleeding!"

"Huh?! Oh!" Téa looks down at herself, her torn shorts, and shakes her head. "It's just some scrapes and bruises, I'm fine! It could've been a lot worse...." She trails off as she looks toward the wreckage. "Are you okay though?!"

The Other Yugi draws his legs to sit cross-legged in the sand as he blinks a few times, takes stock of his situation, and remembers Yugi.

Was that really just a dream?

It felt so real.

He can still feel Yugi, limp in his arms, and his stomach twists.

Far above the chasm where the two recover, Raphael frowns. So, the Pharaoh did survive.

He'll have to change that.

[exponentialb-zukas]

ever had to drive Rocket to a Phight? how did that go?

Awkward and quiet most of the time, but it's not in away where I'd be furious at him. I cant control the kid's life.

I only nagged him, considering the fact of how reckless he is with those rockets. No matter how many times I tell him off, it barely goes through that skull of his.

[atopvisenyashill]

in light of spoilers should i say i don’t care about most lancelot and guinevere romances actually aksjdj

[rmu-vincent]

Dear Mr. Edgeworth,

I was honoured to discover that you have noticed my post regarding the mythology of the g-districts. For now, it is my pride and my joy, given the time and amount of thought I put into it; however, at the same time I worry if I came off as, what people these days call "unhinged" for my ramblings. Have you any further thoughts? You seem to be a person who is knowledgeable about these sorts of things.

I give my thanks and wish you well in your studies.

– @voorice-corp

Dear Ms Seraphine,

Thank you for the flattering words and kind wishes, I sincerely appreciate your message.

First of all, I would like to mention that your dedication to carefully putting together such a clear and concise piece of detailed analysis is worthy of respect. Please be informed that your writing strikes me as elaborate and thoughtful, and I enjoy reading your thoughts. I recall your discussion of the Leviathan under one of my posts; I might not agree with all of the statements there, but I cannot deny that you seem to be a great debate opponent.

Secondly, please note that I have never been the one to rely on mythology and fairytales, so my opinion is affected by my general beliefs. Myths are integral to any culture, and ours is no exception. However, with the rapid development of technology and the constant changing of our world, those stories, to my mind, are outdated at the very least. It does not matter if there was a Great God or a Liveiataan, what we have now is the present and our freedom of choice. Of course, some people are not ready to create their own destiny and choose to blindly follow the directions given by others. Ultimately, I would say that there definitely are some people who are more likely to succeed in life, to "ascend Arrat," as you put it, but it is only their choices that determine their fate.

Still, I would like to point out that you referenced Liveiataan as "a symbol of power and perfect government". It is not my place to discuss it in terms of religion, as I am the farthest one could be from believing in any sort of dieties both because of my stances on life and my predominantly non-religious peers (out of people I know, the one connected the most with mythological concepts such as God would probably be Victor, who is not actively practicing any religion), but I could assess it in relation to the book Leviathan. According to Thomas Hobbes, the perfect government is absolute and thus provides the ultimate form of safety for its people. There are those who have the right to choose and those whose faith is to obey orders. Hobbes mentions God imposing the ten commandments as well as other rules, but ultimately failing to realise that to hear his words, people would have to break his regulations; Liveiataan being the force that is able to challenge God himself makes sense.

In conclusion, I am much more knowledgeable on other subjects, but I am always open to reading and discussing matters similar to these. Your writing is delightful, and I look forward to seeing more of it in the future.

Best regards,

Vincent Edgeworth

[blackbirdffxiv]

.

"Why did you move to the quiet channel?"

I don't know

Maybe it's because I'm fucking sick of being talked over by three people who can't get their shit together and move to THEIR OWN FUCKING CALL while they're night club FC venue crawling while I'm trying to do content with people and not fucking die in the process?

Maybe because I am sick of not being able to get a single god damn word in because someone doesn't have a fucking off button?

And if I ask someone to chill, maybe give some other folks a moment to speak because they've been trying to for the past 20 minutes, I'M the bad guy?

"Join VC" they said, "It'll be fine" they said.

"Let's just do a private call, it'll be easier and we won't have to worry about people distracting us." I said, but no.

And of course now that no one listened to me there's problems :)

[earthbovndmisfit]

I've been seeing lots of takes lately with people feeling hatred towards part 2 Speedwagon for being a greedy capitalist who probably exploited people and done some shady stuff to become wealthy because there was '''no way he could have become rich just from oil money'''... thoughts?

it's so disappointing to see some bad takes about the Speedwagon Foundation being some "acshually nasty organization" and about Speedwagon supposedly becoming some heartless rich man popping up again. And like, I shouldn't even be surprised at this point considering how the average "Jojo fan" mistreats Part 1 and 2 and alllll the misinformation they love to spread about them and about some characters in particular, often bastardizing them into wildly out of character versions and pretending those fanons are canon for whatever reason (being Speedwagon one of the characters that gets bastardized like that the most), sometimes just to make Blorbo Of Their Choice look better by throwing every other character under the bus, sometimes just because people can't be bothered to pay attention to the og if there are no punching ghosts on sight (and even then, Jojo parts featuring stands get misinterpreted a lot too).

This is gonna be long, so let me start by saying that if y'all really believe that Speedwagon somehow became some nasty ass rich man, then you're completely misinformed and you (and I say "you" in general and not specifically you anon) might benefit from rereading/rewatching the source material and actually paying attention to the plot and details this time.

Like, I've seen people assuming that the Foundation only researched the stone mask and eventually stand stuff, and completely forgetting that one of the literal main goals and also one of the biggest things the Foundation does is seeking for the betterment of the planet as a whole (preserving nature, wildlife, etc) as well as for the betterment of medicine and health care, actually seeking for the best for all humankind, this in addition to all the secret branches it has for the research of supernatural phenomena like stands, stone masks, pillar men, and so on in order to prevent as many incidents with them as possible and prevent the loss of as innocent lives as possible.

Sure, the people working for those latter branches might get into deep trouble sometimes whenever some jerk with a stone mask or a stand starts some shit, but, another thing jojo fans tend to conveniently forget is that those employees are working for the secret/non-public branches of the Foundation. We as audience know about them because we are let into seeing them working as part of the narrative, however, the public in general within the story DO NOT KNOW about the existence of those branches or what they do. Pillar men, stone masks, stands and the research around them are kept in secret in order to prevent any sorts of chaos and ensuing panic, among other safety reasons.

The people working for those branches are specialized or at least have some prior knowledge on those fields they work in (you'd think it is a MUST considering they are being let in on sensitive information that could be super detrimental for the planet and for humankind if it fell in the wrong hands), meaning that those employees already know and are fully aware of the kind of stuff they're going to deal with there from the start. They weren't deceived into it, and the fact that the employees remain loyal to Speedwagon from start to end and respect and follow his will, even long after his death, denotes that there was some deep and mutual respect and appreciation there, something you can't earn through exploitation, and definitely something these people wouldn't have done had Speedwagon been the heartless tyrant rich old man some people with a lack of media literacy want to believe and make others believe he was.

If people paid just a wee bit more attention to earlier Jojo parts, they would have realized it was all spelled out from the beginning too! Speedwagon expressly states from the very start his disgust and hatred towards the rich, being the Joestars the only exception to that due to them being genuinely kind persons, unlike most other wealthy people out there. He was also implied to have been dirt poor for most of his life and was also stated to have lived in the slums at least up to PB's main timeline. There were never any indications or signs that showed that he ever betrayed those roots of his by siding with the rich against the poor over the years. Instead, he's been using his funds to make the whole world a better place for everyone, not only by improving health care and access for all people as well as the environment (which would actually show a sense of duty from him as he is counteracting whatever negative impact his oil company may have had on the planet), but also providing all the aid he can against supernatural threats.

And not just that, but he's also kept some of his connections with the crime world over the years. However, rather than using those connections for selfish goals, he makes use of them to workaround the system in cases like Lisa Lisa's, where he used all those influences he had to help her go successfully into hiding after killing the zombie that murdered George (an undercover zombie that was actually a higher up within the army and who everyone believed to be a regular human, hence their chasing after her to make her pay for that "crime" she had supposedly committed). Additionally, if you know anything about big companies and organizations, you'll know that the law is also not always there to protect regular people, and sometimes, it will cater to the more profitable goals, as well as some businessmen actively being shady af and "hindering" their rivals for their own benefit. The Speedwagon Foundation being an organization that vouches and actively works for the wellbeing of people would have probably ruffled countless feathers among those who seek for a personal gain, to say the least (think of the hijackers that tried to kidnap him, as shown in the flashback in BT, i.e). This is also where those connections he keeps with criminals come into play, as there are never any mentions about Speedwagon doing shady stuff through them nor using them to pursue some personal goal, which hints at the fact that he keeps and uses those nexus as means of protection against actual enemies. Defense rather than offense, if you will.

Also, lets not forget that Speedwagon found his reason to change his ways when he met Jonathan, and that a lot of the things the Foundation does are things Jonathan himself would have gone into had he not passed away (the archaeological research, the deep studying of the stone mask -which eventually led to the discovery of the pillar men just in time before their awakening-, all in order to prevent more incidents like the whole thing with Dio from happening, and so on). It's downright silly to think Speedwagon would even think of betraying Jonathan and his memory by using not only the second chance he received from Jojo himself, but also using the literal monument Speedwagon built to honor the deep bond and mutual affection the two had back when Jonathan was alive for some selfish goal.

And also, lets not forget how disgusted he was with Dio and every single vile thing he did to everyone. Do you really think he would want to follow a path similar to his, in which people are just another step for him to walk all over?? If so, then you sure are completely wrong about who Speedwagon really is like.

Those "he became some nasty capitalist lol", pretending that Spw became some heartless and selfish wealthy man along the way for no reason, all despite the heaps of constant evidence the canon has presented, even long after Speedwagon's passing away in the story, that shows that that was never the case only go to show that people are lazy and that paying attention to the story and the details in it is just something some Jojo fans will actively refuse to do and then will make the worst bullshit takes up about it.

Also?? People do realize that it's possible to become rich and not be some piece of shit?? Like, sure, I do agree that most wealthy people irl ARE shit and scummy af, but there will always be a few exceptions, you just don't always see them because the real kind ones don't go around telling everyone about every single kind act they do, they just put their money to good use to make their own employees lives better, or invest/donate money every chance they get to some organization of their trust and so on. Adding to this, do you all even realize people can't just throw money out of the window and that as a business person you always need to keep some capital to actually make your business thrive and so you can continue helping other people out in this case where BIG SUMS of money are being put to use in favor of actual civilians and people from all walks of life??

((Edit to add yet another Very Obvious display that Speedwagon never sided with the rich, not even in his older years: Smokey Brown! The kid is literally a mirror of Speedwagon’s own younger self in that both were criminals from the streets in a large city (London in Spw’s case, NY in Smokey’s), immersed in crime and poverty and most likely having to resort to crime as a mean to survive in a society that was even more classist (and also racist, and this can actually be seen in BT when one of the mafiosos starts spewing shit towards Smokey due to his skin color) than it is nowadays, both having no known parents or family either and having been most likely orphaned/abandoned. Had Speedwagon been this nasty ass rich man, he could have simply ignored Smokey or treated him poorly, or could have even turned him to authorities, considering Smokey’s criminal record just for the sake of “preventing him from stealing from him” or whatever. There was literally nothing Spw could benefit himself from by keeping Smokey around like he did, which is a core trait in abusive/exploitative people. However, he never did any of that. Instead, and despite the reigning classism and racism at the time, Speedwagon along with Erina always embraced Smokey from the start and basically became his godparents, never letting the kid go back to his life in the streets, providing him with everything he needed and making sure he received a proper education, which was something very few people of color (black people, specially) could receive. And yet, Speedwagon and Erina made it happen, very likely using some of Spw’s influences to allow Smokey go to the school (and eventually college too) of his choice without any stigma or trouble at all and covering all expenses for him. -end of edit-))

If this was, idk, the Metal Gear series or some other media that revolves around the topic of politics, then the whole "cRaPiTaLisM!!! >:O" thing would have some weight and be plausible as it directly impacts the main plot of the story. But here?? In Jojo's?? Where the main focus as stated by it's author himself is the strength of the human spirit overcoming obstacles in the face of actual evil??? Try harder.

And, before I get That One Type of fans yelling at me that "people don't just get rich without exploiting people in real life!!"… do you guys realize we're talking about animanga series where vampires, funky stone masks with spooky powers, pillar men, stands, people who can use some ancient sunpowered martial art, plankton that can turn into a sentient person, and so on can happen, right? And yet I don't see anyone whining that "tHaT DoEsN'T hApPeN iRl!!".

And like, if this whole claim stems from disliking Speedwagon, just say you don't like him and move the fuck on. You don't need to try to justify your disliking for him or for ANY other characters, let alone making up wildly out of character bullshit about them to try to prove to yourself and to everyone else why according to you the character is "bad". I promise you it is not a big deal to simply not vibe with a character.