#that aren't really terrible people

[thelediz]

Sonic Underground 06: The Price of Freedom

I’m watching Sonic Underground in search of inspiration to finish a fic I’ve been writing forever. It’s a sad state of affairs. See the recap of the first three episodes here, if you're interested!

This is episode 6: The Price of Freedom, which is Sonia’s world building episode! It shows a little bit of how the aristocrats live, and what they have to be willing to do, consciously or not, to maintain their lifestyle.

The plot (for want of a better word): Frustrated with life on the run, Sonia goes to visit her best friend Mindy LaTour. Mindy reveals her latest project: fashion watches! But not all is as it seems! It turns out Robotnik has been using Mindy’s watches to spy on her customers. Will Sonia be able to help her friend escape Robotnik’s machinations?

THE DRAMA.

Sonia has a new outfit! It is immediately ruined, along with her bike. RIP both.

I actually vibe with Aleena’s narration this time. She points out that you can get so caught up in running that you lose sight of why running is worth it. It’s important to take breaks and remind yourself of why you do things that you do. …like watching a show to remind you why you started writing a fic twenty years ago. …huh…

ANYWAY.

Sonia… sweetheart, they are the authorities. Them calling 911 will do nothing. Also, you’re on Mobius, there is no such thing.

Honestly, I know they’re dumb boys in a 90s cartoon, but if Sonic and Manic could show just the slightest hint of emotional empathy to their frustrated sister right now, I would be so impressed. Though it is nice that they’re cheering her win rather than mocking the fact she got stuck in a tree.

But to be fair, she gets personal before they do. And then proceeds to forget that she’s a literal fugitive to go visit her best friend.

I love Mindy and her father as world building devices, by the way. Because it’s again quite believable: raised taxes as a result of Robotnik ramping up his efforts against the resistance means the idle rich can’t afford to be idle, and Mindy’s father is forced into corrupting his own daughter’s design to make surveillance equipment, or (as Bartleby saw with Lady Windemere) they both risk robotocisation. If they choose principles instead, they immediately have to go on the run. They give up their lives, their homes, everything they have, with no particular reason at this point to believe they’ll survive. It’s… a lot to risk.

I am not a fan of Sonia’s nightmare however. It feels like time filler which could easily have been spent with Sonic and Manic following SWATbots to the factory, or discussing Sonia and her lifestyle choices, or whether she really belongs in the resistance – you know, world building?

Anyway, stop thinking, LeDiz, Sonic and Sonia are somehow talking through their medallions, despite Sonic wearing his medallion. One of these things is an animation error and I am not going to ask which. They make up and it’s as cute as you can expect from this show.

The SONG: Money can’t buy (the things you really need). A rare song to be sung by someone who isn’t a royal triplet! Very um… I mean Mindy’s a whole reference to Cindy Lauper. It shows.

I do love this so much though: “I don’t need manicures!” “You don’t?” “Well, I could cut back! I could definitely cut back!” Sometimes even the Trashfire can be funny.

And she thinks being in the resistance is a game and it annoys Sonic so much and it’s GREAT. I just love Mindy so much…!

Aaaand they are promptly caught and doomed. DISTRESS. Except Sonic’s escaped this time so it’s okay.

Don’t know how he got up to the flying ship, but WE DO NOT QUESTION. He’s here to Save The Day As He Must.

…I was wondering (because it’s been a while since I watched these) what the Hedgehogs were doing to the watches. I am impressed that Manic and Sonic apparently know how to reprogram – normally that would be a Sonia The Accomplished Everything skill, but I suppose Manic’s a wrenchhead and Sonic learned from Uncle Chuck. Stop questioning.

Also don’t know how the watches got up onto the flying ship, but again, stop questioning!

(MegaDrive controller’s a nice touch though)

But Mindy and her dad are now on the run. We will never see them again.

This is not the last time we will see a character that has been manipulated by Robotnik. It was a bit of a running theme. But this episode did a lot to help build the aristocratic perspective in my head, I think. It’s all about choices and perspective, and what you’re willing to risk and for what.

Still a terrible show though, let’s not forget.

But I love Mindy. I LOVE MINDY. She's so terrible and childish and PERFECT at what she is, and she gives great insight into who Sonia was before the Resistance. She's such a powerful world building tool. I so wish we could have seen her again. Ahh, my good show That Could Have Been...

Come back tomorrow for more if you're interested!

[hyacinth42-blog]

“You know, if you break up with Sveta, meet a gorgeous girl and break Sveta’s heart again, I’m obligated to throw you into the center of the Atlantic Ocean.”

....What does this mean Vicky? He's not allowed to date anyone pretty ever again???

[spookythesillyfella]

" Losing battle of loss "

[monstersinthecosmos]

not for anything but friendly reminder that ~fandom discourse~ about where women belong (or people you perceive as women) is misogynistic as fuck. or what they're allowed to say, or what they're allowed to write about, or what they're allowed to enjoy.

next time you see someone having a tantrum and vaguing, especially if their posts from week to week completely contradict each other, perhaps analyze if the common denominator is "a gross woman said something and now i'm mad" without otherwise adhering to any actual principles.

[your-fave-is-christian]

I have a dumb question, and I really hope this doesn’t sound rude. What’s the logic for some of the characters? Like, if they’re the “hero” in their storyline, but they don’t seem to follow Biblical doctrine… does that even count? I’m sorry if that sounds snotty; I don’t mean to have an attitude.

No, you're fine!!

Short answer: I don't know, I'm not the one sending in the characters 😂

But really I would say there's not necessarily a consistent logic that they have to fit. That's part of the beauty of Christianity, isn't it? Anyone who repents and believes is welcome; it's not limited to any certain type of people. For the characters people are sending in here, I think there are a few categories. There are some that fit what you said, who already hold Christian morals and who one could easily headcanon as being Christian within the story. Sometimes people send in villains who they want to have redemption arcs and become Christian. Sometimes it's characters who are Christian; mostly it's characters people would like to see become Christian.

[icewindandboringhorror]

Obligatory fancier outfit that must be present anytime I post outfits 

[kinard-buckley]

a truly terrible idea has latched hold of my gremlin brain which is, buck and tommy do break up so that buck can pursue eddie because either tommy thinks buck is in love with eddie or buck feels like he should be with eddie because everyone else keeps suggesting there's something more there BUT buck/eddie getting together changes their dynamic so much that neither of them are enjoying themselves (and they're worrying about losing what made their friendship so special because of all the changes to the dynamic) AND buck and tommy keep hooking up [air quotes] platonically (with tommy stumbling into inconvenient feelings and pining pathetically for buck while fucking him) while buck struggles to sort out intense feelings toward eddie (which obviously have to be romantic of course) vs. his calm, more settled feelings toward tommy (they're not as intense as his feelings about eddie so they can't possibly be romantic) blah blah long story slightly less long but buck realizes he's been in love with tommy the whole time and was having trouble separating strong but platonic feelings for eddie from his romantic feelings toward tommy and then tommy's like "newsflash asshole i've been in love with you the whole goddamn time"

i'll never write it because it's irredeemably stupid and i value my peace but it IS sitting in my hindbrain tormenting me right now

[deathbyoctopi]

Tell me if this happens in other languages:

In mine, “cultivation” means growing stuff, in the agricultural sense. 

So it cracks me up terribly every time they talk about cultivation in mdzs, especially when it is about Wei Wuxian. 

Because he’s a demonic cultivator. 

Which here means he grows potatoes, but y’know...

...e v i ll y

[sysig]

Reading moodboard #84430940 (Patreon)

[izzythehutt]

Walt is the least sympathetic of all the BrBa criminals/anti-heroes/rogues gallery because he's the one (major) character who doesn't have a clear and unambiguous "reason" for being the way he is. There is an unflinching refusal to give this character a "Freudian excuse" for his behavior and I just...love that.

It is not only an extremely brave choice from a writing perspective for your protagonist (and really only works because Bryan Cranston can somehow wring sympathy out of this dry husk amoral sponge of a person), but also makes him the most realistic portrayal of what evil really is. Walt feels the least like a television version of how a person becomes bad because there's not one reason it happens, and there's an aspect to his moral descent that's both mundane and mysterious—his motives unfold gradually, they change, and the show never really seeks to outright explain why it happened beyond the obvious inciting event—his cancer diagnosis. Was there something in him always not quite "right" or was there just a unique confluence of circumstances that caused Walt's complete moral transformation? In his own words—he liked it, he was good at it, and it made him feel alive. Maybe it is just as simple as that. Evil is actually a lot less interesting than people give it credit for.

There are so many things about his personality that are just never explained but must have some explanation, surely. For example: Walt's hang-ups about money—his obsession with being the one who provides it for his family and his reactive disdain for charity (even Saul points out there's clearly deep-seated issues there lol.) You could very easily see a different writer backstory dumping a lot of explicit childhood trauma with Walt and his single mother being poor and him getting bullied and this being where his weird inferiority complex about hand-outs come from. Instead this is just a huge part of his personality that has no obvious singular explanation. Why is he like this? Who the hell knows!

Which I personally really like, because regardless of whether that happened to him as a kid (I have to assume something like that was going on with child Walt because he has really specific neurosis) it has no ultimate bearing on the morality of his actions. There is no excuse for what he does, ultimately, and I just love that the show gives you very few reasons to feel sorry for him, at least as far as his backstory goes. Even the merits of his Gretchen and Elliot resentment is called into question (though left vague.)

In a weird, counter-intuitive way this lack of explanation for his behavior makes me feel more sympathy for him (again, Cranston acting magic pulling its weight.) But it's such a subjective thing with him. How you feel about Walt hinges on the performance, the character's actions in the story itself and what the viewer chooses to extrapolate from both. I can't blame people for thinking he's just kind of a low-empathy asshole, though I personally find that explanation reductive and less interesting, I cannot argue with it as a valid read. He is very, very hate-able for so many reasons. There's something refreshing about how unapologetic the writing for him is in that way.

[just-aro]

y'all have no idea how much effort goes into trying to interpret and respond to some of the questions we get about aromanticism lol.

like kee does so much tonal phrasing to be nice about this, but. please. "what is aromantic?" i am not google. "i don't know if i feel romantic attraction." cool, i'm not gonna be able to tell you what it feels like either. "hi, what if I am a person and not one of the major aro stereotypes?" then you are a person who is aro and doesn't fit that stereotype.

and like, whatever, we deal with those fine. but the worst. the absolute worst. is the ones where the ask is more or less requesting me to speak for aromantic people as a whole, or - worse and more commonly - a specific subset of aro people who i may not identify with, and almost always insist they aren't trying to be bad, but have such a questionable mindset behind it that i feel like i need to start with "how to identify that you haven't unlearned shit, you just realized you have an identity and stuck your tongue out at the people who taught you that shit"

[hopper-wheeler]

just saw someone call mike a (morally) grey character.... he's 14. what did he do ever in his life that would make him a grey character? talk back like every other kid in this show does? not always word things the best way like all characters have done?? HE'S A KID. he's not a grey character, in fact he is overwhelmingly good

[abluescarfonwaston]

Excuse me i’ll just be thinking about Barnaby being dropped in a it’s a wonderful (terrible) life timeline where Kotetsu never met Mr Legend. Never had anyone show him that his powers could be used for good. That they were anything but a curse that made him destructive and terrifying.

Barnaby stumbling around confused after the time skip and being Deeply unsettled by the fact Half the hero’s are different. Sure Fire Emblem, Sky High and Dragon kid are there along with the new kids but Blue Rose retired last year, Origami got cut, no one’s even Heard of Rock Bison much less Wild Tiger. There is no buddy system. Fire emblem asks him if he’s okay. His leg aches, muscle deep and their brow furrows in concern. “You wrecked it during that fight with Jake.”

They offer to call Maverick for him. “Under No circumstance-” Work calls.

It’s all about the points. Getting the right angle. Shot. “It’s a hero’s job to save people!” “I think that’s all the proof we need for a head injury, right guys?” “Shut up Ryan and stop sabotaging Cat!” “Make me!”

It’s awful. A nightmare that won’t end. He stumbles to Kotetsu’s apartment after only to be met with strangers. Has to put in a massive order with Liquors Kabugari to met him at all. Kotetsu grumbles about rich assholes doing whatever they want- couldn’t he order from someone in Sternbild? Is greeted by a giant empty apartment. “What hoping to pay your friends in alcohol to help you move in Mr Hero?” Catches the Oh wait you probably don’t have those muttered under his breath.

“You really don’t remember Kotetsu?” “Remember...? Bunny’s got a few screws loose i guess.”

Has him pinned to the wall a second later. “You called me bunny. You have to Remember Kotetsu!”

“What- Jezz Look i only called you that cause you’ve got those pink ears and are always hopping about on the TV! Let me go!”

“Make me. Use your power to make me. I know it’s the exact same as mine!”

He manages to drag Kotetsu to the training center. Everyone’s pretty sure he’s lost it, insisting this beer belly old guy is a Veteran hero. Are rushing to stop him when he tells Kotetsu he’s going to use one Hundred Power on him- better use yours unless you want to be severely injured.

Kotetsu launches him through the wall into the simulation room. Laughs about how they should file a complaint cause that was some cheap plaster huh?

He gets dragged on the next mission in a mask Barnaby clearly made out of paper and one of his old suits- that they literally only had time to turn from pink lights to green. He’s death gripping Barnaby as they fly through traffic. It’s the first time, Kotetsu admits - you asked why i never got married - he hasn’t held anyone in years. “The last person i held was my mom. I broke her ribs because of this stupid power. Glad it worked out for you but all it did for me was make me hurt people!”

“Your power lets you save people. That’s what were going to do, right now.”

It doesn’t... go great. But he saves one little girl. Lowers her slow to the ground and she thanks him before running to her mom - in sudden tears.

“See? Told you. It went great.” “... You call that great? I think i pulled my shoulder.” “Stop complaining old man and turn to the camera.” “Camer-Huh?”

“Introducing my new partner- Wild Tiger!”

(Is he allowed to do that? Definitely not. But THINK of the ratings! Air it Now. Legal can sort it out later!)

“... can i get out of this suit now? I can barely see out of it.”

“After the interviews.”

*disgruntled tiger noises*

[shallow-wordsalad]

something I appreciate on the rare occasions it happens (and is explored) is the idea that some villains are villainous because they're just simply bad people.

not everyone who goes about their lives abusing others, crushing dreams, swallowing power and money and lives like a glutton started their lives as an idealist or a good person. in fact, a great deal of people who live like that were always assholes, and once they obtained power, a platform, or money, simply used it to continue being assholes on a much larger scale - because they simply do not care about others. maybe they were spoiled children who never were told no, or people who always viewed the people around them by what they could gain from them, or people who convinced themselves to only think of themselves. there's depth to be written about a person who is evil all the way down, and it's not a failure of character design to make one who is simply unlikable (in fact, if that was the intent, it's a complete success.)

I love a good sympathetic villain. I love a good redemption arc. I love Steven Universe and My Little Pony. I love when the villain looks at their bloody hands and wonder just whose blood it is they spilled, because they genuinely can't remember, and asks themselves if what they're doing is what they wanted to do in the first place.

but I also want a villain to stare at a hero, dead in the eye. as the hero speaks of peace and understanding, asks about their dreams, and asks them to stop what they're doing, the villain without hesitation would say "and what would I get out of that?" and then pull a gun on them for the audacity.

it's a really, really important lesson people need to take in: that some people are just bad people. not good people who were whittled down or broken. not betrayed heroes. some people are just rotten to the core, and everyone should learn that as early as possible.

[neganium]

Oh, wait, Wildbrain? Hm. It does look noticeably worse, but the effects are still good, and if they really push it they could probably still get really good things out of these models. p sure Wildbrain were the ones that worked on MLP:FiM, right? at least for some of it; and even the early seasons weren't bad, so this could be a lot worse.

I do still prefer Flying Bark's animation, and it does seem like mostly frame-by-frame animation is a dying breed, sadly, so it doesn't seem as though they could just get another studio with that specialty. I do hope that they can eventually get things better; I don't exactly know why Flying Bark left, other than some unspecified logistical issues. I should look into that, maybe. But at least it's not cancelled, and for now, Wildbrain is reasonably competent in the meantime.

[tastytofusoup]

I remember the plot of a novel, but that doesn't mean it's real