#that was him being afraid of The Consequences of his own selfish actions...... guy who creates costumes and characters and masks and facade

[mr-aftons-rotting-pussy]

TRAGIC: beautiful william afton post suddenly unrebloggable after mentioning minor thing that doesnt fit canon characterization

[abhorsenkatiel]

Some John Gaius character analysis that I've been wanting to toss out into the void:

I see a lot of people who seem to characterize him as a kind of "diabolical evil mastermind" villian, who had a grand scheme to become the leader of a fascist space empire and carefully planned out all of his actions accordingly, and while it's a valid interpretation, it feels a little too straightforward to me.

What makes John Giaus an interesting character to me is that he is very much just a normal kind-of-shitty guy having very normal human problems. He's mourning the death of his loved ones, he's in way over his head and struggling to maintain the appearance of being in control, he made a huge mistake and doesn't want his friends to find out because he's afraid they'll be mad at him. He desperately wants everyone to think well of him at all times. The way he goes about handling these problems isn't good, but it is understandable. We've all wished for a magic solution to these kinds of problems at some point. The only thing different about John Gaius is that he has the power to give himself that magic solution.

The problem with John Giaus is not that he's especially bad or evil, but that he's a person with a disproportionate amount of power and influence. Any short-sighted selfish decision he makes has catastrophic consequences for all of humanity.

He has become the monster he was trying to fight. He is the reason why man should never become god. His tragedy is that he fucked around and found out, and now he has to deal with the consequences of every single one of his bad decisions for the rest of eternity.

It's more comforting to think that a fascist space empire could come about only after careful planning and masterful manipulation by an evil genius. It's terrifying to think that it could be the natural result of one kind-of-shitty guy having too much power. And it's even worse to wonder if your own human flaws, when magnified to such a degree, might also create horrors beyond our comprehension.

[necrotic-nephilim]

for the ask game (i'm so happy you're still doing it!)

in a bit darker version of canon, one of the antikilling batfam members actually kills someone (i'm thinking dick or tim). maybe it's an accident, maybe the're spiraling and reach a breaking point or maybe something happened that irrevocably changed their worldview. how do they feel? do they cover it up? do they continue killing? who knows about it, who helps them cover it up, who joins them? how does bruce, the rest of the family and hero community react if they find out?

for the ask game!

ugh i LOVE when characters are pushed over the edge and have to deal with the consequences of their actions. especially Dick and Tim who are just. both so dedicated to their moral codes and having them shatter. you get both versions bc i have thoughts. we'll start with Tim

there are a lot of routes you can take Tim killing someone. but i specifically would have it happen right after the Titans of Tomorrow and/or Lonely Place of Living arc, where Tim faces an evil older version of himself who's very pro-murder and has led the Titans down this dark path as Batman. because that's what Tim's afraid of becoming. he's afraid of what being Batman would do to him, and he's afraid of whether this future is inevitable or not. so to have Tim in this mindset of hypervigilance of what he's capable of and he kills someone anyway? i'd love to toy with the "is the future inevitable or can we change it" concept. i like the idea Tim's kill is Captain Boomerang, given the death of his dad and all. Tim insists up and down to Bruce that he can handle this mission, it won't be too personal for him, he's fine. and the funny thing is, he feels fine. he's compartmentalizing all his feelings pretty well. so well, in fact, he doesn't realize he's killed Boomerang with his bare hands until it's already done, and there's blood everywhere and Tim has to figure out what to do. he has to cope with the inevitability of the future he's convinced he just set into motion.

he would know, realistically, there's no hiding it. especially not from *Bruce*, who knew Tim was on this mission. someone's going to notice Boomerang is missing sooner or later no matter how well Tim cleans up this crime scene. honestly, i think he'd call Helena. he's close to her, and she's pro-murder, making her the least likely to judge him for it. what he doesn't expect is that when she shows up, she takes the blame for it. she fully looks Batman in the eye and says she murdered the guy and somehow, Bruce buys it. Tim keeps waiting for the other shoe to drop. because more than just committing murder, it'd terrify Tim to get *away* with murder. to know it was just that easy, he had to call one person and it all went away. Helena doesn't even seem particularly bothered by taking claim for it, she's killed men for less and she thinks she's helping Tim with this, helping ease his conscious on the whole thing. she even tells Bruce that Tim tried to save Boomerang, that's why Tim is covered in the blood. it makes perfect sense to Bruce he doesn't think about it further. so Tim falls deeper into this spiral of knowing what he's gotten away with. and of course he doesn't open up to Helena about the Titans of Tomorrow stuff, so she has no idea how this could rattle Tim so much. why he doesn't believe her when she promises him this is just a one-off thing for him and she knows he won't do it again.

i think Tim's spiral would just keep going. it's one of those paradoxical things, where he is his own enemy. he's convinced himself he is this thing, so he's becoming it. what could've been just a one-off moment fo weakness with a man who hurt him and he got away with becomes an obsession. Tim can't stop considering how selfish it is, that he gets to kill Boomerang and yet everyone else has to live with the people who hurt them being alive. i think it'd be fun, if Tim turned to Tony Zucco, or someone similar who's hurt a member of the Batfamily. it's not a serious idea, it's a late night thought that plagues Tim. if he knows how he would do it, then he can avoid actually doing it. very "Opeidius trying not to fuck his mom" complex. but the more Tim tortures himself over it, the more he notices how easy this is for him. to plan out how he could murder just about anyone and plot a clean getaway for no one to even know there was foul play. he doesn't act on it. he refuses. but it consumes him. if he's awake, he's thinking about how he'd kill the people who hurt his family, and how easily he could get away with it.

eventually, Tim forces himself into early retirement. it's so sudden, no one expects Tim to just suddenly say he's hanging up the cape. everyone has at some point, gotten cold feet and insisted they were done with the life, but Tim. he really means it. he stops being a vigilante completely, he doesn't even like running comms. he starts to isolate himself just to be sure he won't get to close to someone to want to kill for them. no one can really get through to him and talk to him about what's going on, and it's been enough time since the Boomerang incident that no one, not even Helena, seems to put the pieces together about that being the catalyst to all of this. they want to respect his decision, but something is clearly wrong and no one can figure out what it is. they try to reach out but well. the world keeps turning. there are crises and villain attacks to deal with and eventually, it slips on everyone's mind to check on Tim because they have to save the world again.

in the end, it all comes back to that inevitability. Tim does kill again. who he kills and how he kills them doesn't even matter, and that's the worst part. he knows it doesn't matter because this was a path he set himself down bc he could never avoid it in the first place. he kills and he gets away with it, even when he's not a vigilante. he never would've ended up on this path if he hadn't seen his future self. grandfather paradox and all that. eventually, Bruce does find out. but by then it's too late, and Bruce has no real hard proof, just a suspicion he can't tell anyone else because everyone would just jump to Tim's defense. Tim has Bruce in a corner, and for once. Tim starts to kind of enjoy the game. madness spirals babey.

and of course, the Dick version

i know, with Dick, we all like to talk about that time Dick technically made the Joker's heart stop by beating him so badly. and sure, that's a fun canon moment. but it's the *Joker*, you know. i think Dick accidentally killing someone is far more fun if it's just. some henchmen. some low level villain who would've at best gotten a five year sentence for what the did. you can almost rationalize it, when it's the Joker. but when it's no one? it's just some guy? that's crunchy. that's far worse to handle. Dick wouldn't mean to do, it was the stars aligning for the worst situation. he doesn't pull his punches because he's tired and angry about something unrelated he doesn't even remember. and he just. keeps punching until some random guy is dead underneath him. and there's no bringing him back.

Dick would confess *immediately*. like, he'd firmly believe he needs to face consequences for what he did and it's the only way to rectify the situation. Bruce has taught him everybody deserves justice and Dick is sticking to those guns. he tells Bruce, he tells the Titans, hell, he even tries pretty hard to turn himself in to the police. of course no one will let him though. because it's *Dick*. they know it was an accident. they know Dick would never dream of doing that on purpose and that Dick shouldn't destroy his life for a mistake. and Dick is so torn up that no one will let him face real consequences. everyone tries to tell him stories of the people they failed to save, but to Dick, this is different. this isn't getting there too late and the bomb goes off, this is beating a man with his own fists until he felt the guy's chest cave in and still going anyway. the guilt eats Dick alive.

Dick would have a panic spiral, but very different to Tim's in the above. instead of being terrified and self isolating, Dick forces himself into overdrive. if he can't get anyone to let him face real consequences for what he did, then he has to make up for it. he has to save *every person* he can. he's overworking himself on this desperate need to be better. he knows it's unsustainable and so does everyone else, but Dick won't stop until he literally collapses. because if he had energy to kill someone, then he has to have energy to save someone.

there of course comes a breaking point. Dick stretches himself too thin and i think the culmination of it would be a long talk with Bruce. maybe Bruce opens up about the people he failed to save and they really discuss it all. Dick's guilt, his fear of himself, his anger, all of it. it's probably the closest Dick comes to therapy about all this. i do think. it's fun if some more unsavory people like Slade find out about what Dick did and try to use it as an in to manipulate Dick. pull the whole "you're no better than me, now we both know what you're capable of". and Dick has to fight that. he's stuck between a genuine support system and Slade or someone similar trying to drag him down. bc Dick knows he's not a killer, but deep down that voice inside of him is impossible to silence completely.

though i think Dick comes out stronger at the end of it, he would falter, for just a moment. he has a brief time where he almost gives in, or maybe he starts to give in. he agrees to be Slade's apprentice, unable to cope with his guilt. he's so close to killing again, but it's the light at the end of the tunnel, realizing he could never do this again. it snaps Dick out of it. he's never going to uproot the worst of the guilt from his chest but he's proven it to himself this isn't who he is. he's able to be stable again and it's all a growing moment. that said, it still haunts him. when Jason comes back from the dead, he hears whispers that Dick killed someone, and Jason holds it over his head in fights. villains know about it. maybe it even taints Dick's image, the whispers of how Nightwing beat a guy to death once. sure, he grows from it and all, but it never *quite* leaves him.

[yumikattodl]

Diabolik lovers more Blood [ Blood Bloued

DARK 5

Dark no 5

"Now let me tell you one thing, people do not change themselves. People, change life " . "

"Her smile, for good extinguished and her behavior changed in the end she had nothing left. She had nothing to lose in the end everything indifferent to her. "

☆.｡.:* .｡.:*☆.｡.:* .｡.:*☆

The navy blue-haired woman awoke in the night with moonlight falling on her hair. Her eyes became dead like death, there was nothing of life in her. She already realized that no one was waiting for her anywhere they were right. She decided she was done being a nice girl to those selfish vampires! She will never be nice to anything again she will treat them the way they treat her all the time. Even if they punish her for this behavior. She didn't care because what can they drink her blood? Will they pour it on her? It didn't make any impression on her. They didn't have, her to take back. They didn't have any more.

That part of her had died. What lived hope was no longer that part of her...

.｡.:* .｡.:*☆

Breakfast at mukamich's, as usual, was a quarrel kou with yuma.

The navy blue-haired woman was annoyed by the quarrel. It was time for a change. No longer afraid of them there was nothing to fear.

She was not going to, sit quietly and listen to them.

You can finally shut up! You guys are pissing me off," she said with a decidedly annoyed red-eye. The vampires looked at her puzzled.

- We are pissing you off! You are under our maintenance," said yuma.

- If you don't like it always, you can move out and it will be over the problem

- threw in the direction of yuma girl, and looked at his reactions. The vampire boiled that anger, the man tells him to move out he has lived here longer.

The girl began to rock on the hair.

Cattle, immediately stop and jump with this insolent behavior or you will not get to eat! - growled ruki in her direction.

- Quality is not afraid - laughed the girl in whose eyes there was no life.

- I'm supposed to eat this primitive food of yours! Some kind of animal fodder!!!shove it up your ass!

- shouted the dark blue-haired girl. Vampires, looked pissed at her after all ruki cooked well, yuma tried his best that his garden.

- How dare you! You know how much work I put into these vegetables! - growled yuma

- Really? - the girl sort of said questioningly so puzzled.

Then she stood up and overturned the whole table of food everything landed on the floor, the fresh dishes that ruki had prepared. His work had been wasted.

The yuma crops, wasted that he cared so much about.

You how dare you cattle! - growled an annoyed ruki looking at the girl, who was rocking in her chair after what she had done.

- After all, you said I won't eat since I don't eat. Then no one will eat,human meal," replied the dark blue-haired looking at their puzzled faces.

- You will take the consequences of your actions," announced her ruki

- oh, really? - this did not make any impression on the girl.

- You will bite! You will beat me! You will lock up somewhere I am not afraid of you," replied the girl looking at the vampire. The girl, she was very confident. She did not care anything about the punishment

- That's right kou - she turned to the blonde girl

- From today you are paying me for pretending to be your girlfriend," the dark blue-haired girl announced to him.

- You're crazy I won't give you anything," said the blonde. Won't you give? And your principle is nothing for free. You follow that rule.

- She said looking at the blond who was surprised he had just been run over by his own rule he couldn't get out of it.

-For the last 3 weeks on the count for each hour of pretending it will be 178794.75 JPY," she announced looking at the blond who opened his eyes in surprise.

- Are you kidding me, kitten? - he looked at the girl.

- You don't do anything after all! You don't even deserve that much!

- growled the kou- Not deserving? Exploitation, beatings by female fans? Kisses she doesn't want, groping! And I don't do anything!

- growled the girl at the blonde.

- She wants the money by the end of the day and no buts! - said the girl.

- You won't get anything! - Said the kou

- In that case, this footage will land on the web they will see what their real idol really is," announced yumi, showing kou the footage she recorded today of how kou treated her. His mask that he pretended to be an idol could be removed by her. She blackmailed him.

- And do not think to take away my phone KarlHeinz will find out everything after all he allowed the phone.

- She threw him a yumi looking at him. He, just for the first time was blackmailed by a girl.

- Let you be! - Said the kou. For the first time, he yielded to a girl.

- Okay, then I'm going to my place," she announced to them and left the room. Everyone, must pay for their actions makes no difference what kind of social status someone has.

" True, was that no man, is equal to man. Some are born better and others worse " .

"True, was that no man, is equal to man. Some are born better and others worse " .

-̩̩͙✩-̩̩͙*˚ ˚*-̩̩͙✩-̩̩͙*˚＊

"People are like dolls once you destroy someone it's hard to fix. Never, it never goes back to its original state. Because it stays in a person forever.... "

" She, no longer will be like before, it can not be repaired because it is in her is broken is half dead. "

＊*-̩̩͙✩-̩̩͙*˚ ˚*-̩̩͙✩-̩̩͙*˚＊

Yumi, was walking the school corridors got the money she wanted from the kou. She took, some to school to have for the school store and school vending machines. The girl, took lemon flavored tea from the vending machine. It was, in a hot mug so she walked slowly to avoid splitting.

- Hey! Bitch - chan ~~! - Laito approached her smiling from eye to eye

- I'm not a bitch- she replied to the boy in the hat was like a Wonderland hatter.

- Of course you are. You're a girl that means you're a bitch," stated the red-haired boy hugging the girl, and trying to get his hand under her skirt.

Get lost pervert," she growled to him red-eyed.

- You know, when someone calls me a pervert I take it as a compliment thanks bitch - chan ~~ ♡♡ - blushed laito scanning her with his eyes. He did not care that they were friends in childhood after all friends can sleep with each other there are such arrangements for him this arrangement would be beneficial.

- So, you are Yumi yes? - Said the red-haired boy who appeared and was followed by a purple-haired boy

- Yes, what do you want? - She replied.

- So he let you go and you are a board! - she threw.

- In this school, isn't there a girl what has boobs! - shouted ayato

- This and you who? - She asked without associating the boy.

- Ayato you were for some time when we were children with us.

- chuckled the red-haired, ayato boy. When she seriously looked at them they were similar. That is, after so many years, their meets.

-Aaa, good already remembered threw - and took a sip of tea.

- Seriously, it's cool that we met, but live in peace and leave me alone.

- She announced to them, she did not want to have anything to do with the past and with them.... She remembered what Cordelia had done to her.

She did not want to go back to the past she preferred it, to forget it.

- Wait a minute, wait a minute! Are you deleting our?! You mean to say that you don't need us?!!!- shouted Kanato at the girl

- Exactly, she does not want to have anything to do with you," she announced to them after which she walked away from them drinking tea.

They, will not give up they will get their friend back. Which is theirs. She is theirs forever.

"One, two, three. She said goodbye to the past. And she no longer wants to return to it, she left everything behind. For her own sake. "

" This is her new life. "

* .｡.:*☆

A girl was walking through the Qvidix forest. Smiling, from ear to ear, she suddenly sat down out of exhaustion to rest because her walk through the forbidden forest.

She heard a smirk, but didn't care too much about it. Suddenly something jumped out of the bushes she had never seen such a creature she tried to defend herself when the creature split her insides.

- This morning it was found? - A police officer asked Emano. Who, took charge of the investigation.

- This is another, such a case 3 this week such murders have been happening for a month, still the victims have their entrails ripped out. - Emano said.

-What could this psycho be? What is his purpose? - asked the question of his colleague

- Let's cover it all up say some bear is attacking! People or something?We can't tell them that people are attacked by some creature it is certainly not the work of a man what is it only?

- chuckled policeman Emano thoughtfully.

- Yes, it is," replied his colleague.

Who, you are? What, what do you want?

[fantasyinvader]

I feel like I had a similar issue trying to get into Overlord a couple of years ago.

I had come off the Elric saga and I wanted another Elric figure. Ainz seemed to fit the bill. I mean, the idea of a man from a dystopian world being isekaied and the power he has corrupting him into being evil despite any good intentions he may have? And he's something of an idiot? That sounds awesome.

But the thing is, Elric's evil was a lot more subtle and restrained. He wasn't someone who would go around kicking puppies just because, when he hurt people it was because they hurt him (or they were collateral damage). Elric took the tropes of the barbarian hero, despite him being the type of guy Conan would kick the shit out of, and took them to their logical extreme. His evil came from how that despite him killing worse people than himself, he was motivated by his own selfishness and doomed because of his inability to fight his destiny.

Ainz isn't like that. Ainz is more like the version of Elric from the French comics, who is more prone to kill people just because. Yet people keep misunderstanding and praising Ainz whereas Elric, his companions weren't afraid to call him out on dumb decisions or how much he wanted people to pity him despite saying he wants none. Elric was also a lot more aware of what was going on or the consequences of his actions, something that is as alien to his people as a sense of morality beyond “seek pleasure and respect the social hierarchy”.

Elric was a much more interesting character because of his contrasts. He's physically weak but given strength by his demonic sword Stormbringer, but that just leads to him being addicted to the power it gives him and being unable to part with it despite wanting to. Ainz is just a power fantasy that the setting likes to make out to be a bad thing, but even then it doesn't feel like it fully commits to it.

I think what keeps stopping me from really sitting down and watching or reading youjo senki (saga of tanya the evil), despite my growing fascination with it the more I learn about it, is that the more I learn about the more I also grow annoyed with it.

Cause sure, it's a black comedy to some extent in all its forms. I get that. At the same time a lot of that comedy it derives comes less from undermining popular conceptions of ww1 and to a lesser extent ww2, and instead more so from reinforcing those misconceptions and blowing them up to a greater extent.

If your going to have a rommel character for instance, why largely play him straight as the genius/competent commander propaganda played him up to be, when the more obvious black comedy choice would, I would wager, be to portray him as an incompetent boob too busy with glamourshots and looking good on the camera to wage an effective war, yet who still gets all the love and prestige of genius back home. Instead youjo senki goes for what effectively mounts to fanboying/celebration of his reputation like any other piece of media.

Now to an extent I can see an arguement as to why it's like that. Youjo senki isnt trying to reflect the reality of the great war(s), its intentionally invoking a pop culture idea of what those wars were like. A perspective on the war that was, arguably still is, popular with armchair wargamers even.

I'm just not yet convinced by that arguement is all.

[generouskittentidalwave]

SO THERE IS SOMETHING BETWEEN ODYSSEUS AND DIOMEDES THAT IS HARDLY MENTIONED AT ALL AND I GOTTA BRING THIS UP BECAUSE IT'S IMPORTANT

CAN WE TALK ABOUT THE CLEAR PARALLELS AND DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THEIR JOURNEYS?? HOW THEY ARE SO SIMILAR YET SO DIFFERENT AT THE SAME TIME??

Okay so let's break this down

Diomedes had to leave his own kingdom and go on his journey to start a new kingdom of his own because his wife was unfaithful to him. This was punishment of him getting willingly involved with and attacking the gods and this was the later consequences of it. And as a result he was kicked out of his kingdom and had to learn to make peace with his past enemies and start new again because of it.

Then you have Odysseus, who just wanted to be back home with his wife and son, he didn't want to be part of any of this in the first place. And he ended up making a mistake out of his own hubris that although caused the attention and anger of Poseidon (similar to how Diomedes caught the wrath of Aphrodite), wasn't him going after Poseidon on purpose, moreso like an unintentional consequence due to his own foolish actions.

Now you might be thinking, they both angered a god, whether it was intentional or not, and they both had the attention of gods, and both were sent on a journey because of it. So, the real question is why did the gods choose Odysseus as their spotlight hero instead of Diomedes? Why did Odysseus get all the dangerous herioc tasks while Diomedes was more focused on the side in his own journey?

Well, while Diomedes was originally given the attention of the gods during the war, Diomedes willingly interacted with them and even fought with them during the war. Diomedes treated them with the same amount of respect as any greek would and he was given the same respect back (usually atleast), and whether he attacked them or not, it was all fair in the battle fields of war, and Diomedes even got help from Athena. He was one of the staple of a perfect greek soldier who kept away his hubris and respected and worked with the gods in different situations.

Odysseus, on the otherhand, is a pretty different case. Diomedes' view on the gods was the same black and white as all greeks viewed them. However, when it came to Odysseus, he really set in motion the idea of treating gods less as omnipotent figures and following their every word, to treating them more as people. The gods shifted focus away from Diomedes, the ideal greek warrior, and focused their attention on the soon to be greek hero Odysseus, the one who was a true hero despite being rather imperfect in his own ways. I feel that was because, and in my educated guess, he not only was a challenge for them compared to Diomedes, but he also showed a different kind of respect for them. Not your average greeks' undying appreciation and love for them. Rather, Odysseus had to earn their respect, and the gods in turn had to earn his respect as well. When he needed help he prayed for their guidance, but he also wasn't afraid to tell them in no uncertain terms to fuck off when they did something stupid or interfered with his own goal. It felt like all the gods chose Odysseus to focus on, whether it be for revenge, love, or guidance, and never let up afterwards.

While Diomedes was, and is even mentioned by Odysseus himself, to be filled with very little imperfections, Odysseus is the opposite. Diomedes, despite being the youngest of them all, was already well matured than all of them, most things just came to him, including the gods themselves, for a short period of time. Odysseus was none of these things, he had hubris at times, causing him to be selfish and prideful due to his young passion and boldness, however, Odysseus also had a kind and gentle heart along with a smart mind, which is probably a huge reason on why sometimes his emotions would overrule his reasonings. Odysseus was a good guy, probably the most morally good person greek mythology ever had, and he was dealing with real human emotions, mistakes, and actions, in absolutely horrible situations he was thrown into. And, after everything, he was the one person who taught the gods themselves that even they are only human as well. They are all only human. He brought them to that realization, even if they won't admit it.

I think both journeys serve as an important purpose for both characters. Diomedes had everything stripped away from him, having to run away from a fight and not just start new again, but learn to make peace with those who originally he saw as his enemies. Odysseus got the biggest reality check ever as well, as after gaining the attention of the gods he learned and matured and grew to become a true greek hero while also gaining horrible trauma because of it. While Diomedes lost it all and had to create his own place of belonging, Odysseus had to fight for 10 years to regain what he lost because that was his place of belonging.

And these two probably have no idea what eachother went through after all these years, and I swear to god they better have a reunion of some kind.

Anyway these are just my late night thoughts on it though, hope all you greek geeks have a fantastic day and night! ^^

[nonokoko13]

SXF Chapters 49-51

It has been a long time since I made a recap, but I wanted to wait until the arc had enough info to give my opinion about.

Starting with the sub plot of the Forgers, all I have to say it's that it was well constructed.

While Yor protects Olka and Gram, she subconsciously wishes to be with Loid and Anya, but wonders what she's going to do next. Not only about her job, but about her role as Forger: she accepted being Loid's wife to not worry Yuri, then she caught herself feeling threatened by Fiona enough to consider the murder for one moment.

As well as Loid, she got carried away by her feelings to the point she forgot why she was being there, as Forger and assassin, to begin with. After her talk with Yuri in chapter 44 she realized that her main goal was finished; Yuri has already grown up and she doesn't need to be a hitman to support anyone economically. But she has being an assassin for a long time and she somehow takes pride in what she does. Probably that pride will be supported by this arc if she saves Olka, Gram and Zeb.

The dilemma is complicated: she enjoys being part of this family, however, she remembers it's a facade. Being assassin has made possible the survival of her and Yuri, and she believes it helps to clean the streets of people who can harm the new world the peace has created, although it carries many consequences to her life and those around her.

One day she could have to choose a path, but she can't tell her family what she does in order to protect them and because she may be afraid of them leaving her. Mr. Forger or Thorn Princess? Maybe both?

Loid is in a similar situation: with a job he knows he helps others, getting off guard by his feelings towards his family and unable to tell them or understand Anya. I'm 100% sure he never had to face a mission that include taking care of a child, less raise one. Because of Anya's telepathy she knows what happens around her, but he doesn't; this leads him to misunderstands her attitude and think the worse.

At first he tries to act like a normal, good dad, getting as answer harsh words. In chapter 50 he cools down and return to his Twilight side for round two, failing again until Anya calms him down. Meanwhile Anya has another conflict: as any child would do she decided to obtain the tickets to have fun, believing she can help Ma on her mission.

Although she still wants to, I think it's clear in some panels that she's realized her selfishness and now she wants to help Ma to compensate it. After all, imagine being at her shoes: having parents who hide their identities from each other and put both on a cruise while your mother is on a mission that could doomed your family if your father finds out this would be a really bad thing, and the fault of this was because of her.

But she's so focused on helping Yor she forgets about Loid's feelings after all those reactions coming from her frustration that she paid with him.

Zeb and Olka, although being on screen for short time, have a good presentation. She's just a woman caught in the crossfire of a conflict between mafia groups, paid with the loss of her husband and all her sons except Gram.

Seen from afar her desire of a normal life, she's in this because she was born the daughter of a mobster, although her group may not be as bloody as one would think about mafia. I find curious the parallels between Olka and Yor: Olka didn't choose her family, fell in love with a man and became mother because of this love; Yor chose that life because of her family, became wife and mother because of it and probably it's her love towards Anya that will keep her in the family until she falls for Loid.

Zeb is the childhood friend that fell for the "bad guy" 's daughter and stayed by her side because his loyalty to her and the family that helped him become the man he's today. A coward and apparently dumb nice guy, he maybe is not qualified to protect her but knows Olka well enough to know how to reassure her, even if it means making a fool of him. I'm sorry for Olka, but I hope they get safe and someday his feelings are reciprocated.

The informant has his own problems too. It seems not all assassins respect the client-provider relationship, it's a rough job where anyone is expendable. Will he be able to scape from the boat without being killed? Will we know more about him? Only time will tell

Giving his grey morality I'd like him to survive. He already stated he gives information to who pays better so he could be a good ally or a minor antagonist.

About the chapters, this arc had been felt slow to me. However, the arc is constructed to present many things and for that Endo needs to take his time. Along with the biweekly updates the dynamic action scenes that seem short it's why the pace feels slow.

However, whether it's good for ones or bad for others, this arc is important to the story's development and I prefer that Endo doesn't overwork so I'll wait patiently to have a further understanding of how this arc contributes to the general plot.

Next chapter comes the day after my birthday. I can't wait!

+ Bonus

"A different frequency than the secret police's line". Loid's aware of the informant's transmitters placed all over the boat, mistaken them with the secret police aboard, which it doesn't need to be entirely wrong. How it would have been the arc if Yuri would have been there too? It's a good writing idea

Talking about romance, someone's going to propose. Wish you the best buddy!

That's all. Bye!

[mandoalorian]

I Believe In Love [Maxwell Lord x Reader] - Prologue

Author's Note: *Spoilers for WW84* Welcome to my brand new series coming Jan 2021! December Magic (my first Max Lord series) will be coming to an end in the coming week and I'm finally excited to share with you my brand new series. This series will be my interpretation of what happens after the events of WW84. If you would like to be added to a taglist, please let me know! Merry Christmas everyone.

Word count: 2,000

Permanent Taglist: @supernaturalgirl @phoenixhalliwell @ah-callie @luvzoria @stardust-galaxies @wickedfrsgrl @goth-topic @nerdypinupcrystal @wonderfulfluffer @kiwi-the-first @pedroepascal @castiel-barnes @honeymandos @rocketqueen @ladycumberbatchofcamelot @dybalalover10 @girl-obsessed-with-things @elena-myth

Masterlist

Previous - Prologue - Next

*gif by: @mell-bell

"I've been lying to you, I'm not a great guy. In fact I’m a pretty messed up loser guy. And I make terrible mistakes. But you... you don’t ever have to make a wish for me to love you. I'm here because I love you. I just… I just wish and I pray that one day I will make you proud enough to forgive me.” Alistair could see the plea in his father's eyes. He could see the promise. And he saw a glint of something he had never seen before. Something so genuine, and powerful. Something so beautiful.

Alistair smiled weakly. “I don’t need you to make me proud. I already love you, daddy. Because you’re my dad.” Alistair revealed, pulling his father into a hug.

"I love you so much, my son." Maxwell croaked out, his hands fondling into Alistair's locks of hair and pressing a kiss into his forehead.

Maxwell's whole life; he had wished for more. Something bigger and better. He had wished for greatness because that was something he had never had. He couldn't afford college education and he didn't have loving parents. He came from a broken home; so when the opportunity arose and he was presented with shares in oil and the potential to start his own business, he took it. He yearned to make someone proud, and after the birth of his son, he'd found that someone.

It had all gone wrong. It wasn't meant to, but it had. Maxwell didn't think he could ever be able to forgive himself for his actions and misdirections, but his own forgiveness didn't matter. He could live the rest of his life in painful guilt if it meant that his son still loved him unconditionally.

Maxwell saw himself as a monster, a beast. For who would love a broken man like him? His parents didn't, his ex wife didn't. He had no one. He needed Alistair more than he could ever know.

"Daddy?" Alistair mumbled into his father's dress shirt, salty tears pricking his dark eyes. His voice was muffled by the way he had nuzzled his face into his father's warm chest, cherishing the embrace.

"Yes?" Maxwell hummed, eventually pulling away from his son, but his hands still set firmly on Alistair's shoulders. Alistair hesitated for a moment, nervously biting his lip as his father searched for an answer. What did Alistair want? Whatever he wanted, Maxwell was ready to give it— ready to give his all. Ready to change and become a better man. Alistair took a deep breath. He had a lot to learn and a long way to go but he was finally ready.

"Can we go home?" he asked, his eyes glistening with hope for a better future.

"Yes." Maxwell sighed, exhaling and letting his entire body deflate as he interlocked his fingers with his son. Alistair's hand was small, but his grip on Maxwell was tight— like he was afraid to let go. Afraid to lose his father. He couldn't lose him, not again.

The helicopter was still in near enough distance but Max wasn't about to hitch a ride a fly home like he might've once done before. Maxwell and Alistair walked through the field hand in hand until eventually they reached the highway. Where there was once plenty of abandoned cars and trucks, the world was finally restoring back to its former ways. But Maxwell swore that he was done being the greedy, selfish, businessman turned TV personality. He wanted none of that anymore. He wanted his family, and his son. He wanted to be a good father.

All he ever wanted deep down was to be a good dad to Alistair. He never believed in himself. How could he, when he had no father figure to look up to? Nobody in his life to give him encouragement, guidance or reassurance— nothing. He had come this far on his own and it was awful, isolating and damaging. He would not let his son make the same mistakes as he did.

They passed through the highway and it wasn't long until they were back at Black Gold Cooperative. Knowing that his company was about to go bust and that he'd have to sell all his assets just so he'd be able to earn enough to live off for a few months concerned him, but it was the least of his worries right now. He reached into the pocket of his tailored suit pants and took out his car keys, unlocking the passenger door and ushering for Alistair to slide in.

"But daddy, don't you have a driver?" Alistair questioned, his fingers fiddling with the knobs and buttons on the car radio. Maxwell slid into the driver's seat and let his hands glide around the wheel as he tried to recall the last time he had driven himself. It had been a long time.

"You know buddy, things are going to be changing very soon," Maxwell said, his eyes glazed as he looked upon the orange glowing skyline. "You might not like it at first. Might be hard to understand but, I promise you that one day you'll get it. I'm never going to hurt you again and I will make up all my wrongdoings. Even if it takes me the rest of my life," Maxwell huffed out a sigh. "Truth is, I was never deserving of the fancy cars, designer clothing and big house. But if there's one thing I've learned, it's that we don't need those things to be happy."

"What do we need?" Alistair questioned curiously as Maxwell turned the key and initiated the engine.

Maxwell recalled the words spoken by Diana. "Love," Maxwell responded, like it was the simplest yet most beautiful thing in the world.

Most of the car journey home was filled with comfortable silence as Max kept his eyes on the road ahead, concentrating to the best of his ability whilst Alistair gazed out the window as he seemingly watched society rebuild itself. "So uhm, we still have the weekend together," Maxwell smiled as he pulled into the driveway. "What do you want to do?"

"I don't care, as long as I can spend time with you." Alistair grinned, a dimple appearing in his right cheek. It mirrored his father's. Maxwell took a deep breath and turned off the engine, unclicking his seatbelt and turning to his son.

"I have always loved you," Max admitted. "And I will always love you. Forever."

Alistair paused. "Can you play on the Atari with me? Mom's new boyfriend bought me a new video game and I really wanna try it out! He wanted to play with me but, you know. I'd rather play with my daddy."

Maxwell's eyes lit up ecstatically. He didn't have the first clue about video games, and in the past he would've shrugged off Alistair's request. But in this moment, he couldn't think of anything better. They sat on the floor in front of the nineteen inch television, stuffing their faces with popcorn. "Hey!" Maxwell laughed, huffing his cheeks out in annoyance. "You keep killing me!"

"Daddy," Alistair groaned out with a small giggle, prodding his finger into his father's tummy. "I'm going easy on you!"

"Okay okay," Maxwell chuckled as Alistair restarted the game. "Let's start again, I know I can beat you this time!" Maxwell grinned and pressed 'play' on the controller, his ring clad fingers pushing the buttons desperately.

Maxwell had spent his whole life trying to find his destiny and understand his legacy. He'd spent his life in pursuit of meaning and purpose— but the truth is, his purpose had been right before him this whole time. His purpose was Alistair. And right now, he couldn't be happier. Diana had let him off the hook, but that didn't mean his actions wouldn't have consequences.

The phone rang; a haunting buzz that vibrated throughout the whole house. "Can you pause it for me?" Maxwell asked, ruffling Alistair's hair. "I'll go answer this call and bring us back some more popcorn." Alistair nodded excitedly as Maxwell rose to his feet, his knees aching as he stalked over to the still ringing phone.

Leaning against the wall, he pulled it off the hook. "Hello?" he asked, curling the wire around his finger. "Who's there?"

"Max, it's me," the voice was like a ghost from his past. He felt his heart sink into the depths of his chest as he could practically taste the anger that dripped from her familiar tongue. "Bring Alistair home. You do not deserve him. I don't want you anywhere near my son ever again." she threatened before the line fell completely silent. Dead. Maxwell's shaky hands placed the phone back on the hook and he closed his eyes. He knew that he wasn't deserving of the unconditional love that Alistair gave him, but that boy meant the world to him. He had finally found his opportunity to change and become a better man— a better father. Maxwell padded back down the corridor and leaned against the door frame, watching as Alistair carefully read the words on the back of the box of his video game. Max's lips curved into a small but proud smile. That was his boy, and he wasn't going to let anything take Alistair away from him.

***

"I renounce my wish!" You had heard his voice, but only in dreams. Usually, it was soft like velvet, sweet like honey, but this time, you had awoken in a cold sweat. You pulled the blankets over your body as a chill raced down your spine. You felt his pain, his anguish and hurt. It was unlike anything you had ever felt before. Your scream alerted your mother who raced to your bedside with intentions to comfort you.

"Another nightmare?" Your mother Hesita asked you with concern. She smoothed out your hair as you wiped a tear away from your eye.

"It was him," you whispered, your voice shaky. "He needs me. I know it."

"You have found your calling?" Hestia quizzed, her voice merely above a whisper as she gazed into your eyes. You nodded slowly, never feeling more sure about anything in your life. "How do you know?"

"It is my duty," you replied softly as you looked past the skylight and amongst the stars. "Zeus made me the goddess of home and hearth for this very reason."

"But what makes him so special?" Your mother wondered out loud, her hand sliding into yours knowing that this would be your final night in her company.

"I don't know." you huffed with a tired shrug of your shoulders. It was true: you genuinely didn't know why you had been hearing his voice, letting his words and whispers haunt you over and over again. He consumed your every thought— this mysterious voice from the world of man.

"I renounce my wish!" those four words replayed in your mind like a broken record as you tried to figure out what exactly they meant. But it didn't matter. You felt his heartache. You felt his pain. And now? You were coming for him.

[geekwithfangs]

In any case Simon Lewis used to be the man that would constantly bend over backwards for anyone. He had no issues admitting when he was wrong. Admitting when he needed to apologize. But in this case he didn’t necessarily feel like he was wrong. Yeah maybe he was being stubborn but so was Izzy. Yes he wanted to be out in the open their relationship, he once sacrificed everything for Clary because she’s his best friend. And maybe Simon in the last few years of having his memories wiped, of having his own identity change maybe he wasn’t the same weak boy he was. Was he necessarily trying to prove a point to Izzy and her family? No yes he mentioned balls but it was more of a means of stating he wasn’t afraid of consequences if it meant being with her. He had no interest in being a secret from the clave. But apparently nothing he said went through her head. She wanted to be right; she wanted to put him in his palace. 

Naive boy he once was; normally this would be the place where he’d unfold his arms, where he’d be the one to apologize and beg for forgiveness. But he wasn’t wrong. Yeah she was perhaps compromising with him with being public but that wasn’t the point. Simon didn’t want to feel like he was living two worlds. One where he was allow to be with Izzy and the other where he was forced to act like he didn’t have an option. Maybe it was selfish, maybe he was wrong but in this moment he wasn’t okay with being told off. Because hell all knows if Simon even began to talk to Izzy in that conceding tone he’d be the one with a slap across his face or worse a whip considering that was her weapon of choice. 

Shaking his head strongly as he bit down on his lip as he debated his next course of action. “ No, Yes I have more guts in me now. I’m not the guy who needed you to save me, and sometimes maybe that’s all I’ll be to you. I’m a mundane, Until this morning I had no idea my mind was wiped, No idea who you were to me. And now that i do I don’t want to hide in the shadows. I want to be able to stand by your side. I want to be able to help you, is that so wrong? I’m not clueless, I’m not someone who can be pushed around to get their way. “ He nearly huffed off the words; He changed, But he was more aware of how he was spoken to, how he was seen as weak, and with Izzy he never wanted to be weak, he wanted to help her. But it was like she didn’t even care his point of view. ‘ I understand you think you need to protect me, And I understand it puts you and your family in a terrible position. But what’s the plan then for the future? If I were to be okay with this arrangement? You hide me from the shadow world for the rest of our lives? “ Not admitting Simon was caving but it was an honest question one that now swirled into the back of his mind. He loved Izzy but maybe our history, our families where our souls belonged just didn’t work, or match up with the other. Love wasn’t enough; our stubborn minds, Simon wasn’t an awful person even if Izzy wanted to paint himself out to be in this moment. 

Shaking his head he dropped palms to his sides as fingers dug into the pockets of his coat, a longing to be loved, to be seen shattered in a blink of an eye.

@geekwithfangs

Well, I don’t recall a time that you’ve managed to get yourself on my bad side yet, so it seems the odds of that happening are unlikely, and therefore, in your favor. {I aired out in a teasing tone; all the while a soft, playful grin laced across my lips. It felt refreshing to be with Simon again. Even more so upon learning that his memories of me and our relationship had returned too. My only disappointment in all of this was a year had gone by since Simon and I were last together like this. We lost a whole year… I’m just relieved that we are back together with one another now. In fact, now that we found our way back to one another, I had no intentions of losing Simon again; even if that means literally whipping Clary into shape, if she opts to break another rule that could take Simon from me. No, it was time for Clary to begin answering for her own mistakes, because so far, the only people who felt the affects and costs from her mistakes were the rest of us. I silently considered as Simon and I made our way toward the destination he had in mind} It’s okay. I assure you, you’re forgiven. I mean, in spite of how perfect and sweet you are, I don’t expect you to remember every outfit I ever wore when you and I were together. {I added with a lingering grin} All that matters is that you remember us. {I genuinely pointed out as we continued the familiar walk toward the park; assuming that’s where Simon was guiding us} You’re not a geek, Simon. A bit of a dork, yes, but an incredibly cute and charming dork… One that I am head over heels in love with. {I said with a doting grin as I leaned in closer to Simon while we walked} All that matters is that fate brought us back together once more. Just so you know, I have no intentions of losing you again though; no matter what, you’re stuck with me, Simon Lewis. {Although a hint of playfulness was in my voice, I did mean every word of that. I was in love with Simon, so naturally I would do everything in my power to avoid the feeling of losing him all over again} You have nothing to worry about, Simon, I won’t let anything happen to either one of us. {I assured Simon as he joined me here on the ground; prompting me to nestle in closer to him while we watched the bright, starlit sky together} Tonight really has been perfect… Here’s to the first of many perfect and unforgettable nights for the two of us.

[gch1995]

Not an ask but goddamn are your takes on sw good. Ty for contributing actual intelligence to this toxic ass fandom. Also more of an ask but what are some of your favourite things about Luke and least favourite things?

You’re welcome! I’m not saying that Anakin/Vader is an innocent, far from it. Nor do I think the entire Order and Republic deserved mass murder and genocide, especially not the kids.

However, I have a hard time believing that Qui Gonn Jinn, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Yoda, and many of the other adults involved in the old Jedi Order and Republic who he grew up with were really that much better than him either because we constantly see evidence that supports the exact opposite of them being humble, kind, supportive, and selfless heroes in the OT and PT movies and TV show before Luke. In some ways, they’re actually worse than Anakin because they have even less self-awareness than him, and never learn anything at all from their bad choices and mistakes, just because they’re on the designated “right side.”

Much of what makes Vader so horrifying is just how much of an extreme version of the ideal Jedi Obi-Wan, Yoda, and the Council he is that they all tried to mold him into. Yeah, he’s more angry, impatient, self-loathing, and unstable on the high of the dark side than the average Jedi of his time. However, much like them, he’s also much more apathetic, much more duty-bound to his master, much more hostile and paranoid towards enemies and outside cultures, much better at manipulating others for his own ends, much better at pushing down his true feelings, and much more adept at using that “greater good” mantra to compartmentalize all of the atrocities and collateral damage he perpetuates to get revenge or serve Sidious by taking out anyone who gets in his or the Empire’s way.

Name one time when characters like Qui Gonn, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Yoda, or even Bail Organa actually took an interest in Anakin, Ahsoka, Luke, Leia, their recruits, or anyone else for anything but their own ends of a desire to absolve themselves, a desire for external validation from their masters or the Council and Republic head, or a desire to hold on to power in canon?

You really can’t name any times when they had truly kind and selfless actions and motivations in regards to other people that Obi-Wan, Yoda, the Jedi Council, and many of the other adults involved with power in the oldJedi and Republic. For as dark, selfish, and villainous as Anakin becomes, even he has more moments of genuinely kind, heroic, and selfless actions and motivations for others in the series. What’s more, Obi-Wan and Yoda get away with trying to use Luke as a pawn for their own ends, while Anakin actually got consistently framed as morally wrong and selfish for doing the same, ultimately recognized that what he was doing to his son was selfish and wrong, and ultimately made a decision to atone for it by selflessly sacrificing his life to save him. He did it, even though he knew he’d probably be killed in process, might still very well never earn Luke’s forgiveness at all after all the trauma he put his son through, and may never become a force ghost.

When a supposed “good guy” character gets away with displaying many of the same negative traits and using many of the same fucked up tactics that the anti-villains/tragic heroes/tragic villains are framed as wrong for, have to pay negative consequences for, and even have to learn a lesson about being better from, then those “good guys” are not only objectively bad people but also badly written characters, which is the case with Obi-Wan Kenobi and Yoda.

As for Luke, my favorite traits of his are his kindness, open-mindedness, and the fact that he’s not too afraid to stick up for himself and call out Obi-Wan, Yoda, and his father on their bullshit.

My least favorite traits of his are probably the same ones that become Anakin’s worst traits over time, though they’re definitely a watered down version of his dad’s negative traits since he’s got a more healthy and stable personality and a stronger moral fortitude after being raised to be a normal kid by good guardians before getting involved with the fuckery of the old Jedi Order and Sith, which would be arrogance, impulsivity, a short-temper, and occasional selfishness.

Also, while it’s not really a negative trait, but something the writers failed to think about beforehand, I wanted to see more of him dealing with the traumatic fallout of Uncle Owen and Aunt Beru’s murder by the Empire, and I wanted to see more scenes of him dealing with the weight of having killed so many people for a war mission. Look, I get it. Luke was acting in perfectly reasonable self-defense when he blew up that Death Star and Jabba’s pleasure barge. However, he was a farm boy with absolutely no experience as a soldier in combat beforehand, and, even if it was in self-defense, he still took a lot of lives. To the average person who’s never done that before, taking a life is going to be traumatizing, even if it’s in perfectly reasonable self-defense.

[final-fantasy-imagines]

ok! for ff13 can i request some angst/comfort hc’s for noel and snow ?? thank you in advance if you decide to write this 💕

Hey there! First of all, I'm so, so sorry that it took me so incredibly long to finish these headcanons. I hope you're still interested in this and like what I came up with! Have a good day/night and take care. <3

angst/comfort headcanons (gn!reader)

Noel Kreiss

Because of the things that happened in his future and everything he went through with Jul, Noel is always afraid of losing those dear to his heart. It’s not something he consciously worries about all the time but the thought is always there in the back of his mind to come forward whenever he needs or expects it the least.

What makes it even worse is that he never knows whether your present will turn into a dreadful or happy future. Every action has its consequences in the space-time- continuum but no one will ever be able to tell if the consequences are good or bad until they already happened. He hates that he can’t protect you from that, especially since he’s not sure how much he can tell you about all of that without changing the timeline too much.

With that being said, Noel also fears that his mere presence in your present age is enough to ruin your timeline. He doesn’t belong here, he knows that very well but he also can’t bring himself to leave and break your heart in the process. Being with you makes him feel a happiness he hasn’t experienced in ages and although he knows that it’s incredibly selfish, he just doesn’t want to let go of that feeling yet.

However, all of that doesn’t change the fact that you’re the only person who’s able to make him forget that the carries the weight of the whole world on his shoulders – at least for a while. Whenever you kiss him or snuggle up to him when you’re lounging around together he just feels at ease completely, and he really craves that. Noel might not be overly affectionate because he isn’t used to it but he appreciates every affection he receives from you.

He would probably never tell you about the things that keep him awake at night, simply because he feels like that’s the best way to protect you. You deserve to live your life to the fullest without worrying about your decisions and their consequences all the time, so he tries his best to keep everything, including his true origin, a secret. He hates to lie to you but since he does it to keep you safe, he can live with that.

Snow Villiers

Although Snow always acts like he’s the toughest guy on earth, he can’t deny that he has a deep fear of losing those he loves. It happened with Serah, it happened with Lightning, and a part of him is convinced that it’s going to happen with you too. The thought of being the one who’s left behind, being lonely and hopeless as a result, really terrifies him, especially since he knows very well how cruel fate can be.

He doesn’t talk about it too often but you know him well enough to notice when something is bothering him immediately. There are subtle changes in his behavior, like how his gaze always follows you when you move around the room or how he hugs you a little tighter and a little longer than he would normally. In moments like this, he just needs to make sure that you’re not going to vanish into thin air right in front of him to calm himself down.

Snow is pretty protective of the ones he loves, so he’d never let anything or anyone cause harm to you, even if he had to risk his own freedom or even his life to protect you. It’s a scary thought for both of you but your wellbeing and your safety are so important to him that he would gladly sacrifice himself for you. Keeping you safe is far more important than his own life, although it would definitely break your heart of he had to leave you behind for whatever reason.

Because of that, Snow cherishes every moment he can spend with you. He tries his best to live in the moment and not to worry about the future all the time because it wouldn’t change anything about possible future events and stuff like that. He wants to make as many memories as possible together with you to remember the good times whenever things get a bit rough or he finds himself worrying about losing you.

He knows that he can’t protect you from everything but he will definitely try it regardless. That means, he can get a bit overprotective sometimes, so better be prepared for that. He doesn’t mind if you or someone else teases him about it because he’s quick-witted enough to come up with an answer immediately which usually ends in a playful banter between the two of you until you burst out laughing. Those are actually some of Snow’s favorite moments because he just loves to see you so happy and carefree.

Thank you for reading! If you enjoyed it please consider reblogging. I'd really appreciate the support. <3

Taglist: @cosmicdarlingx ,@thevoidwriting, @fandomatakeover18,@sixdaysofsilverashes, @theimaginaryheir, @scaraa

[ljstlr]

Torn.

hyungwon x oc x changkyun.

genre: slight angst

words: 2131

——————————————————————————

The loud and high-pitched crying of your baby woke you up from your sleep. It’s only been thirty minutes since the last time he cried, but there he was again. You sat up to shake the sleeping man beside you, signaling it was his turn to calm the baby down.

He quickly woke up and nodded. He groaned before getting up from the bed and quickly rushing to the baby’s room. You leaned your back in the headboard and listened as the cries quieted down as your husband hummed sweet lullabies to the cranky baby.

You were starting to fall asleep from the lullaby as well but woke up once again when you felt your husband’s arms wrap around your waist to lay you back down.

He pulled you close and planted a kiss on your neck, “You need to get sleep. We have an early flight back to Korea tomorrow.” He whispered.

You caressed his hands that were tightly hugging you by the waist. You could feel that he already fell back to sleep, but you couldn’t help but overthink.

Were you ready to go back to Korea and face the past that you left?

Meanwhile, on the other side, a man was sipping on his glass of whiskey as he re-read the messages on the group conversation that he barely even spoke in. How could he? When the woman who shattered his heart, but he still hopes to come back and fix it is there?

And the man who betrayed him as well. You were finally coming back to South Korea after a long dreading year of living in a different country. He was confused on what to feel. He was going to see you again, but it isn’t like before.

You won’t be alone, and you won’t be the woman who he can freely hold, adore, and show affection to whenever he wanted. And it’s not like he could anymore.

You got married to his best friend for fuck’s sake. You built a family behind his back. He started to feel the hidden anger once again and threw the glass he was holding across the room.

But up to this day, it wasn’t clear what he was mad about. The fact that you married his best friend and ran off to a different country to start a family or the fact that even despite the shitty move you did to him, he still loved you and prays that you come back into his arms.

But that’s the consequence of love, right?

Changkyun sighed as he laid the last box of your belongings on your new apartment’s floor. You were holding the baby while exploring your new home – it was perfect for a family of three.

“I’m so glad you guys decided to live here again,” Minhyuk spoke as he helped Changkyun remove the plastic from the furniture and baby proof them as well.

“No place like home.” Changkyun responded which Minhyuk nodded to. You looked outside the window and you saw a familiar car parked across the apartment building.

You knew exactly who it was.

Hyungwon watched you from his car. It was a bittersweet feeling to see you again. You were holding your baby in your arms and he smiled to himself even though it hurted.

It could’ve him who’s living up there with you, if it weren’t for the mistake that he caused years ago. You were labelled as soulmates, a match made in heaven, the perfect couple. You loved each other dearly – even when you were separated.

His parents never approved of you and it caused too many arguments in your relationship which eventually led to a breakup. You both thought there would be a comeback, but you were wrong.

Because a one-night stand with Changkyun, his “best friend”, made a permanent change in your life. You got pregnant. The both of you were afraid to face Hyungwon, so you fled to another country.

You were steps away from boarding the plane when you heard someone shouting your name from across the airport halls. You froze. You had an evident baby bump and Changkyun was beside you.

When you looked back, Hyungwon had a face of disbelief. He stared at your baby bump, the engagement rings at your fingers, and at you both. He scoffed at the scene; he didn’t know this was why you were suddenly leaving the country.

He backed away from the scene and you never heard of him again.

Until today.

Hyungwon got off his car and you gulped as you saw him entering the apartment building. This wasn’t going to be any good. You watched as Changkyun and Minhyuk chatter away in the living room when someone started knocking on the door.

Changkyun thought it’d be just one of the guys, so he didn’t hesitate to open the door. But he was wrong. It was the man he was most afraid of facing.

Silence wrapped around the apartment. Minhyuk was just staring at the scene in front of him and so were you. You all knew this was bound to happen, but you didn’t expect it to be this soon.

“Hi Hyungwon.” Changkyun spoke, finally breaking the silence.

“I don’t want to hear anything from you. I came here to talk to her.” Hyungwon replied coldly.

Your husband looked at you with fear in his eyes. He has grown to love you in the past years, and he felt that this was his karma of stealing you away from the love of your life. He knows to himself that he can never match with what you and Hyungwon had, and that scared him.

He doesn’t want to lose you; he can’t afford to anymore.

You closed the bedroom door and watch Changkyun sit quietly on the bed. You asked Minhyuk and Hyungwon to wait aside, leaving the baby to Minhyuk.

“You can talk to him, (y/n).” Changkyun smiled at you. But you knew it was fake. You knew him too well now.

“Changkyun, are you sure? I won’t do anything that you wouldn’t be comfortable with.” You replied and he looked at you in awe.

You still had the nicest heart and soul even after what he caused you for knocking you up. That’s why he loved you. And if you love someone, you have to be ready to let them go.

“It’s okay. And whatever happens after, I’ll be fine as well.” Changkyun answered and when you were about to respond, he already stood up and left the room.

Hyungwon watched as Changkyun took the baby from Minhyuk and entered the baby room with him. He wasn’t blind to see the tears falling from his eyes as he did so, but was he really the bad guy for ignoring that?

You picked up your bag from the counter table and stepped outside to face Hyungwon. He looked at you with the same love in his eyes, and you know you didn’t deserve that. You followed him to his car as you drove to your old hide out.

You sat at the hood of his car as you watched the overview of Seoul. You don’t know how long it’s been since the two of you sat in silence, but either one of you was scared to talk. Afraid to ruin the moment that you both have been craving for the past years.

But it had to come to an end.

“I’m sorry, Hyungwon.” You finally apologized after every pain that you caused him.

He smiled to himself and replied, “It’s okay, (y/n).”

It wasn’t okay, you thought to yourself. It was just the side of him that was too caught up on you that was speaking, and you hated that.

“It’s not.” You quietly spoke but he ignored that.

“I talked to my parents,” Hyungwon spoke which caused you to furrow your eyebrows.

“They’re fine with you now, (y/n). Even if you have a kid. It was so hard to face them, but I finally courage up enough. For you.” He continued and it made you sick to your stomach.

He refused to ever face up his parents before. They would throw the harshest words at you, but he would be afraid to go against them. Hyungwon was dependent on his parents and he couldn’t afford going broke if he spoke up.

But he finally did.

“I’m proud of you.” You speak.

Hyungwon couldn’t feel the same energy from you. He thought he could finally have you back in his arms despite everything that happened, because that’s how soulmates should be, right?

“Don’t you love me anymore, (y/n)?” He asked, a lump forming in his throat.

You watch him fiddle with his fingers which was an indication that he was nervous and uneasy. You held on to his hands to stop him from the habit.

“I love you, Hyungwon.” His face lit up.

“But it’s not the same love that you want me to offer anymore.” He felt his world and heart crash once again.

He waited and hoped for you all these years, but he started to realize that he was wrong to assume that you would drop everything just to be with him.

“No one could ever take away our soulmate bond. No one. But being without you, made me slowly realize, not all soulmates are meant to be together.” You spoke again while he was just looking down at your hands that are intertwined with his.

“When I first married Changkyun and you came running back like this, hell, I would come running back to you.” You laughed and he just smiled bitterly. So, he was too late, huh?

You squeezed his hands as you continued to talk, “But time passed by and I found my home with Changkyun. A home I never found in you.”

He still couldn’t speak. All the words that were coming out from you were hurting him, but he sat there listening to you. It was better than being left in the dark again.

“Everyone could say you were the love of my life as well. And I thought so too, but I found out it wasn’t the case when I first saw held my child in my arms.” Tears were forming in your eyes as you realize how much your family meant to you.

You have to admit that when you first thought of coming back to Korea, you wanted to go back to Hyungwon. Even with Changkyun as your husband, and even with a one-year-old child. You were ready to risk it all for him.

But when you saw how selfless Changkyun was to even give you up to someone else despite being bonded by marriage, you started to realize how selfish you are. You couldn’t just run away from the responsibility just for the sake of your own happiness.

Cause someone else depends on you now, and your actions affect them as well. Then you start to realize that the happiness you had before was nothing to the happiness of seeing your husband and child goof around each other at 7AM while you lay back on the sofa with your coffee. That the love you felt from Hyungwon before was nothing to the love that Changkyun makes you feel whenever you start to doubt yourself as a mother. You wouldn’t want to give all of that up.

And that’s when you knew, you had to let the idea of Hyungwon go.

“We have to let each other go, Wonnie.” He laughed at the nickname. He hasn’t heard that in a while, and it was funny that he was hearing it again when you were about to leave him for good.

“Are you happy?” He finally gathered up the courage to talk and look at you.

You nodded and he genuinely smiled at you as he realized something, “Okay.”

Changkyun’s eyes were swollen as he laid his son back to sleep. He couldn’t stop crying after the two of you spoke in the bedroom, so he made Minhyuk leave him alone for a while.

The faint knocks on the door startled him. He tried his best to wipe and dry out his tears as he unlocked the door. He was expecting it to be Minhyuk coming back to check on him, but much to his surprise, it was you.

“You came back.” Changkyun spoke in disbelief. You laughed at his expression.

“Of course, why wouldn’t I come back to my home?” You said and wrapped your hands around him and effulged him in a tight hug. He happily put his arms around your waist and hugged you back even tighter.

“Where exactly is home?” Changkyun asked in the middle of the bone crashing hug.

You look up to Changkyun’s eyes and he looked down on your eyes as well – not breaking away from the hug.

“Right here.” The both of you smiled as he leaned down to plant a kiss on your lips before bringing you back into the hug.

Changkyun’s smile broke when he saw Hyungwon standing on the apartment door. But he didn’t have the cold expression, instead he was smiling at the both of you.

“Take care of her, will you?” Hyungwon mouthed to Changkyun.

“I will.” Changkyun mouthed back with a smile.

And just like that, Hyungwon slowly started to let the idea of you go as well.

But he hoped you knew that you were wrong. Because soulmates still existed, and they were always meant to end up together.

You were just yet to realize like he did that your true soulmate wasn’t him all along, it was Changkyun.

[rachelbethhines]

Tangled Salt Marathon - Rapunzel’s Return Part 2

Continuing on from part 1 - 

https://rachelbethhines.tumblr.com/post/635068926214258688/tangled-salt-marathon-rapunzels-return-part-1

Summary: When Rapunzel tries to defeat the Saporians by herself she gets captured; but once Varian realizes that the Separatists plan on using one of his potions' destructive properties to destroy Corona, he and Rapunzel work together to stop it.

Let’s Talk About What a Let Down the Sapiorans Are

Throughout seasons one and two the Sapiorans were built up to be this intriguing race of people with a complex past and real problems that are sadly relatable to this day. They had a history, goal, motives, and special abilities like magic.  

Yet all we got was a really bad hipster parody. 

Heck, the crew can’t even keep it’s stereotypes right because they mostly slide into hippy territory instead. Hipsters, Yuppies, and Hippies are three distinctive counter culture movements for three different generations with completely different social concerns and fads. 

Basically Chris tried to “stick it to the kids” again and just wound up insulting his parents' generation instead because he’s that oblivious of other human beings.

And that’s not even taking into account that previously the Sapiorans were living on the run as nomads in caravans not dissimilar to common Romani stereotypes, so the show is once again making negative racial connotations due to thoughtlessness.

Why Do You Have a Secret Underground Room Hidden Behind Your Workshop Xavier?

Like that not a thing normal people happen to have lying around there workspace. We still are given zero explanation for why Xavier has all this plot convenient knowledge and rare unordinary plot useful stuff. 

Given his previous connection to Saporia and Zhan Tiri wouldn’t it not have made more sense to reveal that he is an actual plot important character in season three rather than keep him as just the exposition fairy? 

So Was This Before or After the Saporian Take Over? Cause Either Answer Makes This a Dumb Plan.

Why would the guards, especially Cap, just give up? Did they even bother fighting and then lost to Varian’s weapons or were they told to stand down by a brainwashed Frederic? If they knew something was wrong then why not stay and help? What makes them think they even could find Rapunzel given how no one knew where she was heading and her letters were infrequent? What difference would they think finding Rapunzel would do? 

Basically, just like with the “former cellmate” line, we needed to actually set up and establish this conflict rather than relying solely on exposition dumps. Because what we get here doesn’t make a whole lot of sense. It goes against established character and leaves a lot of unanswered plot holes. 

More Promotion of Authoritarianism From the Show

Remember that these are the same people who formed a lynch mob to hunt down a fourteen year old all because the king told them to. The same king who had been lying to them for years and placed their lives and homes in danger for months. The same king who persecuted the poor and orphans for years. Him suddenly sending townsfolk to the mines isn’t anything new, so what are these people’s breaking points? Anyone else would have revolted by now.  

But noooo, they need Rapunzel to do it for them. Cause Rapunzel is royalty and they can’t do anything without royal permission because they’re sheep. Sheep that’s been subjugated for years and conditioned to be afraid of their “beloved ruler”. 

I understand from a meta point of view why you would want your main character to take charge but...

Like this isn’t inspiring.

It’s disturbing. 

Why are we promoting blind loyalty to a person who’s not earned it just because they were born special? In a freakin’ kids show no less! 

Oh and still no one bothers to call out King Frederic’s abuses here, FYI. 

Take Note That Quirineon is Activated By Heat

This will be important later on in the review. 

He’s Already Built Grenades For You. Wouldn’t Those Be Better Because They’re Easier to Control?

He’s already built explosive chemicals for you. You just used them in part one of the episode. And it came in an easy to use form rather than an unstable, and untested, mess that could literally blow up in your faces since no one, not even Varian himself, knows how to control it yet. 

You Don’t Hammer Out a Cast Iron Pan

It’s literally in the word. To make a cast iron pan you pour the metal into a casted mold. You don't hammer it out like you would with a sword or something. And you can’t even go with the “rule of cool” here cause Rapunzel surrounded by molten metal and fire would have been far more impressive looking.  

Yes I’m being picky cause I’m stalling. I don’t care. This is just yet another instance of the crew not paying attention to details like they should. 

Behold The Final Time Eugene Will Ever Call Out Rapunzel’s BS

This is the last time Eugene will hold an honest discussion with Rapunzel like an equal to her. By the end of this episode he will have transitioned into full on doormat mode. 

Also burying negative feelings and not addressing issues is who Rapunzel is. She’s been pulling this shit since day one. It’s what causes 90% of the conflicts in the show. Have you not noticed Eugene?  

So This Episode Has Contradictory “Lessons” 

The episode presents this idea that Rapunzel needs to open up to others and trust again after Cassandra’s betrayal. The problem is that the episode doesn’t follow through on that. It makes a knee-jerk decision to go with a “responsibility” lesson that wasn’t built up to instead at the last minute. 

More on this later.    

Varian Doesn’t Actually Interact With the Saporians at Any Point.

The only person Varian interacts with is Andrew. We have no concept of how he fits in with the rest of the group and what his dynamics are with them. What do they think of Varian? What does Varian think of them? The consequence to this is to further divorce Varian from narrative, even though this is supposed to be his redemption episode. 

As I said in the last part, you can easily write Varian out of this episode and nothing really changes plot wise. That’s bad writing. 

Also I was robbed of Khary Payton and Jeremy Jordan exchanging lines. I was this close to having audio material for my BH6 crossover, dang it! 

Behold The One Time the Black Lady Gets a Line!

I think her name is Juniper? 

You can tell it’s her because of the shadow on the wall.

Anyways they casted this part and only bothered to give the character a single line? What a waste! 

But this just goes back to the series' poor representation. The only WOC in the show are presented as “shifty” and untrustworthy, even when they are ultimately “good guys”. The majority of them are straight up villains tho, and even as antagonists they’re not afforded any real screen time. 

And the only other outright black women on the show is the inventor lady who was given zero respect and the ghost of a barbarian. 

Once again, I don’t think the crew are intentionally racist. I think they’re just sloppy. They wanted to be more inclusive but they failed to actually give voice to minorities behind the scenes and so failed in representing them well. This is a problem with the industry as a whole, not just this one show, and must be talked about as such if we wish to change things for the better. 

None of this “Stuff” Holds Any Real Meaning

We get several callbacks to season one through Cassandra’s personal things that she left behind, but none of this stuff holds any real personal meaning. It’s just there. They wind up triggering these big emotional reactions from both Rapunzel and Cassandra but the audience is just left confused because what they’re crying over are things that have little significance to these characters. Even this line from season one is just dripping with sarcasm and not some pleasant past memory that either Cass or Raps holds dear to their hearts. 

Way To Go, Dumbass

It’s not that she went alone, or that she broke down when it finally hit her that Cass left, that I’m making fun off. The episode already addresses those two points. 

No, what ticks me off is that Rapunzel has taken down killer robots, ghosts, and monsters before now with her magical hair but a handful of regular dudes can just bring her down? I don’t care how much alchemy they got. Depowering your main character for no stated reason just for narrative convenience is poor writing. 

Because If He Didn’t He Would Have DIED, Rapunzel!!!

He literally would have freakin died had he not done something! He was left inside a jail cell to rot away! Before that he was threatened with hangman’s noose! Before that violence from an angry crowd! Before that he was left alone to starve and/or die from exposure! There was no way out for him except to fight! 

And here you are inside the very prison that you kept him in and you still don't have the fucking self awareness to put two and two together! 

This Right Here the Assassination of Rapunzel’s Character and the Killing Blow to the Series

Yeah, and what about after the storm? Hun, bitch!?

We’ve spent two damn seasons watching Rapunzel stepping on people and making excuses for herself and the one time when she should realize her actions are wrong and finally own up to her behavior and she still does not fucking change.

This is supposed to be a coming of age story! That means the main character is supposed to grow and learn shit! But when it matters most, Rapunzel only digs in her heels and refuses to change! 

Why should I care about this character anymore if she’s just going to keep on being selfish no matter what? Why should I bother watching the show if it fails to deliver on its premise? How is this in any way shape or form an appropriate message for children!? 

If you’re watching the series for the first time, then it’ll take awhile to register just how awful this scene is and how it really is the beginning of the end, because they did have time to turn things around after this. But they didn’t, and here we are. 

This Isn’t a Real Apology

It’s not a real apology if all you do is make excuses for yourself. Rapunzel doesn’t address what she actually did wrong here and it has nothing to do with her stupid promise. 

She neglected and enabled the abuse of a child for a year and three months, and she’s not even sorry for it! 

You Were Never a “Friend” Rapunzel

Friends, actually do shit together. They enjoy each other’s company. They care when the other is hurt or in trouble. 

Rapunzel only came to see Varian when she needed him for something. Even now, after this confrontation, that’s all she’ll ever do. She does not actually care about Varian, because the creators will not let her care. 

And Here Comes the Death of Varian’s Characterization

In order to make this stupid, forced, “redemption” work the writers had to do a complete 180 with Varian’s character and his motivations. Instead of freeing his father, seeking revenge, or just, you know, surviving, he now suddenly cares about “being friends” and “being accepted by people”, only he has no reason to want any of that! 

Rapunzel is a shit friend. Heck all the mains are crap friends to him. They ruined his life and the townspeople tried to kill him. Why would he want anything to do with any of these a-holes!? 

Varian doesn’t get assassinated in the same sense as Rapunzel and Cassandra do. He doesn’t suddenly become a hateable dumb douchebag or anything, but he nevertheless has his character retroactively sabotaged by the writing.  

Uh, Were You Not There When Your Dad Rounded Up a Lynch Mob Against Him, Raps?

I believe you were. Also Varian literally told you to your face that he had to go into hiding cause the townspeople were willing to attack him just because those rumors that you failed to stop and pretended not to know anything about. 

Just because the characters shout something repeatedly does not make it true. The audience isn’t dumb. They can remember what happened only two seasons ago. 

Where Was the Inciting Incident For This Change of Heart?

Why should he even want their forgiveness? Why has he given up on freeing his father? Why is he having second doubts about overthrowing the kingdom that persecuted him? 

If you’re going to drastically change a character’s motivations, goals, and moral alignment then you need to present an in story reason for that change. We don’t get that. There’s no inciting incident on screen for us to see the shift in his character development. 

The audience is left to only infer, and that’s poor writing. The audience shouldn’t have to do the work of the writers for them.  Characters’ motivations and goals  should not be guess work. 

The only thing we can glean from this is that he had a change of heart while in prison and that’s a horrifying thing for the show to suggest. That’s basically justifying Frederic’s abuse. It also recontextualizes Varian’s arc into one of submission to his abusers and not one of learning to do the right thing simply because it’s right. 

Once Again, Were You Not There For Season One Rapunzel?

They had a year and three damn months of chances. These people actively tried to do him harm just for simply seeking help. He has no reason to trust them nor you. 

Why Are We Shoulding All of the Blame Onto the Abused Child?

Yes, he did do all of those things, technically, but they’re being presented here without context.

The Queen enabled his abuser who was threatening his life and destroyed his home. He kidnapped her as a last restore when all other methods to get out of his desperate situation failed. 

The princess he threatened neglected him for three months and repeatedly refused to help him, even throwing him out into a deadly snow storm. Despite him being her responsibility, thereby making her neglect a flat out abuse of power.  

He would have died a slow and painful death in prison had he not helped to overthrow the kingdom that persecuted him. 

I’m not going to pretend that what Varian did was right or that he shouldn’t feel sorry for what he did, but this is a highly skewed version of events that are being recounted here just to create bias in the viewers. It’s manipulative writing intended to gaslight the audience. 

Also, why does he even want a second chance!?   

Doesn’t This Undermine The Saporian’s Goals?

The Saporians wanted to reclaim their ancestral homeland so that they would no longer be a displaced people. How does blowing up that homeland help them? 

Season three just throws all logic out the window. There’s barely a single villain who doesn’t undermine their own goals at some point with their stupid actions. 

So Why Varian and Andrew Not Some Other Team Up?

Out of all of the various recurring baddies in the show Varian and Andrew have the least in common. I’m not saying that they couldn’t work together, but doing so required more set up than this. Because as is, this is a very contrived teamup. 

They have diametrically opposed goals and moral alignments. Varian doesn’t bring anything to the table that the Saporaions couldn’t have supplied themselves. Meanwhile the Saporians have failed to offer Varian anything that he could want. 

At best it’s a marriage of convenience for them to both break out of prison together, but even that is contrived because we don't know why neither of them were sent away on the prison barge with the rest of the season one villians.  

Better combinations would have been 

Varian & Lady Caine

Andrew & Lady Caine 

Varian & Cass

Andrew & Cass 

Varian & Zhan Tiri

Andrew & Zhan Tiri

Varian & Hector

The Baron & Varian

Andrew & Staylan 

King Trevor & Varian 

Like there were tons of options here that the writers just ignored, even though any of them would have made more sense than the one they went with.  

The Andrew and Varian Dynamic Can Be Seen as an Allegory for Grooming; Unfortunately the Writers Didn’t Consider That Implication.

Yeah... That’s pretty much what Andrew has done here. He’s groomed this desperate and lonely teen to become a child soldier for him. And one only can only pray that’s all he tried to groom him to do since they were trapped inside a confined and enclosed space together for several months. 

Listen, I don’t mind children’s shows touching upon darker subjects. Often fantasy is a good way for people to process complex themes and uncomfortable real world situations through the safety of fiction. It can even be helpful for those who have had the misfortune to experience certain traumas. 

I’m not complaining that TTS is too dark. 

I’m complaining about it being shit. 

All of the crap Varian goes through is just thrown in there for shock value. It’s not here to commentate on the real world nor provide a complex story. The situations are brought only to then be outright ignored. This isn’t thoughtful nor deep. It’s not meaningful nor heartfelt. It’s just hollow drama done in bad taste. 

You’re Not In a Position to Judge Rapunzel 

You got captured first because you decided to throw yourself a pity party. 

Would He Though?

I’m pretty sure Quirin is very well aware of how shitty Frederic is. If anything I would think he’d be pissed that his son, that he tried so hard to protect, was mistreated in such a hordenous way. 

This isn’t some satisfying ending to Varian’s arc. It’s a heartbreaking revelation that he’s been beaten down by his abusers.  

Varian’s Arc Isn’t Actually About Validation, and Rapunzel Giving It Here Doesn’t Really Change Anything 

I spoke about this before on its own, but Tangled the Series places far too much stock in validation. Yes, it’s an aspect of his character arc, but it’s not the end all and be all of his motivation. It’s not the force that drives him to do what he does. 

His primary goal is survival, both for himself and for his father. His secondary goal is gaining his father’s approval, but that’s not because he’s seeking generic praise, it’s because his father is emotionally distant. The “validation” is a mask for the real issues which are to fix his relationship with his dad and avoid the guilt of having possibly killed him in an accident. 

Rapunzel has fuck all to do with that. 

He doesn’t need to hear approval from her. He needs her to get her shit together and help him! 

Rapunzel’s and Varian’s Situations Are Nothing Alike and Rapunzel Doesn’t Know Jackshit

Rapunzel you were dumped by your bestie because you’re a shitty friend. 

Varian was neglected and abused by those who were supposed to take care of him. 

Unless you’re drawing parallels to how Frederic and Gothel treated you, and even then neither of them denied you basic fucking needs! 

This should be an “Oh Shit! I’ve become just like Mother Gothel” moment for Rapunzel, not an “Oh yay! Someone to share in my personal misery” moment. 

Man, Rapunzel suuuuuucks! 

Also This Still Isn’t An Actual Apology

Once again, Rapunzel is not admitting what she did wrong here. She’s not actually acknowledging Varian’s pain, nor what she needs to do to make admins with him. 

What she’s doing is making things all about herself again. She’s talking about her feelings. About what she is facing. Rapunzel is an incredibly selfish and egotistical person and the show is trying to present this as a positive thing by rewarding her for such behavior. 

Varian’s Redemption Should Have Nothing to Do with “Friendship”

Varian has no reason to want to become friends again with the woman who ruined his life and abused him. 

But more than that, redemption shouldn’t be dependent upon Rapunzel’s friendship, nor even her ‘forgiveness”. Varian should be able to do the right thing just because it’s the right thing, Rapunzel be damned. 

This cheepens not only his character development but also Rapunzel’s development as well. Rapunzel is not allowed to grow as a person and accept that not everyone wants to be her friend, and that people may have valid reasons to hate her even, and that doesn’t make them evil. 

It also rushes through Varian’s arc undermining what the audience had to get through to get to this point.  

OK, Let’s Talk About The Goatee

I wouldn’t have minded the beard had it just not looked like a fucking barcode. There’s production art where it looks fine. But just wiping it away ties back to what I was talking about in part one. It’s denying Varian the chance to grow up. This is supposed to be his coming of age story as well but the crew won't let him do that because “rule of funny” apparently overrides what the characters actually need in order to develop.  

Once again, the show isn’t a sitcom. You can have comedic moments but the comedy doesn’t need to outright undermine the drama. 

Once Again, Shouldn’t Eugene Be the First Person to Jump to Varian’s Defence?

You mean the orphan on the streets who stole stuff and fought to survive when the adults failed to take care of him? Is that what you’re talking about Eugene? Cause if I remember correctly that was you not just three years ago. 

You Mean Rapunzel Needs Him To Make Her Feel Better About Herself

Spoiler alert, but Varian doesn’t actually do anything after this point in the episode. His entire “redemption” is just about making Rapunzel feel better about herself after Cass has rejected her. He’s literally become the rebound. 

How Come Varian Suddenly Became Shorter Just for This Shot?

I know the meta reason is to reflect that scene back in Queen for a Day when Rapunzel promised him that she'd help him before everything went tits up. Where he was also drawn shorter in that episode to make him seem more verunable, but here he’s just suddenly shorter for only two shots and then suddenly back to his usual height. 

Crap like this is why I insist that Varian didn’t actually get any taller in season three. The show just has always been inconsistent with his height and most of the “evidence” for his growth are cherry picked instances where the show drew him smaller than usual for reasons, like here.   

So Where Did They Get That Much of the Explosives and How Did They Get Them So Fast?

Only Varian knows how to manufacture that stuff. Why would he make that much of it if he was still in the experimental phase with it? He’s even surprised that they have so much, so where did they get it? If they made it then, how did they make it so fast? 

So This Plan Goes Nowhere

Spoiler alert: Varian doesn’t actually get to do any of that. In fact he’s kind of pointless for the rest of the episode. 

Why Would the King and Queen Care About a City That They Can’t Remember?

Like this revenge doesn’t make sense. It’s just a contrived way to get Eugene and Lance out of the way.

If the Quirineon Explodes From Being Exposed to Heat Then What Good Does Just Dropping It Do?

Yeah, remember? The stuff explodes when heated. Simply dropping it shouldn’t do anything other than make a mess on the ground maybe. 

All That Build Up and Varian Still Doesn’t Get to Do Anything Useful

Up till this point, Varian was shown to be the most competent threat in the show. Yet here they have him be a screw up twice in a row just for comedy antics and to glorify Rapunzel again. 

If you got to nerf other characters just to make your main look good then you’ve failed to establish your main character as being capable in their own right. 

Remember That This Boy Was Trapped in a Jail Cell With This Guy for a Year!

No, I’ll never be over this.

Andrew is the most directly violent and scummy out of all of the villians in the show. 

If he’s willing to do this now, if he was willing to do this to his ex-girlfriend, then what the heck was he willing to do when he and Varian were trapped alone together? 

So Andrew Just Willingly Sacrifices His Own People Here....Even Though His Goal Was to Give His People a New Home....

People need to use this gif more often when concerning this show and the villains’ ass-backwards plans.

And yes they survive because of Varian alchemy. But that was on accident. Andrew had no way of knowing that would happen. He’s willing to destroy his own people just to blow up his ancestral homeland and for what!? What does he gain from this action?  

The Mind Wipe Kills Frederic’s and Arianna’s Characters; Littraly

Frederic and Arianna are effectively dead at this point. Anything that made them, well them, has been wiped away. Their personalities, hopes, dreams, their on going stories and development, just gone. And we never get them back, even when their memories supposedly return. 

Varian’s Not Even Allowed to Get the Idea On How to Save Corona...In His Own Redemption Episode No Less

This is his episode! We’ve spent two years building up to this point and you can’t even let him help? He’s denied the chance to make up for his own mistakes! Just so Rapunzel can play hero and be a very shallow representation of what a bunch of men think a “strong” woman should be! 

It’s fucking insulting. That’s what it is. 

Making a female character the center of the universe to the point where other people are just props for her is not empowering! 

No It’s Not!!

Uh you wouldn’t even be here had you just fucking helped Varian to being with you dumb bitch! This is very much you and your father’s mess! 

Even now, while pretending to be responsible, Rapunzel can’t actually be responsible and own up to what she did! 

She’s fucking 20 and the 16 year old shows more maturity than her! 

Also Your Hair Can Protect Two People at Once Rapunzel; Remember?

There’s no excuse for leaving Varian out of the action. We’ve been shown multiple times now that Rapunzel’s magic hair can protect her and other people at the same time. 

Having Rapunzel Save the Day By Herself Undermines Everything the Episode Was Trying to Establish

What happened to needing to “trust again” and letting other people help you? Having Rapunzel save the day alone just tosses out the lesson that the show was trying to build up to. 

The show tries to frame this as Rapunzel learning “responsibility” but that also does not work. For one it was never established that she needed to learn that within the episode itself and secondly, she doesn’t actually do anything different from what she usually does. 

Being an action hero isn’t the same thing as being responsible. Being responsible is being considerate of others, doing the borning shit or mundane crap that you hate, and being mature enough to recognize your own failings and admitting when you were wrong. 

So in the end Rapunzel is neither responsible nor more open to others. 

And There’s the Death of Eugene’s Character

Lance, who has maybe exchanged all of three sentences with Raps, is more distrught than the guy that supposedly wants to marry her. This isn’t heartwarming, nor it is growth. It’s just lobotomizing a character right in front of our eyes. 

In this very episode he was worried about Raps going to face the Saporians by herself and was, guess what, fucking right to do so. But he doesn’t give two shits if she gets blown up!? 

Ooookaaaay.....

This is the completion of turning Eugene into a doormat. From now own he shan’t be allowed to have any thoughts or feelings of his own that disagrees with Rapunzel. 

The Eugene we knew is now dead. 

But Of Course the Show Rewards Everyone for Behaving In the Dumbest Way Possible Anyways

Don’t expect any of these grossly out of character moments and oxygen deprived logic to be addressed nor fixed within the show. The series will keep on shoving unearned endings into our facing while insisting that this is positive development. 

How Did Y’all Get Here Before Varian?

Yes, he was left on a roof, but he can climb and y’all were outside of the city. 

Yeah... A Year and Half Fucking Later!

Ok, a year and three months, but that’s still not any better. Worse, all this implies is that Rapunzel would not have ever concerned herself with trying to free Quirin had Varian not broken out of prison. She would have literally left them both for dead and we’re supposed to find her suddenly doing the bare fucking minimum heartwarming and inspiring?

Where Was the Inciting Incident to Use the Decay Incantation for This? 

How did Rapunzel come up with this plan? When did she come up with it? 

When the hurt incantation was first found no one mentioned how it could be used to save Quirin. No one even gave Quirin a thought. Since then the incarnation hasn’t been brought back up, ever. This is a pretty big leap in logic for Rapunzel to suddenly think of this. 

All it highlights how Varian was originally meant to be there to translate the scrolls and incantations in order to establish all this but of course it got cut so now it just comes the fuck out of nowhere. 

Not Letting Varian Have Anything to Do With Saving His Father Is Even Worse Than Not Letting Him Save the Day

This has been his motivation since the beginning. It’s been the driving plot for a season, and now that the time has finally come what does get to do? 

Hold a dang bucket. 

Part of coming up with satisfying endings is following through on what you’ve established. The audience needs closure. Simply freeing Quirin isn’t enough, we need the carthartis of Varian specifically fulfilling his goal. 

I don’t know how to break this to you Chris, but this isn’t Rapunzel’s story. Not this segment of it anyways. It’s Varian’s and it just so happens to connect to Rapunzel’s. She shouldn’t have been center stage for this. 

The Series Blows It’s Load Too Early with the Incantations

This is the last time we’ll hear any of the incantations sung on screen, cause someone in budgeting didn’t know what was important to throw the money at and what was not. 

It’s not bad here, but if we could only hear one incantation only once this season it needed to be in the finale with the final heal incantation. 

Varian Was Right All Along

Also, all this does is justify Varian’s actions in season one. Rapunzel was indeed the only one who could free his dad according to this. For a series that desperately wants to shove all of the blame onto an abused child’s shoulders they sure go out their way to prove him right. 

So How Is the Hurt Incantation Suppose to Work?

There were so many fan theories after this scene because Varian and Quirin don’t respond to the hurt incantation the same way previous characters had. 

No one is gasping for breath, Varian can touch Raps without burning his hands, and Rapunzel can control the direction of her power. ect. 

Turns out there was nothing there, the writers just didn’t know what the fuck they were doing and made the hurt incantation very inconsistent just like all of the magic in this show. 

BULLSHIT!!!

You literally turn into a villain because she gave up on you!!!!

She also didn’t give two shits about you throughout the entirety of season two. 

Why are we just pretending like season one didn’t exist!? 

Why!?

The Note!!!

No It Fucking Didn’t!

Does That Look Like “I’m Proud of You Son” To You?

Chris went on to confirm that, yes, the note did hold more information that then got cut. Pretty much confirming all that we suspected. That Varian was cut from season two and his story hastily shoved back into season three at the last minute. 

Below is the link to the tumblr post he made.

https://cnotes.tumblr.com/post/190534585146/apparently-one-of-the-writers-said-a-while-back

What’s worse is that his defense is such bullshit. The below exchange pretty much sums it all up.

This Doesn’t Actually Resolve Anything and Is Therefore Unsatisfying to Watch

Part of the reason why this conclusion doesn’t work is because it doesn’t actually address any of the problems that they have in their relationship. Quirin never owns up to what he did wrong. There’s no discussion of what Varian was up to while he was entrapped, no conversation about what secrets Quirin hid from his son, and zero admission of wrongdoing on either side.   

Also Varian has done nothing significant to earn those particular words. Saying I love makes sense, but in context saying “I’m proud of you” does not. It doesn’t even work on a meta level cause the episode prevented Varioan from accomplishing anything. 

It’s empty. 

There Could Have Been More Screen Time to Fix This If Not for Season Two Mucking About

https://discord.com/channels/427940661589704715/569296212218347522/777635115978457098

Above is the link to the original storyboards. It doesn’t fix everything but there’s a lot more satisfying emotional beats including adding Ruddiger back in who is suspiciously absent for the entire episode for no stated reason. 

This version was cut due to time. Which, like with the Crossing the Line song, didn’t need to be had they been more effective with their usage of time in season two. 

They also could have had a better conclusion to Varian’s arc in general had he not been cut from season two altogether. 

So What Does Freeing Quirin Add to the Series?

I’m serious. What does freeing Quirin at this point and time do for the story?

It doesn’t add any character development, Quirin just wanders around aimlessly in the background until the finale and even then his part in that is a pointless dead end. Varian doesn’t gain his emotional closure, just empty, hollow “praise”. Nor is he allowed to accomplish any of his established goals. No new lore or history is exposed. No mystery uncovered. 

There’s no reason why this couldn’t have been done later in the season. Provide more tension and keep up the consequences of the characters actions. Give the mains something to do and work on until Cass and Zhan Tiri show up again.  

The only reason why this is here is to wrap Varian’s story up as soon as possible so he won’t “steal Cassandra’s spotlight”. That’s it. He’s rewarded for conforming to Rapunzel’s will and all the fans should shut up and be grateful, at least according to Chris.

I Like This Song But It Wasn’t Needed

It doesn’t add anything to the story. It’s just a generic celebration song. Which would be fine if it wasn’t for the fact that we have a limited number of songs, even less than in previous seasons, and the story isn’t over yet. This is the wrong place to put a victory song at. 

Especially when we could have had a song that furthered Varian’s redemption instead.  Yeah, that was cut too. 

So Is Varian the New “Lance” This Season?

He’s right there! This is his dang focus episode! 

Why hire Broadway singers and not let them sing!? Why waste talent and money like that? 

Also These Lyrics!

Did Glenn Slater just not read the scripts before writing the songs? That’s all season three ever does! Give the mains what they want without earning it. Even in this very episode!

So Is This Rapunzel’s 20th Birthday or Not?

Ok I have gotten into many a heated debate about how long season three is supposed to be. And that’s because what the crew says doesn’t match what the series shows us. 

By all accounts this should be Rapunzel’s birthday. According to season two she’s been gone for one year, and there’s the lanterns that they fly specifically on her birthday. 

But no one verbally says it’s her birthday and I’ve heard conflicting accounts from different members of the crew. Some stating that it is her 20th birthday and some disagreeing that it is. 

Well I’ll take what evidence that the show actually presents to its audience on screen over what the cast and crew says after the fact any day of the week, so I’ll be gathering up this evidence and proving by the end that season three is two years not one. 

But the fact that I must comb through series to prove this, the fact that we can even have this debate, and the fact that the crew have to state basic info after the series is over is just proof of the bad writing. 

Fun Fact: Cupcakes Weren’t Invented Until the 20th Century

Yeah, that’s the fault of the OG film, and yeah it doesn’t really mean much, but still it’s one more thing to add to the pile of stuff that doesn’t fit. 

Plus I’m just a hardcore nerd for historical cooking and I like to share my knowledge.  

Yeah But How Can He Trust All of You Again?

You’re the ones who let him down first; repeatedly. And you only started to make things up to him once he became useful to you. What assurance does he have that you won’t mistreat him again next time he’s in trouble or is no longer of any use to y’all? 

Yes, Let NOT Show What the Main Character Is Actually Going Through

Yup, this is “Rapunzel’s show” but we’re not going to let Rapunzel have any focus on her feelings or give any insight into her thought process about what is the main conflict of the series now.

Conclusion

Ducktales was robbed! 

I can’t believe this shit won an Emmy for “best writing.” It utterly fails on every possible level. It fails to be a continuation of the ongoing story and it fails to be a stand alone episode. Even the very structure of the story is fundamentally flawed. The only reason why it’s not the worst episode of the entire series because the finale and the penultimate episodes exist. 

Anyways...I finally made it through. It literally took my entire weekend but I’m finally caught up. Next week I’ll be going back to the usual one episode a week schedule. 

[shinidamachu]

yo asking someone to make a wish so half of their heritage is gone forever is fridge horror-level wtfness (thnx TV Tropes).

of course RT and Sunrise chose not to focus on it, and in mythology people do give up divinity or humanity for romantic reasons, but specifically in Inuyasha it was like ‘despite your demon half you can still live a good life’ as if he has some disease 🤨

like I get in history people have had to hide their heritage to survive war and avoid being shipped off to their death or lose their rights, but to ask someone to permanently discard half their heritage and presumably hide their origins until death is tragic as fuuuuuuuuuuu

It's not even that they chose not to focus on it, is that they deliberately portrayed it as this grand romantic gesture from Inuyasha’s part and for a part of the audience, it truly was. But then again, this backfired for people like me, because it only served to proof how desperate Inuyasha really was to fit in.

Poor guy was literally planning on using the jewel to become a full demon just the day before. Then, at Kikyo’s request, he agreed on doing the exact opposite with little to no deliberation other than “what will be made of you, Kikyo?” I can only assume he was afraid her feelings were conditional. That if he had said no, she would have called it quits.

Imagine the same situation, but this time Inuyasha has a support system to lean on. Prejudice against half demons are still a thing, however he has his parents, his friends, a place to belong. Would he still have said yes in order to live with Kikyo? I honestly doubt it.

You see, Inuyasha hates being human. Not in the sense of saying he hates it, but liking it in secret. He actively hates it. And I can’t stress enough that we don’t actually understand how rightfully entitled he is to hate it.

We know how a human body feels like, we’re used to have a human body. Inuyasha is only human once a month. The majority of time he is a half demon. That’s what he is used to. Even worse: put yourself in his shoes. If you were to lose half your strength, half your sight, half your hearing and speed every single New Moon, you'd curse that night too. 

Not to mention the sheer vulnerability of being emotionally and physically exposed, of not being able to protect yourself or the ones you care about and becoming a "burden” when he takes pride of being the (un)official guardian of the group. No wonder he felt so hopeless he made a point out of staying up all night. And this is what Kikyo was asking him to feel like every single day for the rest of his existence so their life together could be easier, with the aditional quicker of forever losing the features that marked him as his father’s son. You know, the man who died saving him and his mother.

Every single character that got close enough to find out about his night of weakness quickly became aware of how much he despises it. Now, we don’t know the exact duration of Inuyasha and Kikyo’s relationship, but here are our options: Kikyo didn’t know about the New Moon and that Inuyasha hated turning into human or she did know and decided to go for it anyway.

Considering that the latter option is straight up awful, I’ll just assume she simply didn’t know. What does this say about their relationship? If they were an item for a considerable period of time, how come she didn’t know about such a fundamental thing about him? Especially when people who weren’t even his love interest were aware of that fact pretty early on? What was it worth all that time together if they didn’t use it to have meaningful interactions and get to know one another? If Inuyasha was keeping secrets from her and if she wasn’t interested in learning them?

On the other hand, if their relationship was indeed short lived, that could justify the lack of knowledge, but a different issue raises: if they didn’t have time to collect basic information about each other, how am I supposed to believe in their love? How am I supposed to view the decision to erase his demonic side and live together as anything other than reckless, impulsive and thoughtless? How am I not supposed to see it as mutual convenience, a mean to an end? How am I not supposed to think they are acting out of lonileness and desire to fit in? How am I not supposed to think that if literally anyone else had given them the same options they would have taken it? 

A New Moon would have happened in at least one month, tops. That’s not love. That’s a thirty days affair. It could have grown into love, if given the chance, but the pairing seemed more interested in the life they ideolized for themselves than in each other.

I don’t think Kikyo meant it as an ultimatum or that she was disgusted by his demonic attributes. She wouldn’t have approached or kissed him as a half demon otherwise. But I think it’s hard to deny that she wasn’t necessarily fond of them either, since she jumped at the opportunity to get rid of them first chance she got, with no remorse whatsoever. As if it was a bonus. This allowed with the fact that the prejudice against half demons is an allegory for racism and that she used from false equivalence to make the point that both her and Inuyasha were in the same situation puts her in a bad light.

Inuyasha was isolated by people because of his heritage, something he couldn’t change without resorting to intrusive, traumatizing and permanent magic, which Kikyo herself suggested he did. Kikyo isolated herself. People loved her because of her status and she was a privileged woman in comparison. She could have dropped everything since she was unhappy living like that, but she spontaneously chose her duty and powers over love and an ordinary life. And as much as I disagree with her choices, I can at least respect and understand them. What I can’t do is feel sympathy for her when the consequences of said choices catch up with her.

The narrative doesn’t give this problem much focus, it treats it in a much more subtle way. For instance: the jewel only being destroyed by the right wish, paints wishing for Inuyasha to become human as wrong and selfish, with the potential to be catastrophic.

That being said, Inuyasha didn’t hate being a half demon, on the contrary. What he hated was being ostracized over it, so he decided to take matters on his own hands and, when he was free to choose between using the jewel to become a full demon or a human, he went the full demon route because he knew living as human would made him miserable. But the desire of being a full demon was a facade. What he so very clearly wanted, all along, was to be accepted the way he was. That’s why he had no trouble letting go of that goal to pursue the exact  opposite: there was no attachment to it. Full demon or human, he longed for a place to belong. If Kikyo was offering that to him, of course he would have taken it, even if becoming human was far from being the first choice.

Compare that with Inuyasha finally giving up from becoming a full demon, realizing he didn’t have to change at all, that he had a place to belong and people who loved him not despite of what he was but because of it, that he could be accepted as a half demon. Compare that with Inuyasha ending up with the girl that always encouraged him to be himself, with being comfortable enough around her to follow his instincts and embracing his canine mannerisms rather than shutting them down, which he didn’t quite did with Kikyo... The message is clear:

Kikyo should never, in any circumstance, have asked that of him. The implications of it were really bad and on paper it was a win-win situation for her because getting rid of the jewel to become an ordinary woman was something she already wanted. He was the one with the short end of the stick, sacrificing everything without the same level of compromising from her part.

And Inuyasha should never, in any circumstance, have accepted this deal. As his love interest, Kikyo should have been the very first persond advocating for him not to change. If the feelings they had for each other truly were love, then she should be the one helping him getting to terms with himself while he does the same for her, not legitimizing the absurd idea that a part of his essence was less worthy of existing than the other, that he should have be the one to change in order to fit in, rather than the people who oppressed him.

Thematically, even if subtle, the narrative did a decent job out of showing the audience how fucked up the whole thing actually was. What it failed to do was making Inuyasha and the others realizing how wrong it was and holding Kikyo accountable for her actions by making them talk about it.

Because God forbid Kikyo gets vocally told she was wrong (even though she often is) and God forbid Takahashi give Inukik the tiniest bit of substance and relationship development.

[cyberflamingo]

What are your thoughts about Gon? Like a character study. I love him very much he's my child (I don't pick favourites but he is my favourite) anyway I would love to hear your interpretation and ideas.

Oooooooooohhhh man, ya'll getting me with these tough questions! Let me say this--I think that Gon is one of those rare shounen protagonists that has a corruption arc that really WORKS. I think he exemplifies a lot of common tropes initially in the first couple of seasons in order to kind of blindside the readers/viewers later during the CAA with his character development, and the transition works really, really naturally.

Now, let me get into the meat of it lmao *cracks knuckles*

I would say, and this may be generalization, but a lot of people agree that Gon isn't a perfect character, and that's what makes him great. He comes off initially as the "friendship is power" kind of guy, who has his friends' best interests at heart, who is never afraid to lay his life down to save others (cue Hunter Exam arc, Zoldyck Family arc, etc.). We see tremendous growth in terms of his skills in all other seasons, but Greed Island is where we start to see that he's still not quite matured.

I think there's a decent amount of debate on the volleyball scene, but here's my take. Part of it demonstrates how much faith Gon has in Killua, and how much he respects him and depends on him. Because Killua is his better half, the one he can always depend on to “get Gon out of trouble”. Its endearing, yes, but like when you dig into it its really not cool. Like Gon can do any impulsive thing he wants because he knows Killua will bail him out (which is quite honestly, much more difficult than getting himself into trouble to begin with??)

And here, on the other hand, and I think this is where I'm aligned with other fans of HxH, its also extremely selfish. He's just a kid with a one track goal. In the volleyball game, he makes Killua hold the ball because he knows Killua can handle it, and he himself is also willing to use that same level of dedication to win the game. But with Killua's busted hands, he doesn't really feel any sense of true guilt about it, how someone else is sacrificing their well-being for his own gain, and I think this is before the Chimera Ant Arc, and that's where we start to see how his previous "pros" in a more realistic setting, can potentially be cons as well. 

Once Kite dies to save him, Gon’s previous one-track-mind becomes even more tunnel vision-ed on revenge, and we see him lose the “kiddish” things that made him who he was. His sympathy for others is at an all time low. He says hurtful things to his friends. He basically loses his innocence and is forced to grow up too fast. The corruption is so well done, its executed so perfectly that even in the end, we can tell that Gon doesn’t like the person who he’s become. (Insert the single tear gif.) He’s given up everything and still isn’t fulfilled, because nothing he does will ever bring Kite back. TT^TT ARGH TOGASHI WHY YOU DO THIS??? HE’S JUST A KID!!! (The dramatic irony of it all being that Kite is still alive, etc etc etc)

And of course, he reaps the consequences of his actions. I think Gon is an amazingly well-written character because we can TOTALLY see how he would end up the way he was, and its easy to watch his descent into darkness. Because everything he’s done up until this point has “worked out” for him. Yes, he’s had to try hard to defeat Hisoka and all that stuff, but he’s learned from it all that things will turn out okay as long as he puts enough work and faith into what he does, he’ll be able to achieve his goals. Its a super naive thought (again, he’s just a KID!!) And I think in the CAA, its the first time where things CAN’T be solved by Killua, or good luck, or his own strength, and that’s what makes it so hard for him to accept. He’s an exceedingly complex character with relatable flaws that we see starting to “uptick” back to normal once Nanika brings him back, and I think losing his best friend as a result of his corruption (at least for the time being), is one of those things which will make him mature so that he understands how much people care about him, and how he can re-evaluate himself and his relationships. 

ANYWAYS!! I’m not sure if you’ll agree with any of my thoughts here, but here’s my brain dump hahahaha. 

[human-enthusiast]

Absurd Person #1 - Monkey D. Luffy (kid)

 Let’s start with not only the main protagonist of One Piece but also the first character to give Luffy any sort of injury...

...his dumb, seven-year-old self...

*Disclaimer: I don’t own this image - screenshot from Episode of East Blue

The last time I wrote this, I forgot to hit save and my browser just reloaded the page and lost everything. After that I just went “I’m done” and rage quit Tumblr for the night (which I normally don’t do). That’s how my Sundays usually go😒🥴

Now Onward!

Basic Classifications

Real World Ethnicity/Nationality: Brazilian

Class: farm / country / lower class

Culture (the one he grew up around): Dawn Island - Sea-side village

Fishing community

Farming / Ranching community

Hard work ethic

Small and close community members; relatively friendly; little to non-existent conflict

Selective mix of being open towards strangers (especially with merchant vessels for better trading opportunities) and weariness towards those they expect to be harmful (likes Pirates; I’d imagine the people of Windmill Village were understandably unnerved with the Red-Haired Pirates first showing up).

Core values (personal to Luffy): pride, physical strength, adventures on and outside his home village,

Relation to authority: neutral - shifting slightly towards negative (no clear basis of opinion; can only go off on Luffy’s fascination with pirates as the main viewpoint)

(The added information feels a little scatter-shot but figured I give it a try based on little information from the manga panels and how it lines up with real-world similarities. Most information is based on logical speculation and could change with new information in later chapters.)

I know that the Romance Dawn arc consists of the chapters up until he meets Coby and Alvida (I think...), but the depiction of Luffy’s character in the first chapter seems different from when he is seventeen and setting out to sea. So, I’ll treat kid Luffy as a separate character for the first analysis.

First Impressions and Introduction

Now, I am an anime watcher, first and foremost, so my first impression of this character stems from the Anime. My introduction towards this ball of chaos was when he popped out of a barrel, that he put himself into after realizing that a whirlpool suddenly appeared (how he missed it? - It’s Luffy), and then inexplicably took a nap in. That was the absurd reason I was able to stick with One Piece in the first few arcs (until Baratie became one of the major reasons I stuck with it - I’ll explain why when we get there).

And since the first chapter was used for episode four in the anime, I was already somewhat familiar with how the story started and who Luffy was as a kid. However, reading the first chapter felt....different than what I would’ve expected. And because the anime cut out a few details from the chapter, there definitely are some things to take from kid Luffy at that point.

So my first impression was, as follows:

The kid is unhinged...That explains some things...

Complete wild child of a backwater village from Day 1. 

LIKE-- The anime episode DID NOT explain how he got that scar and the guy didn’t bring it up ever. To be fair, that wasn’t a big focus because the anime didn’t make it a focus. Reading that part though did more for his character and a little of his upbringing, through speculation, making it a rather slow-building but also fascinating introduction into this series.

Just a bit of an add-on, but if the manga introduced Luffy in the same level of neutrality as what the Anime did, It may not have fully made it clear if Luffy was going to be the main protagonist. Then again, it’s a shounen manga, maybe it was rather obvious to everyone else. Regardless, his introduction served to 

(1) Make his entrance memorable

(2) Establish his character that could either compare or set him apart from his teen self.

(3) Act as a sort of precursor towards the introduction of Luffy’s world and upbringing (which isn’t completely established until the last few arcs of Pre-Time Skip)

Personality

The best way I could describe Luffy at this point is a stereotypical kid...

Energetic, short-tempered, adventure-seeking, easily impressed, and ignorant...

That last description is actually something I brought up in a separate post about the “Fluid themes” of One Piece. Because I found that a small but overarching part in many (almost all) themes and world issues that One Piece reflects has some level of unawareness or apathy. Jimbe put it best during the Fishman Island Flashback when they found Koala (paraphrasing)

“They are afraid of us because they don’t know us.”

Know us referring to acknowledging them as people on the same level as humans.

Because of that and plenty of other instances from the East Blue, it can be a potential center for many characters who go up against or wish to explore the world and find that they are a frog in a well.

And that’s what kid Luffy represents. A rather aggressive frog in a well that wants out.

Granted, he is a seven-year-old, whose schooling has a closer equivalent to the 16th and 17th centuries of our world, living in what appears to be a farming community, so I’d imagine his education only focuses on at least the basic levels of reading/writing, mathematics, etc. A small, unexciting farming village probably has more concerns over their melon crops rather than what the world has going on. Adding in Luffy, you get a kid who dreams about being a pirate and adventuring outside the isolated village, making him avidly interested in a world he has no experience with. Or in a world he thinks is all fun and games.

That’s pretty standard for any child that has a mild and peaceful life. No doubt Shanks and his crew would tell him stories about their adventures. Not as a sort of attempt to make him a pirate, but because he was easily entertained by it, building up this expectation with stereotypical pirate personas. And whether he has his “destructive” tendencies before they became a fixture in Windmill Village, they definitely seemed to amp it up enough for Luffy to try and prove he was “man enough” to be a pirate at seven years old.

Then when you add in this idealistic expectation with the selfishness of a young child, it creates an opportunity to learn. Because, as any kid may go through, will find that their fantasy of the world won’t be what they expected, and will often react negatively. Luffy’s expectation of Shanks is that he is the strongest man worthy enough to be a pirate.

Now, Luffy’s view of a “real man” stems a lot from this stereotype of men solving their problems through fighting only. Which also embodies this rather damaging philosophy of never running away or backing down from a fight (which I refer to as stupid bravery - something that comes up in a certain other character).

The amazing thing about all the combined aspects of this kid is the ability to create a learning lesson for Luffy. Which can become a motivational factor in his pursuit as a pirate.

His easily impressed nature makes it known both when the Red-Haired Pirates talk positively about piracy adventures and when Shanks leaves the village. The difference between the moments can be showcased by the difference in determination and will to make an effort to achieve his dream. As he declared he wants to be King of The Pirates, he sets himself to work at it, rather than try and go with others.

How He Shapes the Story / World Around Them

I don’t know if anybody else made a similar connection (I wanna say someone DID but I can’t remember where) but in combination with Luffy’s general enthusiasm growing up hearing wild stories, his narrative reminds me so much of Don Quixote De La Mancha.

It’s been a while since I last read that story-- and by read I mean translate some paragraphs from Spanish to English during my Spanish I class in freshman year of high school. Nonetheless, I thoroughly enjoyed the story. Part I entails an old man who, after indulging himself with various stories of knights and valor, decides he wants to partake in his own adventures. Under various delusions and misadventures, his story becomes a rather well-known one.

Don Quixote was called the first “modern book”. That was something my Spanish teacher mentioned regarding its acknowledgment by the world and always stuck with me. It was one of the first stories of the early medieval period to focus on a regular man. Other stories before this tended to be about legends, gods, demigods-- individuals who often were referred to as legends because they were born into high status (often above humans). Either through original texts (often for religious purposes) and then through varying interpretations (such as the Arthurian Legends), these tales were a part of the status quo.

Kid Luffy is a person that reflects so much of the Don Quixote story (And not just because his village has windmills-- the most iconic scene about the knight’s story). He is that simple, normal boy that longs for his own adventures when there seemingly is already a well-talked-about story about someone who achieved infamy. In place of that is a man named Gold Roger whose execution we see in the manga’s opening. At this point, we don’t have much understanding about how it impacts the world as of yet, we just know it is setting up for something significant to the story.

Luffy becomes that “regular” person from a small-town with big expectations for a grand adventure.

That perspective can slowly build into the story by starting in a simple setting with a character going through one of the first dynamic changes in his life. Luffy’s experience with Shanks’s sacrifice sets a course in his own adventure. A story that trails into a rather bonkers adventure at the end of chapter 1.

His development is what shaped his world. It’s the way he learns when as it stems from the consequences of his actions. Especially ones where the smaller ones turn out to be very costly, making it a hard lesson that ingrains into the young kid. His actions created by his old ideologies sparked an intense reaction in the people around him. Especially Shanks, who felt he was worth losing an arm towards.

How The WORLD Shapes HIM

So, for the sake of the fact that kid Luffy’s “World” in Chapter 1 mostly consists of Windmill Village, I’m adding in Shank’s and his crew’s influence to extend and further give credence to his influence. Because, as of this point, Shanks represents a glimpse into the life of a pirate that Luffy strives for.

With Luffy being in a quiet environment all seven years of life, there is growth through basic schooling and healthy child development (theoretically since Makino seems to be the most likely one acting as his guardian), instead of doing things outside that norm. Now Shanks is the odd factor that creates new development into Luffy’s dreams and future ambitions. 

The crew’s stories, charisma, and connection towards the kid actively (and probably unintentionally) created a positive expectation if he chose to pursue his dream. While that sounds inspiring, there were also negative aspects. Such as driving his ignorance and impatient nature to seek it out too early in his life.

Shanks then became a mediator. Luffy often has mixed feelings with Shanks as the man begets a level of encouragement while verbally making fun of Luffy for being a kid constantly. Despite that, it doesn’t completely deter Luffy’s ambitions. All it does is slowly drop his high expectations in Shanks after the first bar incident. This is again done by his childish outlook of physical strength and bravery equating to his ideal of a real man.

With Higama, Luffy learns about real-world dangers, and how bravery won’t always be enough to win battles. The same can be said for physical strength but at that moment it doesn’t apply to Luffy. 

Shanks’ and the crew’s involvement helped Luffy’s views change. His expectations are fulfilled, which in turn reveal that he was wrong about them.

Finally, seeing Shanks’ sacrifice unfold drove Luffy into a pang of newfound guilt. By then, he was able to change one part of his world views from a childish fantasy into the beginnings of a mature way of thinking. 

He gains some level of patience. Along with a set goal to work with. Attributes which are identifiable with Luffy in the chapters last few panels.

Patience = Luffy took time to train and learn to set sail at age seventeen.

Set goal = Be King of the Pirates

Add-Ons

When I say that kid Luffy, after Shanks’ sacrifice, gained a level of patience, it is meant as a deduction during that chapter. By no means am I insinuating that it became a permanent trait for his character. Because as of chapter 1, all of Luffy’s personality has yet to be revealed.

And this will apply to other posts for various characters. They may behave in ways during or in response to a particular event but it doesn’t necessarily equate to that becoming a whole personality trait. Calling Luffy patient, with having full acknowledgment of his personality during the bulk of One Piece, is completely off. But, there can and will be moments where Luffy will act patient when he deems it necessary.

This is a little hard to articulate but I hope it makes enough sense.

🏴‍☠️🐒

After-Notes

Here’s my first attempt at this analysis. It felt scattered even after editing everything. Breaking down characters sounds easy (and most times it is) but articulating and connecting things takes a lot of work.

Here's to hoping it gets easier with the next character. And maybe shorter paragraphs.

Up Next: Shanks (East Blue)