#the only valid plot armor actually

[julietcpulet]

Jinmao reunion: Rushed and unfulfilling 💔

So I was worried before that in an effort to focus so much on the Shisui / Maomao dynamic the anime would compromise on key Jinshi and Maomao moments and unfortunately it feels like that concern was valid. Although the scenes are there, they feel rushed and placed there only for the sake of pushing forward the plot less so for any actual depth or development and with much less care and attention than Shisui and Maomao have been given for several episodes now.

To start with, the balcony scene, while also short in the light novel it is important for giving us a glimpse into Maomao’s changing feelings towards Jinshi.

A man whose nymph-like beauty hardly seemed fit for a battlefield. Clothed in armor of an expensive color, he cut a dashing figure, like a real soldier. Could he possibly be there to rescue her? No way. Even he doesn’t have that kind of time to kill.

It’s one of the first times she considers that he might be there for her, but it’s also important because of how she dismisses the thought right away. Her continual refusal to believe Jinshi would be there for her alone shows her insecurity but the anime not including those extra thoughts leaves out key developments for her as a character. It’s not a huge deal and I’m glad they at least included this moment where she sees him but overall I think overlooking some of her internal monologue can diminish the subtlety of her changing feelings towards Jinshi, as a lot of it doesn’t happen outwardly for some time. Even if they still put in some of the quote, making it such a short throwaway takes away much of the significance.

Second, the reunion itself. Again while it’s shown as it appears in the novel, it’s stiff and very mechanical. They don’t have Maomao or Jinshi show any particular emotion or change in each other even after this is the first time they’ve seen one another in so long. Yes the novel does not indicate much from Jinshi’s side so the anime takes licenses but again there’s subtlety to indicate the intensity of the moment itself. Take the pause that happens right when he breaks down the door.

At that moment, someone kicked down the door. A soldier wearing bluish-purple armor stood in the entryway. He didn’t say anything. She didn’t say anything. Neither of them said anything. After a long moment it was Maomao who spoke first: “I’m sorry, but might I ask you to protect me, Master Jinshi.”

The pause is long, it’s meant to be poignant as they gaze at each other for the first time in a long time. But the anime chose to make it quick and Maomao’s question to Jinshi is in her usual flat tone. A moment here where Jinshi’s expression changes to show he’s surprised or doesn’t get why she’d apologize or ask him to protect her when he literally just kicked in a door all for her sake would be good but there’s little to indicate feeling on either side. Maomao’s insecurities are in feeling she needs to apologize for asking for help but her lack of inflection promotes a sense she could care less he’s the one coming through the door. The anime chooses only to be literal with the text where she smiles and he looks exasperated based on where the text puts their expressions. There’s not much nuance to speak of where we can see internal struggle on his part or any thoughts from her. Each step is there but with no time given to hold in that moment, it all lacks any meaning.

Unfortunately all the gravitas and emotional weight was already put on the goodbye between Maomao and Shisui that when it comes to the Jinshi and Maomao reunion it fails to deliver in comparison to me which is a shame. This lack of depth and dimension to the developing connection between Jinshi and Maomao will have an impact down the road as people will wonder why they get together when even I admit to seeing mostly apathy between the two the way the anime shows them currently. Again, I also expect questions about Jinshi’s actions when Maomao’s ambivalence seems prominent and yet he persists in his feelings towards her.

Overall I knew this could be an outcome when the anime was trying to wrap up the Shi clan arc they would want to focus on the drama of Shisui as the vixen / victim and give her all the playtime to finish her story but unfortunately in doing so the other characters and Jinmao have taken a backseat. Not to mention I worry that there was a concerted effort potentially to insert an insinuation of Maomao and Shisui having feelings deeper than friendship which would be a shame on the writers/animators side if done on purpose. The Jinmao reunion wasn’t the worst thing but it also wasn’t everything it could’ve been given what they were able to deliver earlier with the cave scenes and other key moments between Jinshi and Maomao.

[raileurta]

Humanity vs Cybertronians

I see people debate about whether or not humans could defeat the Decepticons without the Autobots' help every so often and I want to give my take on this. To some it up quickly I feel the same way I do about this I do about the gorilla vs 100 men debate. Yes the gorilla would absolutely DECIMATE the first ten or so guys but after that the gorilla would eventually start getting tired and be slowly killed as the hits start to pile up.

Let me explain my reasoning:

It's a very established part of lore in most continuities that transformers are nearly extinct aka critically endangered. Which according to Google means that there are fewer than fifty individuals left. Which I don't believe their numbers are that bad but I won't say I'm surprised if they were. For the sake of this argument though I will assume that only fifty Decepticons will be fighting with Earth. Which in comparison to humans’ EIGHT BILLION population that is a pitifully low number, and that's not even bringing up the whole underestimating our population thing.

I do believe only heavy weaponry like tanks, missiles, or RPGs should be able to kill/seriously hurt a transformer if they are hit enough with it. With small arms unless you hit a weak point, for instance an optic it should not even dent their armor. And nukes just straight up disintegrate them; I don't care how much plot armor the bot has, the average cybertronian SHOULD NOT BE ABLE TO TANK A NUKE. I've seen people argue for this before and it low-key annoys me. They bring up the whole “how technology more advanced they are to use or their robust practically immortal bodies” but that's not a valid argument. Even a trained modern marine would be killed by cavemen with only mere spears if they were jumped by thousands of them. Humans also can reverse engineer their technology. All they would need to do is just take a random decepticon body/weapon then break it down. It also defeats the whole purpose of the “robots in disguise” part of their lore. Unless that Cybertronian has a special ability that lets them survive, cybertronians should be able to be killed by a nuke.

End of story.

There's also other methods of killing a Cybertronian like scraplets or the rust plague, which are significantly less deadly to humans.

Depending on the continuity I feel the biggest problem for humanity would be instant K.O stuff that needs Optimus to combat or the Nemesis ship. Which I think are pretty fair odds. If Decepticons just started blasting humans out of nowhere and take the Earth head on they will lose. It would have to be a slow infiltration type of invasion to actually work, or just straight up glassing the planet from space.

I'm talking about this from a general of point of view as some continuities would do much worse or better than others.

I do wonder which one would be the easiest to defeat though. I guess maybe g1, or earthspark.

[alexisomnias]

— "HEY, HEY CLASSMATE!" . . .

⤷ you’re their seatmate!

angels notes: can be read as platonic or romantic

featuring the DORMLEADERS

RIDDLE ROSEHEARTS

—riddle as a seat mate is kinda a pain in the ass

—Especially during his first year; boy would scold you for breathing too loud!

—Upon second year though he’s a lot more mellowed out

—Your one of the only people who WOULD take a seat next to him, and in exchange he helps you with things you don’t understand.

—He also won’t speak a word if you copy off his homework… just don’t make it too obvious!!

—He’d also save you if your late to class by making up an excuse or such, but shh don’t tell him you know how down-bad he is for you.

LEONA KINGSCHOLAR

—goodluck getting him to even show up to class

—if he does he’s literally only coming for you. he’ll ask you to take notes for him and stuff but wont complain if you don’t

—in the end he does only show up to class because your next to him, so be sure too show up yourself!!

—if he catches someone else in the seat next to you he is LEAVING, or kicking them out, no way is he sitting through the class without you by his side

—he’s not that awful of a seatmate: he’s familiar with the material so if he's in a particularly good mood he’ll help!

AZUL ASHENGROTTO

—boy probably made a deal with some student to ensure he’s always sitting next to you. doesn’t matter what class he’s there

—totally believes in unassigned signed seating so will talk off someone if they take HIS spot next to you

—definitely helps you with your homework. in fact he encourages you to come to him for help (he wants you to know you can use him as a shoulder to lean on)

—also will make up an excuse on why your late, except its hella valid

—probably shares a textbook with you ngl, and definitely shares his notes

—definitely will share his school supplies. need an eraser? he has 3! a pencil? heres a newly sharpened one!

—probably will try extra hard to show off, he wants to impress you

—(he’s also extremely vigilant on whether his handwriting is neat or not when your next to him!!)

KALIM AL ASIM

—he’s such a fun seat mate. though he’s very distracting LMAOO

—definitely gets you both in trouble for talking during a lecture (he doesn’t care though, its you!)

—completely forgets about taking notes because he just wants to chat with you

—probably has been moved in class

—will buy you a thousand pencils so you never have to sharpen one LMAO

—drags you into group projects with him and stuff, he’s pure at heart, really!!

—actually pretty insightful, he’ll exchange answers with you, and go into convo about how you came up with such an opinion or answer

—“hey this is [name]’s seat!” he says to this poor clueless student. he’s your desk warden aha!

VIL SCHOENHEIT

—Vil is actually a good seatmate! he shows up on time, always hands in his work. has academic plot armor (has he ever failed??) and he’s willing to help! though he’ll still make you do it yourself

—he brings you snacks during class! only healthy ones of course, but he feeds you and he’s super sweet about it too! Literally that one friend that always shares their food for lunch

—definitely someone to look up too, and he’ll teach you concepts or help you catch up if you fall behind. He's your personal free tutor, he uses these sessions as excuses to see you, not gonna lie!

—he may occasionally scold you based on how you present yourself, especially if you are lazy with it, but its all out of care! He'll fix it himself anyway. He personally loves running his fingers through your hair.

—not seatmate behaviors :P he cares

IDIA SHROUD

—hes more of a text mate tbh

—bro will send u messages on twstcord and get you caught 😭😭

—he doesnt even show up in person hes just there to listen atp

—even then he ADORES listening to you talk, and although he really doesn't need help with homework since you know he's there?? he'll still ask you to bring homework to him because he's petty and he wants to see you.

—and if he invites you to a "study session" its really just him stammering over his words and playing video games

—oh god, he also imagines physically sitting next to you in class, and reenacting scenes from a shoujo! actually, nevermind... too many people...

MALLEUS DRACONIA

—Malleus finds you interesting. you have enough courage to sit next to him? how interesting

—literally the only one in class who doesn't sit like 5 kilometers away from him. He immediately grows a liking to you because of that.

—he’ll talk to you in class unknowingly getting you both caught LMAO, except your the only one getting in trouble unfortunately.

—he’ll have in dept conversations to you about certain topics, and almost always has an answer to give you in class

—he’s an encyclopedia, and he LOVES helping you! ask and hes already explaining.

—probably gets distracted by staring at you in class. Not sneaking glances, full on dazedly staring at you (in a totally not menacing way). he just likes looking at you! don't mind him!

—a sweetheart really, also super possessive over your seat. he ensures he's always on time to class so he can see you and sit next to you, and he’ll get all pouty if he cant.

[class1akids]

What do you think of All Might and Deku's relationship in the 3rd act? From the way it's written, it made me think that Horikoshi gave upon their dynamic for some reason? Did he want to portray a more realistic development for their dynamic? Where they kinda got separated or something

It makes me wonder that when Hori decided not to kill All Might, did he actually think through what would be the endgame instead? (I have the same question about Shouto and Endeavor).

But overall, Act 3 was a big letdown for me and I felt that whatever interesting exploration could have happened, Hori always pulled back. Two things stand out in particular:

In the Dark Hero arc, it felt like Deku's spiral was going to be the direct criticism of All Might's symbol of peace - this idea that a hero needs to be martyristic, alone and self-destructive. When Deku left All Might behind, it was such a great scene, but then it was resolved without any proper reflection on what All Might's hero ideal was and how Deku's own hero ideal may have changed due to his experience. If anything, it was reinforced that Deku and All Might are the perfect heroes and it's up to everyone else to support them / keep them safe.

In the final arc, I still feel like the Armored Hero should have been Izuku's plot, not All Might's. It feels way more fitting for him to have a suit mimicking Class A powers, to become the first quirkless hero, to defeat AFO without any quirks and become the greatest like that. What's more, I think All Might suiting up after he already played a key role in the planning (while Izuku got no role in the final battle planning or even in how to deal with Shigaraki) undermined the message of "how we all became the greatest heroes" and the idea that there are different paths to heroism.

I feel like bringing back All Might to the battlefield, reinforcing this horrible, sad idea that he can only be of service by dying when we spent Act 2 to get him learn to live really made me wonder where Hori will go with all of this.

And then in the end, I think he undermined not just Class A, but more importantly Izuku himself in the "greatest hero" narrative. I have a very hard time seeing Izuku surpassing All Might on a single parameter of heroism, other than the temporary 120% OFA and the weilding of 6 quirks for a few weeks which feels like a technicality.

Since the final battle in the vestige world is not visible to anyone, there is nothing that Izuku "showed the world" that All Might hadn't shown before. Deku smashed a powerful villain. That's it.

Since his hero activities ended then, his influence is pretty narrow. He never went public with his saving plan. And even in the context of Hori's bizarre idea that the ultimate hero is someone who cheers for you, it makes everyone else cheering the heroes, not Izuku.

What I expected from this story is for the end Izuku present a hero ideal that's an upgrade to All Might's Symbol of Peace (which kind of de facto happened with the network of connected hearts, but it feels very half-baked and quite a stretch to give the credit for it to Izuku when so many of the main players are influenced by All Might or someone else).

The other expectation was to have an answer to "can someone without a quirk be a hero"? There were two possible answers:

Not a pro hero, but everyone can be a hero somehow. This is the Deku Sensei ending. Deku learning and accepting that there are many ways to become a hero and fighting is not the only valid path. -> this answer was undermined when we didn't get Izuku's process to get there and Deku sensei was moping and seemed unhappy.

Yes, with determination anything is possible. This is the Armored Hero ending. This option should have been already built up better from the start. It would have been a decent ending if the narrative showed Deku not giving up despite losing OFA, trying to hang onto the hero course, trying to work his way through with support items and quick thinking. Maybe even have him work as a vigilante with crappy items he can afford in secret, but his friends already collecting for the suit. What didn't work was Deku not doing anything and then the class dropping a multi-million dollar hero suit on him like a fairy godmother. It's not very inspiring, let's be honest.

I feel like Izuku's and All Might's warm relationship also lost its shine in the end. All Might had a heartfelt call to Shouto and an even more heartfelt scene with Bakugou after the rescue.

The All Might rescue was set up both for Bakugou (his self-blame about ending All Might) and for Deku (twisting fate narrative). And while technically they did it together, it felt like Hori prioritized Bakugou fully here - with him getting the gauntlet with All Might symbolically passing on the mantle and getting the thanks and praise for the saving both from the world and All Might himself.

There is no similar heartfelt All Might - Izuku scene in the end, and even Izuku losing OFA and their talk in the hospital about not being able to save Shigaraki is interrupted by Bakugou and his pain over Izuku losing OFA is made to be the final focus. I think this was again Hori prioritizing Bakugou and his emotions and not letting All Might and Deku have any kind of resolution together.

So it just felt very messy to me in the end and didn't feel like the hero suit and "it's a power you earned" was a good bookend to their relationship. I also didn't feel like Hori did a good enough balance between All Might and Deku, because by the end, I didn't feel like Deku surpassed All Might and also felt like the armored suit is not interesting enough since the one getting the battle highlight with it was All Might.

I also felt that the really heartfelt moments between the two of them disappeared towards the end, and even the "All Might fanboy" narrative was passed onto Bakugou, whose All Might card and return to his origin as an All Might stan child was much more emphasised than Deku's admiration for the guy.

[crustyfloor]

brainvomit I can go on and on about the apparent hints we're getting in merch and subtext that allude to a Till revival but it grates on my nerves that it could easily be disproven in several ways, so I can never be certain, but honestly.. I'm quite confident in a Till revival. And I'm coming to expect it to some degree (In part because it's been months since there's been a proper update on him, otherwise his post-mortem comic would've been uploaded ages ago and that would be that,, but since it's seemingly being held off it leads me to think that it's an intentional decision because there is more content with him and his perspective to come, probably in later episodes)

from a writer's perspective, it feels like the logical next step. On the other hand, he might be really dead. It can happen, hell, it probably will happen because it's already clear that the chances of him living or staying dead are so situational, depending on where this story is going it might be right for him to just stay dead, (and that much in regards to the plot I can't really guess with much confidence either). I'm already so unsure how Vivinos plans to juggle all this worldbuilding and development within one or possibly two new episodes, I trust her ability, and so far she hasn't disappointed me, even when she's left me confused and upset for some time- and Vivinos is always introducing surprise plot twists to the story when I least expect it so now I'm not surprised that Till was shot anymore (aside from the agony and dread of actually seeing it) losing to Luka served it's own purpose, and I wouldn't be surprised if she brought him back

Even if revival is a very bold decision for a character, I wouldn't say it's as completely out of the realm of possibility as some may think, and it wouldn't be "impossible" to do. Alnst still has sci-fi themes. If aliens can exist, then many other things are on the table. That's why I like the robot/alive Sua theories so much. (and even though I wouldn't lean too much on realistic facts that would apply to our world to a fictional setting where plot armor exists, they're also still within the reasonable time frame to resuscitate Till, time isn't moving that slowly between the episodes Blink gone and Wiege so it's not too ridiculous if they're fast enough they can save him)

Sometimes I feel like I'm riding too close to the sun with the absurdity of insisting that Till could revive while his dead body is right there but I don't feel like we would be exploring the full scope of his character if his development ended here, yeah it's already been made somewhat cleared up that he wasn't as indifferent to Ivan's presence as we would have assumed given Ivan's view of him, but that's still pretty up in the air, we have a lot of assumptions about his character and his perspective but ultimately a lot of questions about him are still unanswered and up in the air, and personally, I'd deeply hate leaving this series not knowing as much about him as I could've, sure you could say that's simply his narrative, sure you could say death naturally comes when you least expect it to, that's just the way life is and I would accept that narrative if it came to it and Vivinos executed it in a way that made sense but ehg, it's just cliche to me and I believe there are better ways to handle his character

Whats irks me the most is that if this is where it ends for him, he's dead and there's no elaboration that kind of storytelling would only validate Ivan's narrative, the most we know about Till in regards to his perspective is through Ivan's eyes, to accept that Till's character and his relationship with Ivan is simply built on unrequited feelings and indifference to Ivan is just assuming that what Ivan says is the truth and not his skewed perspective like we know it is. But if there's no way to make that obvious this narrative would only do everything wrong... 1) validate Ivan's perspective 2) It leaves everything about Till's perspective majorly up to interpretation without some solid ground, aside from the fandoms already here and there takes that just wouldn't be good writing (?) there's really a difference in leaving mystery and interpretations to the hand of the viewer and just not answering valid questions, and not leaving any solid content to work with and interpret in the first place, whether this direction is meant to be either or I wouldn't be fully satisfied with it anyway . We see Ivan's impact on Till in Blink gone in the emotional turmoil Till goes through, it shows enough that, as opposed to what Ivan thinks, Till cared about him, but really, what do we know?

That's my biggest gripe; I don't want Till's story to end on such an abrupt and sour note that doesn't truly serve him as a character. I believe this could all be resolved in comics and side content, too. But the reason why I bring this up here is that one of the most reuccuring themes of Alnst is exploring the perspective of the ones who must live on after their loved ones die impactful, painful, unforgettable deaths, it's a present theme to show how the characters (Mizi, Luka) progress after it, it's about showcasing endurance and the human spirit. Characters shouldn't just die for the sake of it, without contributing to this and showing it, and Till hasn't yet shown it (It'd make sense if they wanted to show this in his death too, but I'd question what groundwork we were really meant to be laying here.. and I'd hope it'd done right at least)

In the case that the story shifts in a way that supports this to it's full potential (ie. not killing off everyone and blowing up the stage), reviving Till and allowing him the means to process his thoughts on Ivan and his death and what he did and what that means to him enough to put it into words would be great for his character, it's probably overgenerous for how little time we might have but I'm realllyyyy hanging onto hope here that the story will even shift to open up for this chance in the first place. If Vivinos doesn't plan to do either of these things to further Till's growth as a character visibly, then his death is rendered pointless and dismissive, and I'm not serious about that wording

because his death isn't inherently useless, none of the deaths are, and his death serves a purpose regardless. It's most likely being used to bring about Mizi's new turning point in her character development, yes blink gone is one of the many sequences of events in furthering Mizi's story first and foremost, Till's downfall signifies a new turning point in the story, still it doesn't mean he has to remain in that role to move the story along (unless vivinos would like to express that all hope is lost now and she's going to blow up the remaining characters, given Till was practically standing as a hope that things would change), if Vivinos has any interest in not making him look like a sacrifice and tool as a character for the sake of Mizi's growth after experiencing more loss, and not making his character completely reliant on Ivan's unreliable perspective (Because Cure is mostly Ivan-centric and that's the most we get of their dynamic together), She can bring him back, it can still have emotional relevance without being forced or random. And if done right, it wouldn't even erase the impact his death left on Mizi

(And I do worry about that, because revival in alien stage ideally shouldn't take back any of the tension or attention from the current events because otherwise that would be poor writing too, while I'm writing this I realize this story is really put in a tough spot because everything could go all sorts of bad ways) but it's not like if Till were to come back it'd erase the irreversible mental scar his death reopened within Mizi and be one of the driving forces on her mind come whatever she may do next (But what about the moment of hope in Blink Gone that represented Till's naive feelings for Mizi that overrid all sense of rationality and made him run to grab her hand? reviving him wouldn't rewrite that dread either... if anything, the impact of a near-death experience would also be fascinating to write on a character like himself with all the developments he's had so far)

On another note, I'm sure there are characters that may have better reasons to come back to the story, namely HyunA, but I believe what distinguishes Till from her is the possibility that bringing her back would be redundant, the possibility that it would actually remove the impact she intended her death to have on Luka. Her words would be for nothing if Luka doesn't realize this is for real, and he'll have to live with that truth and these new realizations. Everything contributes to that one message. HyunA serves us the "Live through the pain, forgive yourself, you live on" narrative right there.. So naturally, the best way I can see this being formatted is allowing us to continue to explore the perspective of Post round-1 Mizi, Luka, and Till after losing Sua, HyunA, and Ivan perhaps even going HyunA's route and finding a home within the rebellion to allow them to grow and grieve and introspect... #hopefulstage

HyunA is the catalyst for Luka's development, and it turns around to benefit both of their characters. Ivan is the catalyst for Till's development, and in turn, growth from Till would also contribute to Ivan's character . Allowing Till to live on would be a satisfying way to execute this narrative (But of course, this all goes out the window if like I said before Vivinos plans for this story to take a different direction, all I'm saying is that if the plot allows it I don't want Vivinos to miss the opportunity to expand on Till's character this way, if not in other forms that confirm he's dead). Till is my favorite character, so I'm aware I have bias and I'm indulging my delusions, but the way I see it, there's nobody who can resolve this better than Till can, there's nobody who can elaborate on his and Ivan's story better than he can, because Mizi was their friend, but nowhere near as emotionally close to them as they were to each other, she loves them but she only knows so much about them as people and just "her friends" so it's a tough spot, and Luka doesn't know them at all. Till is resilient, always coming back from the brink, and has always been fighting for agency and freedom. In that way, he parallels HyunA a lot. And I have a soft spot for both of them that wants to see them flourish and grow, and heal. If it's allowed, I want him to have that, I want him to have the space to grow with as much time as we have left, and I want him to have a fair and well-written wrap-up otherwise, I don't know I'll probably change this opinion a little bit later down the line and I still have too many questions on what the helllll is about to go on with this story to write anything sensical but if he's alive awesome if he's dead okay i'd just strongly prefer the former if it suits the overall narrative and I want it to make sense and not feel like he's been written off (and worse, I don't want his character to be perceived as shallow because of wherever vivinos chooses to direct his arc next)

all this to say I really want his perspective or any indication of anything about his current status hepl

[sailorblossoms-rankane]

finished re-reading the jewel arc & I have thoughts...

The plot is about Ranma making Shampoo "say she loves him," yet the climax says his heart is unwaveringly Akane's. Ahampoo shows interest? He pulls away. Akane's "interest" is way more intense, yet he pulls closer

Notably, all the fiancées tell Ranma they love him in this arc, but only Akane's declaration gets to him. It reminds him that love is supposed to be something you feel and not a mindless challenge to win

These two panels being only a couple of pages apart really spell things out. Look at Ranma being put off by just a "hot stare" vs instantly leaning in and ~staring~ at Akane after an intense love confession. Atrociously down bad.

Similar to Tsubasa calling him ugly, Shampoo's rejection is framed as an attack, not just on his ego, but on his self-worth (this time also tied to public judgment). He reacts to both as if it were a challenge, his fighting aura visible... but the differences are interesting

The challenge against Tsubasa is clearly about looks, but with Shampoo at its core is more about likability. She doesn't attack his looks, she says he's a scum (and so should be hated). Even if he's like "am I no longer irresistible?" he's focusing on love, not attraction

When he's looking for validation with Ukyo, he doesn't ask "am I attractive to you?" (which is what you would associate with "being irresistible") but "do you love me?" (am I the type of guy girls fall in love with? ... that's what he connects with "irresistible")

Much to say about Ranma being emotionally stunted but this is the kind of stuff showing that at his core, he's a soft, romantic guy, jerk-ness notwithstanding. Classmates might say it's about desire (because THEY're horny lol) but he never goes there. Freaks out at the suggestion even

You can see the contrast with the classmates from the beginning (horny talk) while Ranma is focused on Akane's smile... his fantasies with girls are always something romantic with Akane, and it's hundreds of chapters before his interest in seeing Akane naked is brought up.

Ranma's personal space is invaded with frequency, which affects him, but all interest for him is tied to romance. There's a certain distance in challenges and playing characters, but I don't think he's comfortable with being desired from up close... unless he's in love (Akane)

And even then it's difficult for him. You can see how much he's about romance when he does not react at all to Shampoo's bridal fit (the cutest she has ever looked mind you... and yet) and with Akane just the sigh gets a big reaction

I think it makes sense to be a soft romantic at heart and struggle with being disliked. Wanting space from someone who annoys you doesn't mean you want/can take actual hostility from them. Being "dumped" is also a form of "losing" and Ranma must win absolutely everything.

Every step of the way he frames this as a challenge, a matter of reputation, armor, strategy, etc... without ever processing there are real, actual feelings at play (love is a battle, a simple challenge, instead of.... you know, love... he's not associating any of it with feelings! ... until Akane "confesses"). Other characters misjudge him for the bit, but Kasumi/Nabiki as a duo usually get it right

Akane can get angry because of misunderstandings/insecurities, but sometimes she's angry because she's being more perceptive and mature than Ranma and simply sees he's being an insensitive dumbass. (Ranma telling her not to be jealous also indicates he's not processing/seeing this as wanting someone else)

Sidenotes: it hits me that Shampoo is really a cat lol only truly dangerous when she feels (emotionally) cornered but otherwise she's just fucking around. “She hates me fr” says the melodramatic guy whose examples of "cold" and "hatred" are juvenile annoyance

Shampoo's abilities are plot devices more than anything else. If you take it seriously the speed with which Ranma defeats her is frankly disrespectful lol only the boys get Serious Fights. The tone with the female fighters is just different, no point in fixating on abilities or the like with them

(says something interesting about sexism in-world though. Cologne ya girl is getting washed, stand up! alas, she's only interested in future husband as she's ensured Shampoo's survival in her village. Could speculate the same happens to Akane, where she's trained just enough to be able to defend herself in her peaceful world, but then is left alone as the future of the dojo is expected to fall in the hands of a strong husband) (Mostly is the shonen of it all, as we're expected to believe none of the female martial artists have a sustained interest in improving/becoming stronger like the boys have. I suspend my belief here because there's still plenty to like about these characters, how the female fighters can be used, and because it's funny. What can I say. A bitch is being entertained)

[thedoomedhometown]

Doma Castle from FFVI: Magical, Chemical, or Both?

The event: In FFVI, when the Gestahlian Empire decides to invade Doma Castle, a castle situated on a river moat with water running under it, Kefka decides to poison the entire castle via the water supply rather than engage in combat, therefore engaging in an act of chemical warfare.

The water of the river changes color (at least as well as we can see in pixel art), and people begin to succumb to the poison, with those closest to the river - the guards and such - falling first. Those in lower levels of the castle itself proceed to die, with effects ascending quickly but also dissipating quickly outdoors, while collecting indoors: the king is fatally poisoned, but a guard walking down through it survives long enough to die and, when the character Cyan runs downstairs, he seems relatively unaffected in that he doesn't show effects.

The analysis: First, let's just get the simplest Occam's razor out of the way, because that's not the point of this kind of analysis, but I'll acknowledge it once again for the sake of those who somehow missed the pinned post, the description, and everything else, to save you the effort of leaving such a low-effort comment and looking like a troll

Simplest Occam's razor: "It's only a game, a Wizard Did It , it was just magic, and Cyan had plot armor because him dying would have meant the end of the game."

Bad-faith Occam's razor: The above, but add "and it says SOMETHING about you that you'd put this much thought into it"

I am fully aware of both arguments, and I recognize the validity of the first as a possible and indeed probably the most likely interpretation. (it is, indeed, a game and a piece of fiction, the writers probably didn't care or if they did didn't expect anyone else to, it was just magic to advance the plot).

That said: if you're still here reading this, I assume you came for the deeper analysis. Then join me below the cut, to take apart the events of Doma Castle, as described above.

The geography alone is the first clue we would be looking at here: a moat of water likely connected to a water system of some sort, and the water color was changed. This would point to whatever substance/action was involved being capable of reacting with water. While the pixel depiction is purple, we'll just assume the color change could have been to any color because depicting simple muddiness or cloudiness would not have been able to depict well.

That contact with the poisoned water or consumption of it was not necessary to kill points to the next point: whatever went into the water had to be a substance that converted to a toxic vapor when combined with the water, or that displaced breathable air and created dead air.

Also, the deaths progressed inward and upward, yet dispersed quickly. The only character that died from exposure at the highest point indoors was the king, who was already older and weaker, and Cyan was either unaffected or less affected. This shows that whatever was involved was something that collected at ground level, blew through the castle, and dispersed with ventilation as it did, only strongly affecting weaker persons indoors once it reached height.

Generally, this would mean the substance either created dead air at low heights but didn't wholly displace oxygen the higher up and more indoors the characters were - similar to carbon dioxide in the real life disaster of [TW: graphic descriptions of real human death due to asphyxiant gas exposure] Lake Nyos's limnic eruption

OR

was a chemical substance that reacts with water, similar to the chemical "accident" due to utter negligence at [TW: graphic and very traumatizing depictions of real human death due to toxic chemical exposure, racism, corporate greed so bad it is indistinguishable from malice, enraging content] Bhopal, India involving the reactive chemical methyl isocyanate. [Interestingly enough, I wonder if, seeing with the name of the character involved, Cyan, this was actually partial inspiration if any of the canon writers knew of it? Although that is super speculative, and I do not have any proof of it!]

And this brings me to something to a theoretical way the characters could have survived the disaster -aside from having gas masks or other proper PPE - if you want to do an alternate take - those at the top of the castle should have moved indoors and sealed off the outside as much as they could immediately, and those already indoors should have moved upward and inward to the last of the safely breathable air for the time being, waiting for the concentration to disperse enough that moving down and out away from the water would be safer.

The geography was also probably what helped contribute to the survival of anyone who made it out and downward after such as Cyan - the flowing water and wind would have both contributed to dispersing either carbon dioxide and restoring survivable oxygen levels and/or dispersing MIC to a survivable level of immediate exposure, which, as time passed, would have made the source area that he ran past safer than the inside of the castle for a long period of time, where confined spaces would have remained "dead space" or toxic levels of MIC would have collected in less ventilated areas. By choosing evacuation rather than continuing to hole up in the castle once the outdoor amount had dispersed to a less-fatal level, even if inadvertently to go join the fight against the troops following up after the poisoning, he likely saved his own life.

So one takeaway I want to offer here is that even sometimes just the few smallest clues in your writing of a disaster can indicate what it is, what caused it, and what it does. You don't need to do an entire infodump like this analysis - just pick a few consistent things, a few consistent threads that can be picked out under examination. For example, the detail that the water changed color pointed out water reactivity as a component and that the guard near it died first followed how exposure generally works - e.g. had the king died first, or characters at distance died first like some random on the other side of the planet, that would have made this just "who cares, a wizard did it" rather than something that, the more you look at it, becomes an even deeper and more horrifying thing just because even a few, possibly research-informed, details were included, just enough to make it make a degree of sense.]

And because I want to offer some advice that might help you if you ever are unlucky enough to suffer a Bhopal or an East Palestine or [TW for lots of descriptions of human suffering and death] any of the other innumerable chemical accidents that have happened in the real world (since in the real world, you are FAR more likely to be the victim of corporate greed and unsafe practices than a psychopathic clown supervillain who won't stop at anything) OR if you're writing the survival or aftermath of a chemical-related disaster in a story of your own: If you see/smell something unusual or see a mist or fog or smoke - especially after a nearby explosion or fire or in a closed, confined space - and/or if you feel suddenly, overwhelmingly ill, or you see other people who seem unconscious or dead especially in a closed confined space or near it - Move as far away from the dead/dying/more severely ill as possible, do not go to help them because you will likely join them rather than be of any help. ideally upwind and into the closest, tallest indoor space with clean air, turn off HVAC systems, and wait for instructions on when/if to evacuate.]

[jazeswhbhaven]

Funny that Ch 7 finally came out just when I was going to leave WHB aside. I mean I still did because now it's just a game that I don't touch until it updates with something worth reading. Anyway back to my overthinking nonsense and I'm running on 3 hours of sleep so here we go!

Someone on twitter pointed something out of the fact Foras seems to not mind at all about MC taking every demon dick possible, but yet he gets pissed of the idea that MC has a baby with their childhood friend. Listen, Foras is my favorite, but it all goes back to PB's questionable choices in writing. I can overlook the whole being a peeping tom while invisible but I do wonder why they gave a voyeur philia to an Envy-based devil and be so inconsistent with it. I mean I guess it gives writers Yandere opportunities but I'm not a fan of that genre. I love the Foras content, what I don't love that he's madly in love with a terrible MC. Do better my guy, there's a ton of people out there who would love you better than that default MC, who won't love you at all because they're taking multiple dicks in less than 24 hours.

Speaking of bad PB writing, it seems like the general consensus is Levi needs to be kicked down several flights of stairs and as someone who initially picked him and liked him, I REALLY agree because....seriously what the hell did I read? I hate that I focus on the negative stuff but honestly where did the development of Ch.6 go? Just when it felt okay, that trainwreck of dealing with Levi getting plot armor and MC being a wet blanket again. IDK if I'm being choked I'd fight my way out or something, or panic. Not my last thoughts being Levi has a bad past and then cry about that, and god why did they have to write in the "WAAAAHHHHH" parts? Like no one's written that way since early 2000s, at least for me. Like I would like to say MC has gained some backbone but I really don't see it. They're just existing to be every demon's sex toy.

I skipped the H scenes actually, mainly because I just don't have interest in them. But I know MC is loathing Barbatos for the poison thing which is the ONLY thing that's consistent here. But like, PB does that to Barbatos, but Levi has gotten how many passes from trying to kill MC? Foras even got slapped for protecting MC. wtf is this inconsistency? Seriously I'm revoking WHB rights from PB and giving it to someone else. Just anyone who can actually make this game good in writing, gameplay, and features. delete the MC please. Delete Levi too, or at least delete the entirety of that scene because man I cannot right now.

And the PG 13 WHB game? Seriously what the hell is going on here? You spend resources to make a rated 13 game that is actually WORSE than your existing one instead of focusing on improving the existing one?

thank god for this community existing to keep everyone fed.

-💭

And another inbox thought from 💭 anon (this isn't a bad thing I like reading them)

First and foremost like to point out what you said about speaking in negativity, which I mean...you're pointing out something you'd like to see done better and I think that warrants a valid viewpoint. Anything other than "I just don't like PB or this game, fuck it all" (this is fine to admit too but at some point saying it more than once or twice means you probably should just not play or pay attention to the fandom lol)

I do wish PB would remember their own details for characters between making the side stories actually coexist and be canon with one another but in the main story suddenly MC just forgets everything that they learned in the side stories? I need a better what happened in what time frame because piecing it together myself just has me wondering if I'm even correct.

Now speaking on Foras??? I believe they may have wrote that weird instance of immense jealously because while he knows he can compete with everyone else other than Levi, he can't compare to a human child created by another 'human' (because I'm second guessing if Minhyeok is actually human now). But that's my wishful thinking of why they had Foras act like that.

And usually I'd talk about MC, but I am exhausted about talking about them. Everyone here knows how I feel about them at this point to where it's embarrassing lol It's the same with the pg13 version. I've seen a few opinions formed about it, and I'm like yeah what a waste of time and money on their part. And that Levi scene? Yeah I've spoke on that too, 💀

As far as stepping away from the game until there's something worth signing in for, I'm hoping there's some hope for old players to come back because something cool did happen! With the updated designs, and new bloodshed cards, I'm hoping they've got something good coming up!

[asraindarkness]

vent time! i have to disrespectfully disagree with people who are now suddenly saying "it was clear from the start that bucktommy was just a short-term thing". the whole issue with the argument is this: 911 has never been the best written show, and especially everything after s4 has been capital R Rough. this is no succession, the bear, arcane. you know, tv shows that have incredibly story continuity, character writing, and pacing. people say that bucktommy was not written "well enough" as if that is a valid sign in the 911 universe that the breakup was a sure thing. i call bullshit. when was the last time that the show has wrapped up even the simplest storyline in a satisfying and serious way? when was the last time character development happened and was take seriously? when was the last time the main characters didn't feel stagnant and the stories didn't feel repetitive? when was the last time the show didn't go in circles and choose the easy or sometimes most offensive way out? 911 had enough meat to tell compelling stories for 3 seasons, afterwards it went noticibly downhill. people who say that the "bad writing" of bucktommy should have been a clear sign are talking complete nonsense imo. tommy was the first ever love interest who checked all the boxes, who got verbal approval of bobby (who has watched buck grow and knows him incredibly well and who did notice a positive difference in buck!), who had everything that we have been told buck needs in a partner for 6 seasons. the canon text spelled out: this could be the one.

we were not delusional for that because, once again, i have to point out: the wonky writing is not a bucktommy problem. it has been and still is a general 911 problem. if they butcheted the bucktommy writing while they did great with everything else, yes, then i would agree the signs were there. for 911 standards of writing, which are very low in comparison to good tv shows, bucktommy has actually been done pretty damn great until that fucked up breakup. people say "they didn't even know each other after 6 months" and i retort "athena first admitted that she had a fiance before michael to michael and bobby like 30 years (?) after the fact". this show has been fucking up storylines left and right for years, and most characters and dynamics had many moments that were terribly written and poorly handled and were only enjoyable when you ignored the idiocy of it all. this show doesn't care about timelines, doesn't care about logic, doesn't care to base the drama within the constraints of a realistic depiction of society and laws. it retcons things for shits and giggles. the mains only get through it all thanks to plot convenience and plot armor. like please. we try to find logical solutions (e.g. tommy lands the plane) and the show will choose whatever is the most ridiculous idea (12 yo lands it).

looking at the bigger picuture, bucktommy had incredible potential for 911 standards and could have easily worked long-term if only the writers wanted to do so. the simple problem is: they apparently don't want to put any more work into it. it is as easy as that. many things in this show never lived up to their full potential and got wrapped up in the most ridiculous ways that nobody could have ever predicted. like, my bad for expecting some leftover common sensen and logic in the weewoo show! at this point, it feels like a skit starring clowns that will do the most random shit. rinse and repeat.

in that context and thinking back to all the butchered storylines, bucktommy had actually been a fucking masterpiece so far. now, it unfortunately just joins a looong row of things that could have been impactful and meaningful if only the show had good storytelling.

how could i have ever knew a breakup is coming when the writing literally said i wrote them for 8.05 as an stablished couple who where doing ok just so the breakup could hurt more!!! hurt who??? cuz most of their fandom were queers, so there is that.

and yes i agree with you. i dropped the show after s6 and came back to it ONLY bcz my friend told me buck came out bi and start this season only bcz i was invested in buck and his relationship journey cuz i knew for a fact the other part of this show is not gonna get any better and the fucked that up to.

they only claim they KNEW they’re gonna break up cuz they were saying it since 7.06 lol

and it piss me off when they say there was no chemistry (which i disagree) cuz this is so stupid. lacking chemistry is something WE see as audiences it is not a thing for characters in the story, they don’t see it and they don’t feel it so it can not be a reason for them to breakup, like??????

all and all bddie shippers has been dancing this dance for 7 years now and yk what? i hope they do get what they want cuz 911 is not gonna change the writing so i hope they do get bddie in this exact writing they seem to loooove cuz i know it’s not gonna be all fair dust and unicorns lol

(i still love buck and i hope hope hope they handle his sexuality better at least from now on but im not optimistic)

[ani-coolgirl]

So let's talk about Road Trip (09x10) for a minute!

They've toyed around with this since their introduction, but I'm not a fan of the angel torturer thing. Not that he exists--Heaven has been sketchy since day one--but that he talks/acts/sounds like a demon. I really thing Heaven and Hell's versions of cruelty should come off as different. Heaven should have a more "just following orders" angle to it. The idea of them torturing for kicks annoys me. In DnD terms, I wish Heaven overall was portrayed more as Lawful Evil. They were in the beginning, but I feel like by the time you get to mid-show they've kinda lost the plot.

Dean flipping out and destroying stuff is just so... typically Dean. Not really sure if there's a point I'm making but he does this a lot.

I want to be pissed at Castiel for validating Dean's extremely poor choices, but the guy's a total simp, and to be honest, I think if he reacted any other way Dean would instantly go to throat about all the dumb shit that Cas has done.

Crowley is so valid for pointing out he was the only one to warn Kevin that hanging out with the Winchesters was going to end with him dead. Sometimes it really does seem like he's the only one paying a lick of attention. Ironically, if he were slightly *less* ambitious, he'd be running the whole show.

Crowley, re: Sam: "The poor giant baby's in trouble again, isn't he?" Crowley is also the best because he recognizes that Sam is just a poor little meow meow who needs to be waddled and cuddled.

I haven't actually looked, but there should be more Crowley/Cas content. Crowley's right, Cas is a total flirt. Then again, Crowley's right about everything.

I think Gadreel didn't kill Dean not just because of Dean's plot armor (partial plot armor anyway; he can only die when Sam's around to be sad about it) but because I think he actually liked Dean as a person. Either way, malicious compliance for the win! That's how you show the bosses, Gadreel.

Random demon lady thinking Castiel is hot because he killed one of his kind and stole their grace is A+. Personally like to think all of Hell was sporting uncomfortable boners when he absorbed all the Leviathan and went on a mass killing spree. They're secretly very fond of him for that.

Again, haven't actually looked, but there should be a crap ton of Gadreel/Abner stuff. Hello, they were prison boyfriends!! Where's the AU where Gadreel ditches Metatron and shacks up with Abner instead? Bonus for a scene of Gadreel kissing Abner and Dean freaking out because that's my brother's body, you dick!

Gadreel has Sam trapped in a dream case about "ghouls and cheerleaders." Interesting that he picked a scenario that would appeal to Dean, not Sam in order to keep Sam calm and preoccupied.

Okay, I get why Dean walked off when Crowley's sticking needles in Sam's brain (even though I think he shouldn't have and it once again frames things around Dean feeling bad instead of Sam's actual suffering), and I get why Cas followed (simp), but guys?? You're just gonna leave Sam's body along with Crowley? Guys? Is this thing on?

So Cas blaming Gadreel for "breaking the universe" is pretty funny (very "for want of a nail" line of thinking there). Like, God and Lucifer don't factor in this at all, it's all this one rando's faulyt.

I'll probably talk about it again in more detail at some point, but the fact that there's never a moment where Sam and Gadreel bond over being manipulated by Lucifer is criminal.

Crowley: *indicates he should possess Sam to help kick out Gadreel* Dean: "No. Not happening." Crowley: "Don't be daft. Demons can take what they want. I can burrow into that rat's nest of a head. I can wake Sam up. Just call me plan 'C.'" Castiel: "You can't--" Dean: "You got a better idea?" I bring up this conversation because Dean flipped in approximately two seconds. Amazing the man doesn't get whiplash from how fast he changes his mind.

Crowley: "Besides, I don't want to be inside your brother any longer than I have to. I'm not one for sloppy seconds." This demon is a LIAR, judge! He specifically stays in Sam longer than he has to so he can be a cheerleader! And I'm sure that, as a demon, he has had plenty of sloppy seconds!

So do you think Sam and Dean changed their safe word from Poughkeepsie to something else because of this incident? If I were Sam I would have, just to be petty.

Sam immediately calling for Dean instead of going for a weapon when Crowley pops into his head is... interesting.

"I know how possession works, Sam. You've seen everything that he's seen, even if you can't remember." So I completely forgot about this line but the implications are quite horrifying. I think it's been inconsistent throughout the show, but my takeaway is that when people say that they don't remember anything post-possession, it's because they're either lying or they actively suppressing their own memories. So Sam actually remembers everything he did as Meg, Lucifer, and now Gadreel. Three additional sets of memories are in his head, all three of which involve murder. That's borked, yo.

Again, Crowley fighting to help Sam is adorable. He's no grade-A simp like Cas, but he is secretly fond of him and I love it. Dean, too.

Where are my VOTE CROWLEY t-shirts?

Kinda funny how Castiel, without either of the boys throwing out so much as a, "Can you give us a minute?" walks off to give them pseudo-privacy. He's such a good third wheel, knowing when he's not needed. <3

Dean's, "All right. Let me hear it," is honestly insufferable. He really thinks that he can get off with a stern talking to, and when that doesn't work, turns to self-flagellation instead. And when that doesn't work, he takes off dramatically to do something that will make himself feel better. At no point does he attempt to make a genuine apology or even suggest the idea amends. For all his "I'm poison" crap, he still doesn't think he did anything wrong. He sucks so bad for this, it's kind of amazing.

Hey, we get to begin the divorce era proper now! Nice.

[yourdeepestfathoms]

TADC Playing D&D

(ALL PLATONIC/FAMILIAL.)

Caine is the DM obviously

Pomni plays a Firbolg Warlock (but her Firbolg’s design is the one that looks like a cow. y’all know the one. it’s the only valid design for a Firbolg)

Jax plays a Tiefling Rogue (obviously)

Ragatha plays an Aasimar Cleric (also obviously)

Zooble plays a Changeling Barbarian

Gangle plays a Gnome Druid

Kinger plays a Warforged Artificer

And then Caine reveals the plot twist: it’s gonna be irl dnd, and they ACTUALLY PLAY their characters

They’ve got costumes and their character traits and everything! Like, Ragatha gets angel wings, Jax has horns, Pomni gets a tail (because, again, cow-like Firbolgs are the only right way to design Firbolgs, and you can pry that from my cold, dead hands)

The terrain also changes into the same terrain as wherever they adventure to

Antics ensue!

Zooble is the tank

And they can instill the fear of god upon man

But you know who else can be scary as fuck?

Ragatha

Have you ever fought a Forge Cleric before? Did you know those bitches can wear Heavy Armor?

Combat is WILD when they’re actually acting it out

Though, it can barely be considered “acting” because Caine has somehow made magic possible????

Kinger asks to make the most wild shit because he thinks it’s fun

Gangle once got downed, got to two (2) failed Death Saves, was brought back up, and then was IMMEDIATELY downed again

Pomni gets anxiety over even the most mundane of rolls

She was asked to roll Perception, and she was sweating buckets, afraid to fail and screw everything up, and it was literally just to find a nice bakery in the city they were at

Jax asks to pickpocket orphans

Ragatha: Pomni, why is your Strength a seven???

Pomni: i don’t want to talk about it

Her Unarmed Strike literally does zero (0) damage

She never uses her weapon ever

Only Eldritch Blast

She also uses other spells ofc, but Eldritch Blast is her go-to

“Doll Face, i’m down” “Pomni’s having a panic attack” “okay, and? i’m downed”

Jax and Ragatha have beef the Whole Time

“why did you think you could hide in an empty arena??” “because i’m a Rogue, and they have Advantage on hiding!” “IT IS AN EMPTY ARENA WITH NOTHING BUT SAND.” “I AM A ROGUE WITH ADVANTAGE TO HIDING.” “THE ARENA IS EMPTY. THERE IS NOWHERE TO HIDE.”

Despite being a Firbolg, which is considered a race of Giant, Pomni is STILL considered as a Small creature (due to her own height)

Because of this, she can ride every single other person in the party, as the Ride rules in dnd state that a willing creature at least one size larger than you and has appropriate anatomy can serve as a mount

This has started a “technique” the group has named “War Horsing”

In which Pomni sits on someone’s shoulders and spams Eldritch Blast non-stop while the other person wrecks house

(She usually sits on Zooble’s shoulders and Cure Wounds them whenever they take too much damage)

She’s also called the “cannon” of the group because she’ll sit on Zooble’s shoulders and use Fireball

Speaking of Fireball!

The gang once found Beads of Fireball, and Jax, wanting to be a boss bitch and show how much better than everyone he is by single-handedly killing this super hard boss they were fighting, thought that because he’s a Tiefling and Tieflings have Resistance to Fire Damage, he could easily survive a blast.

Anyway, he ended up taking 80d6 Fire Damage after he threw all ten (10) beads at once.

Even when the damage was halved, he still died instantly.

Ragatha considered if it was worth it to Revivify him.

Pomni uses Speech of Beast and Leaf to speak with plants, and the plants just cuss her out.

Zooble: can i roll to pick up Pomni by the ankles and swing her around as an improvised weapon?

Pomni: ?!?!?!

(Caine said yes)

(Zooble ended up doing five whole damage with Pomni’s body)

Caine once rolled 200d8 Bludgeoning damage because Kinger fell off a mountain (he was Revivified by Ragatha after)

“COUNTERSPELL THIS, B[@&$%]” -Zooble, right before decking an NPC straight through a wall

When fights get too hairy, Jax will Disengage and leave the party to fend for themselves

There was once this HORRIFIC chase scene the party had to try to survive

Zooble: *polymorphed into a mountain goat by Pomni, sprinting as fast as they can*

Gangle: *Wild Shaped into a mouse, desperately hanging onto Zooble’s fur*

Ragatha: *flying away while holding Pomni*

Pomni: *clinging to Ragatha like how a baby sloth would cling to its mother, shooting Eldritch Blast at the monster every turn in a desperate attempt to slow it down, screaming*

Jax: *already 200ft in front of the others because he ran off way before them*

Kinger: *wondering if it’s a good time to tell the others he has Longstrider prepared*

Jax got maimed by a Mimic because he couldn’t help but not loot a chest he found

He then proceeded to get maimed by ANOTHER MIMIC in the VERY NEXT ROOM because he also tried to loot that, too

Zooble: does a 22 hit? 😏

Caine: no

the entire party: 😟

Pomni got bitten by a werewolf and failed the Constitution saving throw, so she ended up becoming a werewolf. During her first transformation, she lost control after failing the saving throw and immediately started mauling Jax.

Everyone just kinda stopped and watched in awe for a moment before they realized they should probably help him.

“He needed the humbling” -Zooble

Kinger crafts Pomni a gun and gives it to her

Caine: so you all see the werewolf pull out a Tommy gun

The party had to fight this giant frog, and they all thought it would be a walk in the park, but then it swallowed Pomni, and the simple encounter turned into a fight for Pomni’s fucking life because Pomni was actively suffocating inside of it, and Jax wanted to blow up the frog with a magic grenade he had, despite Pomni being in there (he was well aware that she would also take damage), and Ragatha was trying to see if she could heal Pomni from inside the frog, and Gangle ended up Wild Shaping into another frog and begging it to let Pomni go.

Pomni was traumatized.

Caine: who’s done a good job at roleplaying recently?

Kinger: well, Pomni did have a panic attack

[jacksonseymour13]

i can't be the only one that hates juvia lockser

TW: Criticism against Fairy Tail and Naruto

You're not. *cracks knuckles* I absolutely LOATHE Juvia with a immense passion, she isn't even a character to hate. Just a cheap tired old replica of "Obsessive annoying ass female character with zero depth is attracted to handsome male character for reasons? Unknown". She's not funny, she's not entertaining, she's not plot relevant and really was my biggest issue with Fairy Tail outside the obvious annoying fake out deaths and plot armor deus ex machina moments. I can give those a pace for the tone Fairy Tail has set but Juvia? Oh boy is she an obnoxious painful "character" to suffer. She's the equlevant of what Spongebob is to Squidward for Gray. Endless Torture Porn that waste the audience time. The only reason JuviUGH is popular is because she's hot. That's it. If you hold someone at gunpoint and ask them to name more reasons WHY they like Juvia or make a logical explanation for why Gruvia is a healthy non-codependent relationship. Their taking the bullet to the head. Lord knows I will.

Juvia stans only defense for Juvia's stalker ass tendencies is "It's just a gag" similar to Sakura's stans justification why her abusing Naruto or simping for Sasuke "is a muh gag". I missed the part where that was okay or funny. Idgaf if it's a gag, I hate it. I hate Juvia's entire existence. She's a random character they cherry picked from a evil guild who had "lust at first sight" for Gray. She had no legitimate reason outside his looks to love him, that isn't okay or healthy. This character made my blood boil and heart seethe in pain every time I saw her pop up because you know what you were getting. Another annoying fucking painful moment of her reminding us she loves Gray like we got the first 150 times in 4 episodes. Did we need anymore? Ofc not! She never has a character arc, she has no relationships with other characters, they never properly flesh out any potential dynamics like the one with Meredy & Lucy & Gajeel because they are all flushed down the drown the moment they press the hard reset the moment Juvai shows an ounce of growth.

They can't help themselves hitting that "character reset" to boomerang any progress of her character regressing and demoting it back to "Generic Gray love interest with no other characteristics or depth of quality" sounds familar? She's just a more violatile Karin with extra screentime. These characters do nothing but be cheap fanservice for fangirls with low self-esteem and personal insecurities that have insane infatuations with men that could not give one single fuck. Juvia honestly should have died at the final series(honestly someone fucking should have-cough Makarov). That would have at least made it worth it and validated her "love" for Gray. She's willing to die for him to set him free of her cahins that hold him back. PERFECT Metaphor, it was right there yet the writer just could not find any pair of balls to kill any characters attached to these overrated ships. The main popular ships are all terrible even Gajevy but Gruvia will forever go down as the most appalling mainstream fictional ship in the anime world OAT! Hands down because of how long you have to be exposed to it, how much it just suffocates you and you drown in it's mediocrity. I can't stand it because it gaslights me, it gaslights the audience and eventually Gray into thinking it's a relationship that should go somewhere.

I would love to do a disection on Gray but I don't wanna trouble you with another paragraph and taking any more of your time away. To keep it short,sweet and simple: JU-GRUVIA absolutely ruined Gray's character beyond repair. Gray's agency, his existence, his screentime, story and depth are all sacrificed in favor of Juvia's pointless romance that never actually goes somewhere because the writers of these eh shounen anime never consider tapping into any possible romance until the tail end of the series(which I always thought was fucking stupid). I seriously fucking hate Juvia for ruining my goat, my boi, my normal icy glorious king and stripping away what could've been the greatest character in Fairy Tail for me(that title went to his dad and Zancrow🤷🏻‍♂️). If you take Juvia away from the story, it feels 50 times better and most of the problems go away along with her. The best question any Fairy Tail can ask themselves is did we need shipping to carry the show? No we didn't. We didn't need pointless romances in a comedy shounen that is too damn safe,predictable and comfortable. The better ships aren't even popular or mentioned often because of toxic ship stans that gaslighted closeted rarepair stans into the shadow realm. IFYKYK. Gray is my biggest what if. What if he was treated by a writer that actually gaf about him in the middle and later part of the story. Gray OWNED early Fairy Tail. Pre-Juvia!Gray is the best character in all of Fairy Tail and I'll die on that hill.

[localfanbaselurker]

First time watching Voltron: Legendary Defender and documenting my thoughts

This is Season 4

S1-2 | S3 | S5 | S6 | S7 | S8 |

———————————————————————

<this one is going to be shorter, as I have only recently finished this season, and the grief is still fresh (lol), so the thoughts are only just starting to simmer. strap your asses in>

Pre-Season 4 Thoughts

-> Keith joining the blades is going to be a huge plot device, I feel

-> PLEASE for the love of CHRIST let that poor little girl find her brother and father. If they are dead dreamworks better be ready to catch these hands

->I’ve heard people claim this is the “last good season”, but i stay strong 💪 and will watch till the end

->wouldn’t the paladin switch not make sense now? Cus shiro is back as the black paladin and it makes no sense for Lance to be red like it originally had? If anything, he should’ve gone back to blue, and Allura to red, because Allura is very accepting/encouraging of shiro’s role as leader. I guess they didn’t wanna do it all over again. But I digress 🤷‍♀️

->im gonna miss my Pookie (🤍❤️🤍)

Post-S4

->do they do this every two seasons?? Have an epic battle where they have a big preparation and say it’ll 100% end the war but it doesn’t and something crazy happens after they win and it sets up the next season??

->FUCK YEAH PIDGE GOT HER BROTHER BACK IM SCREAMING CRYING THROWING UP 💪💪🔥🔥‼️‼️‼️🙏🙏🙏🙇‍♀️🙇‍♀️

->^genuinely cried so hard during this scene. would’ve cried more if I wasn’t recovering from the initial shock.

->^cried during this one too, but it was happy tears. I could actually just do a whole reaction post to this episode alone. (if you want me to js say so in the rbs/replies)

->the callback to s1! “color-coded of course, because what are we? animals?” AHHH! I’m going insane I love these siblings sooooo much

->okay I’ll stop gushing over them now

->^only valid reaction to meeting Allura. Homegirl is beauty incarnate

->I LIED. im not sorry im never shutting up about them. SHE SHOWS HIM AROUND THE CASTLE AND TELLS HIM EVERYTHING AND EVERY DETAIL AND SHES SO EXCITED CUS SHE JUST GOT HER BRO BACK AND IS JUST RAMBLING ABOUT HER NEW HOME AND ALL THE COOL STUFF SHES BEEN DOING AND HES JUST LISTENING AND IS SUPER EXCITED WITH HER AND ITS SOOOO AMAZING AND ADORABLE AND I COULD DIE

->AND THEN HE TELLS HER HOW THEIR DAD WOULD BE SO PROUD IM DYING IM LITERALLY DEAD STOP.

->AND AND AND THEY WERE ALL WORKING TOGETHER W HUNK TO MAKE THE GALRA TRACKER THING AND THEY WERE BEING SO COOL WITH EACH OTHER AND BEING NERDS TOGETHER AND AND AND AJEUWNDUWJEBEURBDGWUDKAODHD

->okay. ive calmed down. i am normal and can be trusted to simply watch a show.

->^Get his ass, Zarkon. I needed his smug ass to be humbled so bad. Only time I will agree w Zarkon fr.

->i do NOT like Lotor. Can you guys tell already??

->THE SCENE WHERE THEY TRIED TO GET MILKSHAKES AND WERE SHOCKED TO FIND OUT THAT YOU NEED TO MILK A COW STOP.✋ 😭. My high-score on the giggle-meter went up by 300%

->bro I SWEAR shiro looks different. there’s just something about him. the hair gets a pass cus how good of a haircut can you give yourself in space, yk? but that nose scar is definitely a different shade #notmyrodrickshiro

->THE VOLTRON SHOW.

->^Just. That entire episode. It’s getting a whole post actually I need to yap about it.

->^her armor is colored in a way which makes it look both pink and red while making it look like a trick of the light in a way to symbolize that she is acting as keith yet while being a paladin herself and that being unknown in the public eye and showing how they have to cover that up, any suspicion being thrown as a trick of the light. Oh vld animators ily 🫶

->on another note tho why do they always draw lance and shiro to have 30 pounds of ass. what.

->loved when those lesbians decided to take down lotor. Queen shit 💋 we stan 🙇‍♀️🙏

->Lotor is so stupid and pathetic and annoyingly smug and sus and admiral-zhao-y and I hate him but he’s SOOO FREAKING HOT and I can’t hate him completely because he’s so attractive but that just makes me wanna hate him more. He’s a walking red flag but the flag is heart-shaped and honestly idk what to do w that.

->^WHAT. stop. honestly that’s the real reason he was banned from the empire my ass would not want that fucking FREAK within a 30 light year radius of me either

-> while s3 was the klance season, s4 is apparently the allurance season, they have a lot of sweet moments. (granted all started by lance but still, you can almost see allura swooning)

->^pookie. what are you doing… pookie.. no. stop. i don’t like where this is going…

->^POOKIE NO. STOP. ✋ STOP. SAY SIKE RN.

->^oh thank fuck for Lotor.

->^^wait what. why Lotor.

->^^^heartbreaking: worst person you know doesn’t something good for once.

->he definitely wants something out of this. I don’t trust him.

These are thoughts I’ve had compiled for some time now. I will continue to post my thoughts on the tag “laura’s first vld”

I finished this season on 06/30/24. I am on S5E3 as of today (07/06/24)

[accirax]

initial thoughts on DCAS episode 10

wait, Gabby actually said "baddie"? i thought she said "buddy." Ellie is a bad bitch send tweet

given everything that happened in this episode, i honestly forgot this happened. i'm sure it'll come back to be important at some point, though. putting this here to try to help keep it in my mind.

Gabby and Ellie are literally the cutest, my goodness. i thought their ship was okay in S1 (i didn't really understand why Ellie would like Gabby, and to some extent i still don't), but DCAS has made me love them. they just care about and revere each other so much........

god, he's literally the worst (/hj /pos)

does Yul actually care about/need the money? i thought he was only on the show for the publicity. i want to know the Yul lore so bad...

what does Gabby think this alliance is meant to accomplish, exactly...? actually, i take back my confusion. Yul literally tried to poison Aiden in S2. there's a precedent for her believing that the alliance would commit actual crimes.

i cannot believe that Yul canonically knows what Tumblr is. hi Yul

this made me cackle. i'm glad every time that Aiden gets to be more sassy and hotheaded again, especially when it's behind someone's back like this. that rashness is what prevents him from being the super vanilla character that people like to make fun of him for being, and what causes him to do interesting things in the narrative.

honestly, this was way more understated than i expected. and, possibly than it should've been...? like, Jake. Tom literally lied to you just to avoid you. this is actually (in my opinion) something you could be justifiably pissed about.

HE'S SO PANICKED AT THE THOUGHT OF BEING EJECTED FROM THE GAME. HE CARES A LOT ABOUT PLAYING. I WANT TO KNOW THE YUL LORE SO BADDDDDDD

this can't actually be the end of Emily's character, right? right?

i'm glad this scene exists because it makes way more sense that there would still be some hostility between these two after the events of S1. they need time to cook before they can become besties for real :)

Gabby, respecter of girlfriends everywhere

honestly, i thought that she was going to straight up shoot Yul (with paint) after this. it would've been deserved.

...RIGHT???

...how? other than figure, those two look pretty much nothing alike. also, hilarious unforced error given the result of this episode. imagine if this slip up winds up essentially costing Tom the win.

is it just me, or was there more swearing than normal this episode? not super important, but it was noticeable.

this is a really valid argument. why did this count? whatever.

KING!!!!!!! see, i was right to bring up how Alec is great at challenges.

he's an Fi lead (MBTI reference)

KING PART 2!!!!!!!! i love Alec

again, i like seeing this side of Aiden. while i wouldn't say he's as petty as Jake, he's still petty enough to continue the feud instead of trying to be the bigger person. he's got depth!

ABSOLUTELY the best strategic move for the villains. i'm very happy with this elimination, although, i was never a huge Ashley fan. my heart goes out to those who are.

not only that, but the disventure is over too.

Jake is truly going to be 100% alone in this game, now, and entirely due to his own doings. very excited to see how he proceeds from here.

this is a winner's cut moment, ngl.

what did the writers mean by this

aaaaand, that's the episode! i enjoyed this one. it reminded me of the good ol' S1 days, where i got to watch Fiore and Alec absolutely trample all of the heroes with their superior strategy. (i stan the villains, if that wasn't obvious by this point.) i'm well aware that those days can't last forever, but that just makes me even more inclined to revel in them while they're still here.

i do still hope that one of Jake, Tom, and Aiden gets eliminated soon, though. this episode specifically i don't think was an instance of plot armor-- like i said, i think Ashley was by far the most sensible boot given the situation-- but the longer all three of them stay in, the more it does feel like the writers playing favorites than how the game would genuinely shake out.

i'm quite curious as to what the next trailer will show us. are we headed towards another hero boot, or will the villains start beefing already? will the inevitable trevek conversation happen next episode? and is Emily really gone???? i hope not :,( see you next week!

[justsomuchhacking]

Schools of Magic: Necromancy

I think what fundamentally draws me to necromancy as a school of magic in fiction is the following convergence of ingredients:

Taboo practice that in many fantasy cultures makes you kinda hated for a variety of reasons, some valid and some not depending on the specifics of the setting. I vibe with this and feel seen by it even though I vehemently reject the entire framework of the Dragon Age-style magical oppression metaphor. Still though.

Goth Aesthetic. D&D's many sins against Magic™ are too numerous to get into but the biggest is that magic use is painfully and unbearably generic. The biggest TTRPG in existence has the worst necromancers. Complain all you want about un-playtested vibes-based OSR games on itch dot io (god knows I do) but most of these seek to imbue magic with more flavor than Leatherman Tool Wearing Pointy Hat. What's the point of being a necromancer if I can't wear black robes and bones and have ribcage armor? Be real.

BONES. Cannot stress enough how cool bones are. Gideon the Ninth will be my touchpoint for the many uses of bones for the foreseeable future. Nothing more needs to be said here I think.

Necromancy has many plot-ruiningly good and practical uses in fields such as forensics, history, anthropology, hazardous material handling, and more! Necroscope comes to mind here because the ability to talk to literally any dead person ever is kind of amazing. They have to want to talk to you, the one and only Necroscope, but that's a small caveat.

Villain-coded magic, which let's face it, is usually pretty sexy. I don't think I have to cite my sources here.

I read Sabriel at a formative age and loved it; bells are the best focus and I love them they're SO good. There is a kind of working-class angle to Sabriel's "job" in society that isn't explored quite so much (she provides a service that's gross!). The bells have names.

I will admit that even for me, noted necromancy fan, there are drawbacks. I haven't consumed literally every piece of media that contains necromancy, but in my very limited experience, my specific problems are under-explored:

Public health hazard potential cannot be overstated. I frequently think of Diablo's Corpse Explosion ability, or the epidemiological ramifications of armies of zombies.

Potentially undesirable uses driving down labor costs, causing economic depression in wages that lends itself well to exploitation of the living. Fully-automated Gay Necromantic Fantasy Communism doesn't have the same ring as its science fiction counterpart.

Ossification of society with undead aristocracy. This has been explored but almost exclusively with vampires. Although hmmm. Are vampires functionally necromancers? They raise the dead (kiiiinda), they're magical (usually), they frequently have ill-defined magical connections to death... much to think about here.

Professional standing armies create security dilemmas that would be particularly thorny in the kinds of pseudo-historical societies portrayed in fantasy media. Fantasy kingdoms do tend to have their own though, despite how modern this is actually, so maybe it wouldn't be that frightening for a neighboring kingdom to have a maintence-free army of shitty bone soldiers at their command. Depends on the setting.

People are rightfully very upset when you dig up their loved ones. Even more so to serve in the skeleton army, or worse, the skeleton agricultural scab labor force. Yet I have never once seen a revenge plot with misused remains as a plot point! Missed opportunity. Still, the cultural backlash is so strong so that any worldbuilding you do around a necromantic kingdom better have some good justification and/or cultural mores to get around the seemingly universal human experience of having strong opinions about handling human remains.

This should be its own post, but: Necromancers are rarely portrayed as lower-class and necromancy is interestingly tangled up with power and authority. In the Netflix Castlevania there's a slobbering wanna-be king who has a giant people sphere, which really encapsulates a popular take about necromancy which is that it's a mirror image of, or maybe a perversion of, divine right. Two counterexamples I can think of are Tactical Breach Wizards and Sabriel but most other depictions (including vampires, who are REALLY tangled up with this) have a necromancer as some kind of Bad Ruler. All the trappings of royalty but it's not a real and true right to rule - those guys aren't subjects they're dead! This cuts in two ways usually - either a Bad Queen that needs to be deposed or some bastard with delusions of grandeur. But I can imagine a version of it that actually stands in as a criticism of all monarchy.

Consent issues with a lot of necromancy as depicted. Are shades, ghosts, skeletons, zombies, banshees and so forth like... sentient? Are they mimicking human activity or are they souls strapped to a decaying vehicle, forced to wield a rusty sword against peasant vigilante adventurers? If they're sapient and free-willed, what does THAT look like? Depends greatly on the coercive effect, if any, magic has on the resurrected. Standard setting caveats here.

[revserrayyu]

2.1 Penacony thoughts [part5]

**BIG STORY SPOILERS** Chatting up until the end of the current story so if you haven’t finished it yet then I’d encourage you to do so before reading any further.

Before all the big reveals happen, I appreciate these few dialogue options we get right after the Aventurine fight. It sounds like they’re all asked in rapid succession and the last one is completely valid considering how often we actually switched viewpoints during this update.

Once Sam appeared, I knew it was finally going to be the moment where we learn who he truly is. As they list out the other hunter’s specialties and his own lack of one, he mentions “there is only one method that I use,” and I wanna say it’s deception..

..because lo and behold, everyone was completely right and the person beneath the armored suit is indeed Firefly herself. I’m not surprised, just interested in learning about her reasons. Was that death of hers planned and why? Has she always been Sam, even way back during the Jepella Rebellion trailer? Or does that device in her hand allow her to appear as Sam? Because didn’t we hear to talking to a “mecha” in that one dreamscape last patch? She just seems so out of place among the other Stellaron Hunters but I’m eager to learn more about her once we pick up here next update.

Also, I’m just gonna say it.. I wasn’t truly upset over her “death.” I feel like we were kinda forced to care for her after she gave us a tour of Penacony, but that alone wasn’t enough for me to get properly attached. That time was real brief and only took up a small section of the previous update. Not to mention the many weeks in between updates where I spent much time thinking about almost everyone else aside from her. Most other characters we’ve met on this planet received trailers, drip marketing and so much more to get me invested into learning about them while Firefly’s presence was short lived. I would genuinely be upset if anything bad happened to Black Swan, Acheron or Sparkle and I’m already emotional over Robin, Aventurine and maybe even Sunday. There’s stuff going on with Gallagher and Misha that I’m still curious about and we haven’t even properly met Boothill yet but I’m so excited to see him. Maybe my opinion on Firefly will change during the next update, but for now I really don’t have any strong feelings about her other than simple curiosity. I am pleased to see her still alive for the Trailblazer’s sake, but if she somehow survives this entire story and Aventurine doesn’t..hmpf.

All that aside, the scene with Gallagher and Sunday was.. a lot to take in, but once again we have someone else calling Sunday crazy. Perhaps he should go to therapy.

The framing of this scene is nice and sorta confirms those purple nightingales do in fact see everything happening on Penacony, acting as Sunday’s eyes and reporting back to him. At least that’s the vibe I’m getting.

This is quite unexpected? Honestly I feel like every time Sunday is involved there’s a new plot point that’s introduced into this giant story. Both sides definitely have it out for each other, that’s for sure.

What in the hell is this twist??

Sunday thinks Gallagher is in disguise, but after the hound tells him to take a closer look, Sunday starts to notices all these little details about him that seem reminiscent to 52 other members of the Family.

I wish I could say this idea is foreign to me, but it actually reminds me of Kamui from the second season of Psycho Pass and how his body is made up of 184 different people and 7 personalities. Kamui was also unable to be detected by any scanners and that also reminds me of Gallagher and how almost no other Bloodhound knows who he is.

And I haven’t the faintest idea on what Sunday means here but I noticed the voice over doesn’t even say “minion of the Enigmata” no matter how many times I tried to replay this line over.

It’s at this moment where I started to waiver with my distrust towards Sunday and actually start to feel bad for him a little bit solely because of the strong emotion in his voice when he questions why Robin had to be killed. It at least prevents me from thinking he had any part of it.

Then we head into a cutscene and dear god, things happen quick. This one shot of Gallagher reminds me of his light cone just because of the lighter.

This frame of Sunday looking down on him feels so intense and I kinda love it with both the intense shadows and harsh light.

And then..? Our angelic and handsome man gets killed?? Presumably by another memory zone meme I guess I dunno it happened in an instant and all I have to show for it is splatters of goo??

Oohhh my goodness.. this story took such a turn. Many of them actually. Seeing how Sunday is a puddle on the floor similar to what happened to Firefly, I wanna believe that he’s gonna be okay? If she could survive, surely he can too. Maybe? I’m still not to sure about Robin’s condition and I’m being so darn hopeful that Aventurine is alive somehow. That’s definitely the death that hurts most for me if true. Anyways, I’ll end it here and just say there’s many answers to look forward to with the next update. As always, I’m not trusting anyone! Astral Express family only!

(originally written on 3/30)