#there's so much to think about and analyze and just... love

[keets-writing-corner]

okay but legitimately TV Tropes is a FANTASTIC website and I love it so much. It's a great catalogue both of what tropes exist, what they are, and also places where they have been used from shows, movies, theater, videogames, anime, literature, you name it, they probably have a category for it

they categorize their tropes too by themes, like secrecy, or idk depression tropes

but my favorite part is that they also distinguish between a Trope that's good and being used as intended, and a trope that's clearly MEANT to be a good trope, but is poorly written so it comes off as the "poorly written version" of the other trope. Off the top of my head, think like Angst vs Wangst, in which the first case is ya know, character is experiencing emotional distress because of all the trauma that's been happening and it HURTS (so good) vs the second case where instead of coming off as the character deeply suffering, it comes off as whiny and irritating.

but like that's just one example. I love browsing them, discovering new tropes. Sometimes it's good for like idea generation, sometimes I like reading about tropes I usually hate or don't care for, and then think about "how can I subvert this and/or write it in a way that I would like it?"

Other times, I like going on it after I've engaged with a media and seeing what tropes have been assigned to it by the ppl there. It helps me process, analyze and understand the story better and helps me understand my own writing better too

TV tropes is wonderful

TVTropes gets made fun of a lot but it is a little astonishing how consistent that wiki's voice is. It's a great wiki to go to if you want to simulate having one specific autistic fifteen-year-old computer nerd infodump to you about any piece of media that exists. To be clear I am saying this as an overwhelmingly positive thing

[vulchak]

Yes, I find fun in well crafted movies full of heart, passion and timeless loveable characters. HTTYD 2025 has none of those. It's nothing but a soulless, poor imitation of the original, only made to acquire the studio more money. There's not a single thing about this film that is good, or even so bad it's good.

People are allowed to enjoy it. I don't agree with expressing said enjoyment through going to see it in a theater, because you're contributing to a very VERY bad trend in the movie industry of rehashing old stories and relying on nostalgia only for quick and easy profit. But you're still allowed to enjoy them. Same as everyone else is allowed to criticize them, is allowed to hate them.

I've seen several comments like this, several posts. And I think they all stem from one place: desperation. Let me explain: people want more new content of a series that ended in 2019, (2018 with Race to the edge if I have anything to say about it) and seeing more content of said series is enough for them. Desperation has left them with lowered standards and a lot of coping.

"It's just like the original, it's perfect!" You know it's not. You love the original, I'm willing to bet you've seen it 20 times, have it on DVD or otherwise readily available. You know the remake isn't the same. And yet, consciously or subconsciously, you ignore it, because you're desperate for more content.

But I ask, is it really worth it? To sacrifice your own standards and cheer on the plummeting of your favorite series quality, just for something, anything new?

I don't think so. I only watched this train wreck so I could properly talk about it instead of relying on reviews and random clips. And now that that's done. I'll never watch it again. I won't even remember it as anything more than a bad example.

But the original will stay a movie I come back to regularly, and can appreciate every single time I do. Every story beat, every character arc, every moment, every high in the score, hits just as hard as it did when I was only a 10 year old boy. Because it's timeless.

But the remake? Is nothing but an instantly dated, desperate attempt at relevancy, enjoyed by those desperate for anything new, those who haven't learned to enjoy and make the most of what they already have.

I'd much rather look at or make fanart, read a fanfic, theorize and analyze with other fans, rewatch and notice new details I'd missed in the movies and shows, than ever give this insult of a remake the time of day again, and I think you should too.

Hooo boy that got REAL for a sec there, but I needed to get it off my chest, HTTYD means so much to me, and to see its own fans happily praise its butchering has been nothing short of saddening and infuriating.

Don't watch this thing in a theater, please. I'd say unless your curiosity is really strong, don't watch it at all. Time is priceless and shouldn't be wasted on trash.

[brujaluas]

Compatibilities in the destiny matrix that >I< find the most difficult to deal with!

Remember, if you don't know what I'm talking about and want to know more or want to know how to do your destiny matrix and/or compatibility with another person, I'll leave useful links here for you, remembering that I now also have paid services to analyze your destiny matrix or compatibility. <3

link with information about destiny of matrix and how to make it.

link about my new paid services about matrix of destiny

It's good to remember that when I talk about relationships/relationships, I'm not limiting myself to romantic couples, but to all types of relationships (because if you know someone, you already have a relationship with them, and I could be referring to a friendship, family, acquaintances, coworkers and finally, romantic love.

I think I've said too much in this post, but usually my tarot analyses and readings are this long, so get used to it, my sweeties. Let's go!

ps: I would like to warn you that during some analyses there will be +18 content, more specifically in the compatibility 15 and 16.

Compatibility number 16 in the center

I'll start with the one I consider the worst of all, the number 16 in the tarot is the TOWER card, yes, nothing more and nothing less than the TOWER. When you have compatibility 16, it usually involves relationships that already had a past, yes, I'm talking about a relationship that is most likely karmic, relationships like this start like an explosion! It's a huge adrenaline rush, you meet each other and already have a thousand feelings and emotions for each other, whether positive or negative, it's that person who you know has left a mark on you, even if you don't really know it, something of yours gravitates towards that person, it can be a relationship that starts very quickly! For example, they become super friends in a first conversation, or for romantic affairs in 2 months they are already dating and then everything cools down, it is as if at the same time you wanted each other, both have the tendency to sabotage the relationship, always moving away from each other consciously or not! The relationship is also marked by a huge obsession and jealousy here and I am serious! It's not a silly jealousy here, like not liking that the person has spoken to someone else. Jealousy and possessiveness are serious in this relationship, and can almost always end in fights, serious fights, in some cases with a lot of yelling and cursing and even physical violence. Yes, violence also has a big impact on relationships with 16. It's not an easy relationship at all, because of the way it is. I believe that the life spent with the person may have been quite tormented. If it's a loving relationship, there's a lot of make-up sex here. You fight, you don't talk properly because you both prefer to end the night with sex instead of discussing the problems that will come to the couple the next day. It reminds me a lot of a dialogue like "I hate you" "It's mutual, I hope I never see you again!" and after a few hours you're treating each other full of love. It could be a relationship where you fight and move away but always get back together. It's that yo-yo relationship. If you watched Euphoria, there's a part where they talk about how Nate and Maddy always fought and got back together. People would see you like, "Did you break up with that person?" "Yes." "Definitely, right?" "Definitely, no chance of getting back together." And a week later, you're with that person. Can it be a healthy relationship? Yes! There's a LOT of love in these relationships, a desire to protect and have the person all to yourself. But it's complicated because it's a relationship between two EXTREMELY intense people who DON'T know how to deal with their own intensity, much less with the intensity of the relationship.

Besides, there could be many games here, like one of you ending up "trading" the other, just to make it clear that there are other options, even if you're sick with love for the person you choose to torment, go figure.

Compatibility 13 in the center

I don't see relationships with this compatibility being supposed to be long-term, it's a transitional relationship, you met to change your personal lives definitively, there are points in you and in the other person that your relationship can help to show, such as a reconstruction of ideals, values ​​and mentality, it's that position when you go through a situation with someone and think "wow, this has changed me" and it can be both positive and negative, you are always being a walking metamorphosis, helping each other in a certain way to break old patterns (this can also be linked to being in a relationship with a person completely different from you, becoming a challenge in a certain way), but continuing, you are always on the point of challenging each other, and all these constant changes can be excellent but at the same time very tiring and exhausting for you, for them or for both. It can be relationships with a very striking beginning and/or end, it reminds me of a Netflix movie (if I'm not mistaken) that was even nominated for an Oscar, with Scarlett Johansson, which talked about the entire divorce process of a couple. I know it may sound very depressing, but the end of this relationship was sad and intense, just as the end of relationships can be for those who have this compatibility. Sometimes it can be karmic too, but that's not a rule. It can also be a relationship that you're carrying on out of fear, whether it's a fear of becoming independent again, of living without the person, of going back to being the way you were before, anyway, I don't see the target as necessarily extremely toxic, but it's definitely not something easy to live with.

Compatibility 15 in the center.

It's complicated, get the children and minors out of the room first, because there's no way to talk about the number 15 without talking about sex/sexual tension. In the tarot, the number 15 is associated with the Devil, a dense card. Just like the relationship of those who have this compatibility in the center of the matrix, if you're thinking about a couple, couples with this compatibility are quite obsessive with each other, and have a very strong sexual attraction, they can be driven most of the time by issues of sexual appeal, it's like Tinashe's song - Nasty Girl when she sings "Is somebody gonna match my freak?" And she'll answer "me!", it can cause mental confusion in one or both of you because that question will come up "is it love or are we just good in bed?" One song that I think fits perfectly for couples with this compatibility is Dua Lipa's "Good in Bed" (my favorite song of hers too, it's worth checking out if you're in a romantic relationship with someone with this compatibility, then tell me what you think). If we're talking about a relationship that isn't romantic, it's a very controversial relationship, involved in a soap opera plot, it can be very obsessive, possessive and quite jealous (it also applies to couples), and any relationship driven by obsession, jealousy and possessiveness is very complicated, right? Here there's also a question of rushing, if it's a couple they definitely don't wait for foreplay, friends here in a month or two are already planning a trip together, for example. There can be betrayals here, broken trust, apathy towards problems, it's always "we'll talk later" and you never talk about the problems in the relationship, you can get involved in addictions together or bad habits too. It also reminds me of gossip, there can be gossip between you or about you that can really affect the mental health of both of you. A relationship that can be fun and not get boring? Yes. Good in the long run? Maybe not.

Compatibility number 18 in the center.

First of all, just like compatibility 16 in the center, 18 also talks about karma, but here it's something more positive. This compatibility talks about soulmates, yes, that's right, I don't really like to talk about my readings/services, something like "this person is your soulmate/twin flame" because people end up not setting limits on this, thinking that just because there's a connection there that they should accept anything coming from this relationship and behavior, which is not exactly the case, but leaving this warning of mine, let's continue, you must think "wow, but they're soulmates, why would that be a bad thing?" Well, speaking positively, with this compatibility there's a great mental companionship here, you understand each other very well emotionally, it's that kind of relationship that looks at each other and already understands each other, they live in their own little world and others can even be part of it, but there's a different language between people who share this number. They look at each other and one starts to cry, the other one too, because kind of feel what the other person is feeling haha, it's confusing. Anyway, there's a very strong mental connection, like knowing what the other is thinking, they can have a 5D connection, in dreams, but why can it be difficult? Because it's usually associated with soulmates and karma! Karma that's not so positive, you know? Who knows what you went through in another life (you can get an idea through the karmic cause, but that's only with personal analysis), but continuing, it's a good connection, but it's also very intense and difficult to manage, it can cause codependency, it would be a really freaky relationship (of any kind), it reminds me of Lana del Rey's song - Religion, and I also think it can be a relationship where both are very attached to each other, like any possibly negative reaction can end the other, feeling bad, doing crazy things because of it, it's really complicated to describe.

I'll give you an example. Do you know Kurt Cobain and Courtney Love? They were the craziest couple, and did you know that they share the number 18 in the Matrix of Compatibility Destiny? Yeah, that's right, their relationship was always visibly EXTREMELY intense. I won't give a complete biography of their relationship here, but Kurt thought Courtney had cheated on him, and he practically overdosed because of it. That's just an ASSUMPTION. In addition to a turbulent relationship of comings and goings, in the song Heart-Shaped Box (which I really like, you can check out the lyrics if you want), you can feel how intense and complicated this relationship was. But on the other hand, there's also a couple that I know that has this combination and even similar compatibility, and they were together for almost 50 years. What separated them was death. They were an extremely passionate couple, and you could look at them and feel the love living there, and they were considerably calm (even though one of them was VERY intense too). See? It's complex, I believe that everything depends on how your past life with this person was to see how it will be in this one.

I feel that in this compatibility 18, one of you has a superhero syndrome, of wanting to save everyone, especially those who are your soulmates, right?

Compatibility 22 in the center

I would like to say that at least in the center of the matrix, I believe that repeated numbers are not very positive because they give the idea that they end up mirroring each other too much. The same happens with compatibility 11. These are relationships that can be fun, have good times, but there may be a question of high expectations for the relationship and one and the other may have many expectations about the other and about the relationship they share, like "she's the person of my life" "the best friend I could have, incomparable", which is cute and cool, but is this really happening or is it an expectation that is too high that you are placing on the person's lap??? There may also be a fear of commitment or responsibility in these relationships. I think that for a friendship, colleague, work relationship, family relationship it may even be a good combination, but for romantic relationships, I don't know, well, it's the card of the fool, right? Number 22 is ruled by the fool, so you can expect everything from this relationship. It's worth checking it out if you want to embark on this.

[us3rnam3-r3dact3d]

My friends we are finally here! In just a little while I’m posting the last chapter of the Firefighter AU!!

I have a lot of people to thank, so I figured I would put it all into a post before the chapter so that you guys can get right to the meat of it.

I don’t know what to say besides thank you. To the twelve thousand people who have read it, to the hundreds of comments and kudos, to the kind tags and asks here on Tumblr, thank you thank you thank you. The love being poured into me for my writing has sustained me over these ten months of writing.

This piece isn’t perfect. It very much resembles a first draft, and I might come back in the future and tweak some things, but all in all, I am so satisfied with this piece. I truly think this is my best writing.

I’ll be moving on to more Redacted fic, finishing other pieces that have been put to the wayside in favor of this one, and working on some original stuff now that I’m done. Expect at least some more one shots in this universe if not full pieces!

Lastly, I want to give some shoutouts to those who have helped me along the way with this piece. I truly wouldn’t have been able to write this without the community that rose up around me.

Thank you to my fiancé, whose love of schlocky romance novels is what inspired a piece about burly firefighters. He knows about my obsession with Redacted and, when he sees me listening he often goes “oh, you’re listening to your other boyfriends?” While he’s not into this world, he’s listened to me ramble about this piece and my plans for so long that he might as well be. Thank you, honey. Without you, I wouldn’t know how to write about love.

Thank you to Crab Anon, my mysterious analyzer who deepened and complexified how even I thought about these characters. You made me consider things in so much more detail than I intended to when I started what was meant to be a 10 chapter, 20k word fanfiction. Thank you for your constant presence and support. If you ever feel like revealing yourself (although I have a pretty good idea of who you are ;D) please send me a message. I’d love to thank you personally!

Thank you to @moonvalley94 and @nillabeanwrites for reaching out and starting some wonderful friendships over my silly fanfiction. You two have shown me the depth of community and how much talking with those passionate about art can make it that much more meaningful. Please know so many details about this piece are they way they are because of you two.

Thank you to @angelcakeeee who made so much of the details in this fic real and tangible. Your experience as a first responder helped to deepen this world and make it tangible. Beyond that, you’ve folded me into your friends, given me creative room to breathe, and made me feel so much more confident about the realism of my writing. Thank you, my friend!

And finally, the biggest thank you of all to @romirola. My friend, I don’t know what to say. You knew about this fic before anybody else and you nurtured the idea for a short and sweet piece into what is essentially a full length novel. In the almost year that you and I have talked every single day, I have grown as a writer and a person. When I believed that I wasn’t capable of something like this, you pushed back. You believed I could do it more than I did until I met you there in that belief. Thank you. I am the writer I am because of you. Steel sharpens steel, my friend, and we are very sharp indeed!

Thank you again to everyone who has read, liked, kudos’d, commented, and asked. Please know that I’ve read all of your messages, and if I haven’t responded yet, I will in the coming days. I hope you’ve had as much fun with this story as I have, and that this last chapter ties everything up for you. I love you all!

[youruinedmylifebynotbeingreal]

Thinking about my post about how Corvus gets progressively touchier with Soren throughout Arc 2. But I’m mostly thinking about how most of that development happens post s5/mushroom forest.

In season 4 Soren initiates almost all touching. I think Corvus elbows him in the side once, but that doesn’t really count because it’s more Corvus being like “dude shut up.”

In season 5 episode 1, Corvus spends a gratuitous amount of time helping Soren up from almost falling. With both hands. All over Soren’s arm.

Then Corvus doesn’t initiate a touch again until the mushroom forest. Partially because they’re separated. But I want to argue that it’s also because he’s still in denial about his feelings and therefore not ready to initiate such things unless appropriate for the situation (like helping Soren up).

I genuinely think almost dying in the Great Bookery and spending time apart gave Corvus so much clarity. I want to know so badly what happened during those two years we don’t see. Like, is this the first time they’ve been separated indefinitely? Since things were pretty calm, did Soren or Corvus ever leave Ezran’s side? Each other’s side? Is Corvus without Soren for the first time in years and realizing how accustomed he’d grown to Soren’s little idiosyncrasies? Realizing how much he misses them, misses Soren?

Slightly off topic but I love this idea partially because it can feed into Jelly and I’s headcanons that these two won’t shut up about things reminding them of each other while split up. I want them to annoy everyone around them so badly. Just imagine each of them turning to the side to make a comment to the other and just going “what, where is he?”

Anyway. I digress.

And I know we’ve talked about it SO MUCH. We all know the Jesse quotes. We all live by the Jesse quotes. But Corvus really does accept his feelings for Soren by/in 6x02. Soren initiates touches for the first half of the episode. Corvus even tries to move Soren off of him to focus on his job. But after Soren stops and helps Corvus by carrying him/catching him/and touching his butt what who said that, Corvus sees Soren’s open shoulder and just goes “it’s free real estate.”

I think there’s something to be analyzed in how Corvus gives Soren so. many. soft. stares. throughout the mushroom forest, but doesn’t touch him until Soren helps Corvus. Soren, the man known for helping everyone around him. For him to stop and help Corvus, to take care of him, breaks something wide open in Corvus.

I think it could go back to Corvus always letting himself feel something towards Soren when Soren shows weakness. And when he sees Soren’s reaction to Corvus’s own weakness? He isn’t just stumbling over his feet, he’s tumbling head over heels for Soren.

He touches Soren’s shoulder at least twice in scenes following Soren carrying him - something he hasn’t done before. Then he hugs Soren back.

And when Soren hugs him, you can see Corvus’s shock and practically watch all of these walls he’s been building around his feelings tumbling down as he hugs Soren back.

This isn’t even bringing season 7 into it, where Corvus is touchier than ever. In a majority of their scenes they are either touching or next to each other. And Corvus initiates more touches than ever.

All this to say: I believe that Corvus initially fell for Soren when Soren was at his most vulnerable. And Corvus accepts his feelings for Soren when Corvus is at his most vulnerable.

[musashi]

I very much appreciate your valiant Carol Holiday Defense

Because while I do dislike Carol, due to how Noelle is. Not Doing Great and how Carol is at least in part responsible for that, I also- even more than I dislike Carol- dislike how a lot of people are going about disliking her, so you are actively sparing me from the phenomenon of having to Defend The Thing You Don't Like

Like, I want to discuss how the way that Carol has responded to Dess' disappearance/possible assumed death (because it's not really clear if anyone other than Noelle believes that she's alive which is Cool but also Angst) has affected Noelle and Kris and their ability to heal from that loss, but that's hard when people's perspective on Carol is just "Abusive mother" and not "Grieving mother whose methods of coping with her older daughter's absence and husband's terminal illness is having negative effects on her daughter (And also the close family friend of Kris who may have been in some way involved in the Dess Thing)"

Thank you for helping correct the misunderstandings around her character, because there's so much that could be analyzed that just. Isn't, and can't be, because people refuse to actually engage with her character

fandom's lack of nuance has been hell on earth to exist in proximity to for the past like, half a decade when all the covid normies joined in. what kills me is how often you see this in fandom where the characters and themes of the story encourage deep thinking about that nuance. without fail, every time, it goes right over everyone's heads.

carol holiday's biggest crime is that she is so lost within herself that she cannot see how pushing her daughter is not helping her. she clearly cares about noelle and wants her to succeed and come into herself, but her methods of trying to draw that strength out of noelle are only making her recede into herself more. none of that is because carol is an abusive mother who is cruel to her daughter, all of that is because carol is 1. a grieving victim who probably does not have a good handle on herself, and 2. simply a person who is imperfect, just like anyone else.

will this affect noelle in the long-term? yes! does noelle likely have complicated feelings about her mother? abso-fucking-lutely! but we literally do not know enough about carol to be making such a severe call on who she is as a person like. its driving me crazy. all we know about her is incredibly sympathetic, as well!

paranoid: her daughter is dead/missing

controlling: her daughter is dead/missing

cold and cruel to susie: you mean the strange girl in her house, with the reputation for being a dangerous bully, who is PLAYING HER DEAD DAUGHTER'S GUITAR?

has a favourable opinion on the dreemurrs: uh, yeah, duh.

tends to throw herself into her work at the expense of her relationships: SHE IS GRIEVING. THIS IS A FORM OF COPING. THIS IS LITERALLY WHAT I DO. IT DOESN'T MEAN I DON'T CARE ABOUT MY LOVED ONES AND IT DOESN'T MEAN THAT FOR CAROL EITHER.

she is hurting her daughter. but she can do that without being abusive. people hurt people they love and want to protect/nurture all the time. that's a part of existing. literally an unavoidable part of the human experience. a grieving mother with no social support who is desperately trying to keep her shit together and run a town, who comes home every night to two empty fucking rooms belonging to her dead daughter and sick husband, IS PROBABLY GOING TO FUCK UP A BIT AND MAKE SOME SERIOUS MISTAKES. if she was Normal about any of this she wouldn't be realistic or interesting.

carol holiday resembles my shitty abusive mom in every way shape and form. she looks like her, talks like her, acts like her, saves face like her. but judging the content of her character based on something as fucking stupid as "she acts like my mom i hate" is the most mind-numbingly stupid fucking take on a character i think i could ever have, and i'm 30 years old and pay taxes and my shitty dead mom really doesn't factor into how i engage with Story.

the people saying the end of the weird route "proves" she's the knight is the dumbest shit in the world too. because she called kris. and has a completely unique speech bubble from the mysterious voice that's been calling kris previously. somehow this proves something. don't fucking ask me what.

i am so tired.

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

Hello Raven! I hope u have been doing well! Unfortunately I uh don’t really have any question or writing rq or anything interesting to tell u… but I just wanted to say that I’ve been following u since around the time u first started this blog and it’s amazing to see how much u have grown! I really really enjoy reading ur fics and u are a big inspiration for me as someone who also writes fanfic as a side hobby (and who is also way too scared to ever post their fanfics online TvT) like I love how u articulate things and write the Twst characters. I can tell that u have a very deep understanding of every single character and their personalities and motivations :D and on that note i also really love ur posts where u analyze the Twst boys or the ones where u just simp over some of them (like the L*ona boobies saga was pretty damn hilarious XD). Idk anyone who likes Twst so I like reading ur posts bc it feels like I’m listening to a friend ramble about how amazing (and sometimes not-so-amazing) this game and its characters is. Anyways I think ur really amazing and I hope that u keep doing what ur doing <3

Sorry for the long and kinda awkward message TvT I have severe social anxiety and I’ve always been a lurker online. I’ve never had the courage to talk to anyone online like at all and I’ve always kinda silently followed u 😅 but idk I felt kinda brave today and wanted to send u a message :) and I’m so sorry if this makes u uncomfortable u don’t even have to respond 😭

Hello~! I’m melting from the temperature climbing recently 🫠 but other than that, I’m good! Thanks for sticking with me and for enjoying my content for so long! I believe I started this blog in June of 2020, so you’ve been with me for over 5 years now. That’s a lot of dedication www

My content has shifted its focus over the years but I’m pleased to hear that you enjoy whatever I put out. I know it can sometimes feel like whiplash between my creative stuff, my discussion posts, my analysis, and my… brain rot the less we talk about L*ona the better 💦 but if listening to my rambles brings you joy then I’ve done my job!

It’s great to hear that you’re also creating your own things. Even if you don’t end up posting them publicly, what matters the most is that you had fun making it and can enjoy it again and again on a rainy day. Keep doing things (whether that’s creating or consuming content) at your own pace!

No need to apologize; I understand the anxiety that comes with socializing. It’s probably why most of the asks I get are anonymous! People just like their privacy and that Tumblr provides it for them. The asks I send to others (if at all, I send very few out) are generally anonymous too. I just prefer lurking and keeping to myself, as I don’t want to foster or encourage super deep parasocial relationships (which honestly scare me 💦). It takes courage to shoot a stranger a message, so definitely give yourself a pat on the back for this.

Once again, thank you for the kind feedback!! Hopefully I see you around more 😌

[snowberriesromanoff]

ghosthunt thoughts for @dchuntress

• Helena genuinely doesn't care about Khoa's Face Thing. If his mask slips, she doesn't comment on it. He's honestly a little miffed at first that she *doesn't* appreciate the dramatic mystique of it all but eventually he decides it's kinda nice not having to worry about it.

• There are no feelings involved. Or well, there *are*, but they're not romantic love feelings and never will be. There's mutual respect, there's camaraderie, but this isn't a love story and they're both okay with that.

• Post-mission stress relief sex. So much of post-mission stress relief sex. It's fun, it frequently involves showers, it's no strings attached and then one string attached but the string is friendship.

• Helena tutoring Khoa's kids, especially when they're traveling the world doing crime fighting and can't regularly make it to school. Helena getting a best teacher mug from Bao and putting it in a place of honor. Bao crashing at Helena's place even when Khoa and Helena aren't seeing each other regularly. Bao and Tim developing a cousins-type relationship because sometimes Bao is there when Tim comes over to see his sister.

• Bruce does not know they're a thing until Barbara tells him. He may or may not be having a crisis about it. He grits out "I'm happy for you" to Helena one day out of the blue and she doesn't know what he's talking about.

• Ghosthunt have weekly bitching sessions about what Bruce has done lately. Bruce gets a new bat suit with more muscle definition and Khoa takes up an entire session analyzing it (Helena barely noticed the new suit).

• Khoa starts showing up on Birds of Prey missions to assist. The vibes are very "cat leaving presents." Dinah thinks it's hilarious. This somehow leads to a DinahShiva and Ghosthunt "double date" mission that gives Barbara multiple aneurysms.

• HelReneeKhoa anyone? It doesn't even have to be a poly ship I just want the three of them on a team up. I think it would be fun.

• Helena goes along on Batman Inc missions sometimes. Bruce does not approve. Khoa swears he's only inviting her to piss Bruce off (false). Also, Bilal Alsselah is there because he's the best.

• They're very competitive with each other. It's good for both of them. This whole relationship is surprisingly good for both of them.

[hotasfahrenheit]

something i've been thinking about a lot since watching the end of Love For Love's Sake is what and who exactly is real in the universe that Myungha is playing the game in.

what do we know about this world? firstly, it is presented to us and Myungha as being the world of the story that Myungha read, but focused on Yeowoon instead of the main characters from the manuscript who are a happy couple that ends up together. they don't enter the picture at all; we don't know what point in that theoretical timeline Myungha is inserted into, but this implies it's before Yeowoon meets them since they're just not there.

the next step from there tho is... is the manuscript that Myungha read even real? he remembers the mysterious sunbae being the one who gave it to him to read, but if the sunbae is some kind of god or angel of death, did Myungha actually read it after he died, as part of a test to figure out what to do with his soul?

really my ultimate question that this whole line of thought is digging at is if Yeowoon is also someone being given a chance at life and happiness again, and is as real as Myungha is (and if the other boys are thus real too). despite Myungha seeing the game interface that no one else sees and having the system errors affect his existence in the world, the interactions between other characters when Myungha is not there are too deep and too real to be just NPCs. they're experiencing life and making decisions like fully really people, and living it outside of Myungha's scope of knowledge and what he can see. we get multiple scenes of the characters interacting and doing things without Myungha, and not all of them connect directly back to him or things he's doing.

knowing that Myungha's grandmother already passed away fills in her existence easily- she could very well actually be Myungha's grandmother's soul actually brought into this world as well. clearly some people are not there because they're also dead- like his ex girlfriend appearing as the agent, or his mother appearing in the cafe- but they have much simpler functions in this world. but there's little things- Sangwon struggling with his relationship with his mother and talking about how his father used to hit him too, Kyunghoon having a boyfriend that is always far away and he can't see until some point in the future- that hint to me that they might be other lost souls that had bad or sad things happening in their lives too, that might have brought them early deaths as well.

was the story that Myungha read about Yeowoon a story about another real, sad, lonely person who made the same choice Myungha did? was the game not just a set up for Myungha to save himself and learn how to love himself and others but a way to save multiple souls?

one of the main pieces of support behind that idea for me is the fact that Yeowoon breaks through the haze after Myungha disappears and not only remembers Myungha but is able to take control of the game to bring him back. i agree with this great post from @wen-kexing-apologist that Myungha (and his depression) is the one controlling the game he's experiencing in general and causing the system errors, because that makes sense for the things Myungha sees. but the others don't see them, though they do see the physical effects on Myungha when things happen like him falling down the stairs when he's with Sangwon. they see Myungha reacting to screens only he can see, and they do notice that's he's interacting with them and clearly think it's odd even tho they don't really comment on it.

and in the most crucial moment, Yeowoon finds the pen and the notebook. Yeowoon pushes to remember Myungha, pushes to find him, pushes to figure out a way to get him back, and i cannot believe that he's just some kind of NPC in an actual game or a made up person in a constructed reality that Myungha gets to exist in as the only real human soul. he has drive, he makes autonomous decisions, he is cognizant and aware. he needs to learn about how to love and be loved like Myungha does; he needs to learn how to connect to others and not be alone and adrift. he has a reason to be placed in this world like Myungha does even if he's not the one in charge of it until the moment it matters most.

could this be an alternate reality where Myungha just hasn't died yet and that's how everyone is real and there? theoretically maybe, but the fact that he is experiencing everything as a 19 year old in the current time and not in 2012 means despite going from 29 to 19 means that this isn't just another parallel earth where he's taking over the existence of another Myungha. (plus where would that Myungha go??) also his grandmother being there and being fully a real person means that he hasn't just been placed back into the real world, since we know she's already passed away there as well. i don't have a solid theory yet for how their world exists, i just have ideas about how they're existing within it.

i feel like i'm hitting the point when i'm just gonna be talking in circles about this from here out, since i've been thinking about it in circles, so I'm gonna wrap this up and go think about it for the rest of forever.

tldr is that i think at least Yeowoon and the other boys are all real. they're all being given another chance, with Myungha as their ringleader. they need to learn from him as much as he needs to learn from taking care of them; they all learn that they're worthy of love and friendship in ways they hadn't known before.

they all get their second chance.

[sallymew4]

just look how much BRIGHTER Mob’s demeanor is once he has Ritsu safe with him. that is the biggest grin ive ever seen on that boy’s face he loves his little brother so damn much it’s incomprehensible

[heavensgateheavensgate]

oh my god how dare you call this "not very analytical" when you sounded like you were reading directly from alex's thoughts while writing this like wdym you can go on and on about the psychology of it. like hello. ALSO I'M SUCH AN ADAM FAN FOR MANY OF THE REASONS YOU POINTED OUT and umm especially his alternate side, ofc i don't reduce him to just that cause i love his entire character from the concept itself to the most complex themes of it, i'm so attached to it because. omg this might sound like a really ridiculous bad take like reaaaaally bad take but just the way it's worded in the series, the revelation (ESPECIALLY how six talks to him in vol. 4 "your skin is not your own") and his fight for humanity represented as his body tearing itself apart, the whole concept of him being an alternate itself that almost yearns to be a human AND YES HIS LACK OF SELF-AGENCY (i still can't believe i found someone who also picked up on that), it just all really. really REALLY comes off to me as a metaphor for something else, even if just very lightly, but i just might be delusional 😭😭😭😭 I ENVY YOU SOOO BADDD because i'm so so so bad at picking up small details especially in dialogues like you said since i'm just usually oblivious to social cues, i tend to not look much into phrases as much as i tend to accept it as total truth, ugh i love your analysis of it so bad. you understand him so well and it just goes to show how well written this series really is even though it's still indie and all on youtube FOR FREE to watch. adam is so complex as a character and i also hate how he and other characters are reduced to two personality traits in the fandom. for one, if he were just always this cold cruel guy, why would evelin even start dating him in the first place? alex said once all of the relationships (at least so far) are either broken or toxic, and no relationship starts as toxic, it becomes. this is why one party sticks to another. i've always found evelin so gutwrenching, i think i even wrote about her a little bit in one of my posts, she's also a character that represents hope to me, this might sound very cheesy but fuck it man i love cheesy stuff, she represents love itself to me in this series, either the destruction of love or the hope of it, and i think it shines when she's paired with adam. she's quite literally the only character who goes out of their way to try and love adam - who's an alternate, in theory, unlovable. ALSO OH MY GOD SARAH AND THATCHER PARALLEL I'M SO HAPPY SOMEONE PICKED UP ON THAT TOO!!!!!! I'VE REALIZED IT FROM DAY ONE BRO, IT'S SOOO CLEVER i adore adore ADORE your essays on these characters, you analyze them like no one, i've never read anyone get into their psychology this much like you did and that's just really really special to me. AS YOU CAN SEE I'M NOT AS GOOD WITH IT AS YOU ARE BUT I READ YOUR WHOOOOLE COMMENT AND I NEED TO SAY PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE WRITE MORE OF THIS this is good stuff. as an adam murray fan im eating so good rn YOURE SO GOATED IM SORRY IF I RESPONDED TO IT VERY SUPERFICIALLY im really really not good with words BUT I LOVED THIS SO MUCH AND I LOVE YOUR INTERPRETATIONS YOURE SOOO THOUGHTFUL ABOUT THIS SERIES AND IM ALL HERE FOR IT

Lt. Thatcher Davis doodles!!!

dedicated to the person in here who said he's extremely underrated and i agree!!

imagine being forgotten by the fandom while being the protagonist. that's insane. also he's so badass please let's not ignore the fact he survived two whole encounters somehow?? late night doodles - sorry for the coloring!!! my laptop is really old so i try to correct it using my phone but it doesnt work as much. TMC has been consuming my life since 2022. please help me.

[mamawasatesttube]

Between Tim and Kon who makes the first move?

honestly for me it varies! i slightly tend towards it being tim, but not always. but in a very specific way, i.e. it's a very gradual melt right on into a relationship, and tim is the one who goes hey. wait a minute. this feels like A Relationship.

at first, saying it'd be tim is probably surprising, since tim has a history of NOT making the first move across his comics - we don't actually see how he and ari get together, but steph chases after him and repeatedly states her interest in him before they ever get together; tim is the one who asks zoanne out, but only after she kisses him and then runs away. then tam once again is the one to ask him if he's interested in her (and, i mean, if you count lynx ii, she's always the one initiating things getting physical and making out with him, but they also literally never talk about it, so i don't entirely really count her as a serious tim love interest).

on the other hand, while kon of course has been a flirt since he was decanted from his tube, a lot of it was very performative and he's only actually ever been in three relationships, two of which were instances of abuse and grooming. given how introspective he gets after his resurrection, and how much less sure of himself he is in general, i tend to believe this is where he starts actually unpacking all his relationship trauma and internalized homophobia. i think actually accepting that he is gay and not actually interested in women is a very jarring thing for him, and accepting that he was groomed and abused is also very difficult, and it takes him a while.

because of that, i think he ends up a) confused about what romance actually feels like, and b) very tentative about dating for a while. he wants deep connection - he was genuinely in love with knockout, and he thought she loved him too; he thought tana would be part of his life forever, and his devotion to cassie was notable even before they actually dated. but deep connections are hard to make with people you don't know well, and by the time he's around 19-20 i think he's kind of struggling with the idea that he's not gonna get what he's looking for in casual relationships, but also the idea of being in Gay Love with one of his best friends is terrifying, because he's not good at identifying what being in love feels like, so he kinda talks himself out of it. "this is comfortable and easy so it must not be romance, this is just really good friendship, because romance feels like walking a tightrope. right? haha. right??" and all that.

and then moreover, i think tim really sits on the fact that he's bisexual for a long time. not because he's trying to hide it, but because he's just so intensely private about things that bother him, and he's got some jack drake shaped Internalized Issues in his head to work through about what it means to be transmasc and to like men (i.e. a voice that sounds suspiciously like a conservative dad putting in one single ounce of effort re: understanding queer relationships is in the back of his head going "but you'd be the girl in the relationship if you dated a man, right?" and tim has to take several deep breaths and figure out how to unpack that before he's ready to even think about admitting out loud that he's interested in guys too, even to himself, let alone to anyone else).

so for a hot second kon's just out there going "i like men but it doesn't matter because i'm never going to fall in love with someone that really truly wants me and loves me as deeply as i'd love them, and i'd be miserable about that except that i'm just pretty satisfied being bffs with tim :) i feel at ease when he's around and he makes me laugh and i just like being near him and watching him work on gadgets or listening to him ramble about cars or letting him sleep on my shoulder. i know it's not romantic because i feel so safe and comfortable, but i'm happy with it, whatever it is. and if i think he's hot, well, that's just because he is hot. everyone knows that!" guy who pretty much is already tim's boyfriend but he hasn't noticed that yet because they're both kind of stupid and also insanely devoted to each other in the same way, so they both go "yeah this seems normal for us" and kon really doesn't question it that hard.

meanwhile tim is the guy to whom labels and boxes matter a lot more, so he's the one who sits back one day and goes, wait. oh my god. i'm in love with kon. and then he has to steeple his index fingers and interlace the others and press his hands to his face in deep, deep thought. he's in love with kon, and realizing that makes a lot about his life suddenly make a lot of sense, because seriously - a hundred clone attempts, changing robin to be red and black, making out with cassie because he missed kon so much - okay, okay, yeah, he sees it now, okay, so maybe he's been in love with kon for years at this point and never actually realized it, that's fine, this is fine, he's FINE, he's NOT freaking out or overthinking--

anyways. after freaking out and overthinking and brooding on a rooftop for four to seven business days (not all at once, of course, but he gets his hours in), he finally goes to kon and jabs his finger into his chest and goes "Hey. Are we dating?"

and kon stares at him for a second with a loading circle spinning over his head. claps his hand over his mouth. inhales sharply like a dying fish. claps his other hand over the first hand. starts floating a few inches off the ground in pure agitation.

"Oh my god, Tim," he says, his eyes as wide as dinner plates and his voice an octave higher than usual. "Are we dating?!"

"I think so," Tim says, and narrows his eyes. "I mean, if we're not, maybe we should be. Pizza and a movie tonight?"

and kon clearly goes through A Whole Process in his head (working through the "wait, dating is comfy and chill and happy and easy?!" crisis in real time), but ultimately goes "okay!!! yeah!! okay!!! let's do that!!! wow!!!!" because, hey. he would love to hold hands with tim while watching the sunset and eating hipster san francisco pizza.

and that's how they end up sitting on the floor by the coffee table in the titans tower common room, eating pizza, and poring over a calendar + their text message history to try and figure out when, exactly, their anniversary is. ("okay, so when we went on that picnic in april, was that a date?" "i think so. alright, so it has to be before april, but after valentine's, because you made a joke about being single here, see? so we're looking at somewhere in march. "okay, but we did do 'palentine's' together, so does that really count??" "fuck, you're right, that totally was a date too. uh...")

[shorthaltsjester]

there’s something that’s just :) to me about the fact that when vex is in danger and percy shouts after her in tlovm, he still uses vex’ahlia even though it’s almost always a situation in which choosing the shorter and thus faster and easier to yell version would make more sense (this happens on several occasions). the very base conception of vex in percy’s brain is vex’ahlia. besotted and utterly in love fool behaviour. he’s so real for that.

[deductions-and-magic]

So who’s gonna talk about the brilliantly acted *spoiler* Charlie Reid death scene?

Checking where he’s been shot bc shock

The blood on his white shirt and hands — a beautiful (image descriptor) metaphor?

Shaky point at Voight yes he knows

Blood in his mouth, gasping but its not gonna leak out bc he’s bleeding out on the ground

Wandering eyes settling on Voight, struggling to get up, grasping Voight’s jacket with a sudden burst of strength

“I’m cold” - breathy, lips and chin quivering

Feeble point at the guy who shot him, hand bloody that slight frown, blood dripping off his laboriously raised head

Almost dying gasp, whole body spasming (agonal breathing)

Nearly silent “You…”, head shaking

“you’re worse than me”

Laughing, whole body struggling to do so, teeth bloody, blood pooling behind him

God that bloody grin

Dying gasp, eyes so wide, frown

What does he see!!

Eyes shift and freeze

A pleasure to watch, truly

[phantasmagoricvanillabean]

Their April Phools this year was surprisingly pretty tame compared to the literal short found footage horror film we received last year. However, I loved that, similar to Dystopia Daily, WAD, and TIT, they used this as yet another opportunity to criticize content-creators and their incessant need to monetize and exploit every aspect of their livelihoods, especially and in spite of the ways in which they are detrimental to the environment and jeopardize those who are literally incapable of consent. I just love Dan and Phil's ability to always make humor out of their blatant critique of society and internet culture.

[twentyfivemiceinatrenchcoat]

one thing i really wish people wouldn’t forget when it comes to suguru’s character is that his core desire is just to have a family. not in a nuclear family way, but in a “i want a place where i belong / i want to protect the ones i love” way…… literally everything else is just an extension of that desire. a means to meet that end. he broke down after being forced to realize that staying with his family meant having to watch them die, so he left and made a new one. and he got stronger. and his core wish was always, always always to create a world where he’d finally be able to protect them :(((((((((