#this is my girlfail and i love him very much

[sorcerersandskillusers]

Bungou stray dogs takes forgettable characters and turns them into flushed out fan favourites, without it seeming forced or rushed

This series can take completely random characters and in just a few panels/lines get me fully invested in there stories and lives.

There are so many examples of this

Tachihara: No one really cared about this guy at first, a lot of people (myself included) even got him confused with Tanizaki, he was the definition of forgettable.

Then boom, they reveal that not only is he a traitor, but he is also struggling with his identity and finding a place to truly belong, this inner conflict making him feel way more human and making him a fan favourite.

Rimbaud: During 'Dazai Chuuya 15' I just thought Rimbaud was a typical " I have to kill you for power and I'm evil bad guy" and I never thought I'd end up liking him.

But then in 'Stormbringer' with less then 10 pages worth of story, He was transformed into an incredibly tragic figure who desperately wanted save his partner from the pit of despair and loneliness he was falling into; but couldn't, and in the end had to give up his humanity to prove that he really loved him. and suddenly I'm crying over him.

Aya: When she was introduced I just thought she was purely motivation for Kunikida, she was kind of annoying and seemed like a very one off character.

But then they bring her back as one of the most important characters in the current conflict, and are showing us her backstory. which is a horrifyingly realistic case of child abuse, and a parent who loves the memory of his wife and daughter more then the real daughter still Infront of him. And now I just want to hug her and tell her that she is perfect the way she is.

There are loads more so here some rapid fire.

Higuchi: Wan gives her the chance to fully embrace the #girlfail lifestyle she has in the show, which made me like her a lot more

Gin: Seeing her have a life outside of the mafia, and that not taking away from how terrifying and competent she is as an assassin, expands her character and humanises the Port Mafia as a whole.

Bram: Not just making him "I am the lord of darkness, who just wants to consume the whole world and destroy everything because evil"

But instead making him feel like as much of a victim as the agency in The Decays plot and letting him want a radio so he can listen to music.

There are loads more but you get the picture.

So if you ever feel like a character was completely waisted, or that they never had a satisfying arc, just give it time and have faith in Asagiri.

He takes his time sometimes but keeps surpassing my expectations.

Characters Im excited for in the future:

Margret Mitchell.

Agatha Christy.

Alexander Pushkin.

Q

[your-mums-nuts]

Something I don’t see anybody talking about is how Susie didn’t start applying pressure until her dad outright threatened Edward’s life.

It’s subtle, but in the episode 5 scene where she visits daddy glass in jail, she’s the one to say that Edward wants out and that they should start thinking about solution’s until he point blank tells her ‘no one walks away’ and ‘I’ll chop his head off.’

I only realised this on my second rewatch. On my first two watches, I always thought it was strange how much she pushed for Edward to stay in the business and get more involved. Like, I get it girly but it’s getting desperate.

But then I realised she is desperate, because she’s trying to save his life.

AND she was actually quite nice about it when you think of her circumstances. Yes, she was sneaky but she still managed to give him choice and agency, and giving him a lot more of her trust than he was probably entitied to.

The first two episodes of the gentlemen establishes her (mostly through the jethro reveal) as this give no fuck stone cold killer girl boss, and she is that. But she’s also protective and caring and impulsive and trying her very best to be taken seriously in her male-dominated world.

Anyways I love my girlboss who also sometimes girlfails but it’s okay because she girlpicks herself up everytime

[luminousdryad]

to make things brief cause I suck at organizing what I have to say, the live action was definitely Something™.

Cast: 10/10 kinda biased personally but yall can't take this from me

Gordon as Aang and Dallas as Zuko were the standouts imo. Gordon needs some direction on line delivery and the angstier scenes but overall he's very charming and I'm so proud of him for getting so much exposure!

Ian as Sokka was great, I just wish he was allowed to be more...messy? like Sokka pretends to be chill and all that but he's actually dramatic so I hope that gets improved in the next season if there is one

speaking of improvement, Kiawentiio as Katara brought out a softer side to the character but sadly diminished her spark and passion. I like that Katara now actually feels like a younger sister, it makes sense within the context of the story that Sokka and Gran Gran would shelter her after what happened, but as someone said, her anger is so central to her character and I just wish that got shown more. It's more of a script and direction problem tbh, if you look at Kia's interviews she has the sass and feistiness Katara needs

Lizzy as Azula is great, the writing is a bit clunky though so she did the best she could with it. Can't really comment on Mai and Ty Lee yet because they're kinda just there but it's a nice setup

Maria as Suki? perfection show stopping never the same she is a queen and I love the tidbit of Suki backstory which she never really had in the og show. I love her being such a loser around her crush we love to see girlfailures girlfailing. I wish the writers didn't make them KISS though 😭 slowburn ftw

the adults were great

Writing: 6.5/10

There were genuinely good moments and I love the concept of mixing up certain plot points to condense the story

But they just suffered from too much Telling instead of Showing WRITERS PLEASE LISTEN TO THE CRITICISM YOU HAVE TIME TO IMPROVE PLEASE

Omashu, mechanist, and Jet plot mixing as a concept was fine, but it dragged on and my friends and I got bored of it. I like it in theory but if it was going to take THAT long couldn't they have just separated one of those storylines for a different episode?

I appreciate that they tried to develop the water siblings' relationship by making them the stars of the Secret Tunnels, but I would've changed the way they "conquered" the problem (really? badgermoles respond to love? cute in theory but like why). If anyone's watched Barbie: A Fairy Secret there's a part where Barbie and her frenemy accuse each other of why their friendship failed, and it helps them make up and breaks the curse put on them. So that's what I would've done, force them in a life or death situation in which they have to say the unsaid things, maybe hug it out and boom

The way they handled Koh and the Spirit World was a Mess™ but the effects were decent

Zhao meeting horrible ends in every incarnation is so deserved

Yue having more agency was a welcome change AND I LOVE THAT SHE WATERBENDS. Then waterbends even when the moon is gone. It's such a nice visual nod to the fact that she has the moon spirit within her

That said, the show could definitely use more visual storytelling, less weird dialogue. Like it's so strangely common for shows or adaptations these days to exposition dump. Like they did not have to make Yue say that the ocean spirit was angry, literally just show me the dead moon fish and I'll get the idea. Then Iroh says "That's Wrath" that's just redundant now isn't it

I like that they saved Katara bringing Aang out of the Avatar State until last even if it could've been done better

HOW DARE THEY MAKE ME LIKE HAHN HE WAS A JERK IN THE SHOW BUT THEY MADE HIM A GENUINELY GOOD CHARACTER. Yes to brown men not being portrayed as jerks but also in the original it was a nice contrast to how far Sokka had come because Hahn reflected who he used to be. But live action Hahn </3

I like that they showed the deaths and blood. I wanted a live action that was both lighthearted but more realistic when it came to the injuries and death, and that'd kind of what I got

Other thoughts + overall

You can tell they put so much heart into this show, watching the bts, the bending boot camp with the correct martial arts, the easter eggs, the nods to the comics, the beautiful adaptations of Cabbage Merchant and Secret Tunnel nomads, there's so much passion behind the show it's a shame it suffered in its writing

which is why if they read reviews and criticism from the bigger name fans (TheAvatarist, HelloFutureMe, etc.) it would really help them improve for future seasons! The cast is stunning already and they have great chemistry (hopefully gets improved too!)

The live action is just a different angle to the show. And I'm saying this as an Avatar fan–the original wasn't perfect, either. I had some problems w it but the overall show was genuinely so good and heartfelt, those problems weren't glaring enough to put me off (unlike The Dragon Prince, sorry). The live action definitely wasn't perfect, but it tried to give us a new look into Avatar. Again, no adaptation will ever be a 1:1 remake and none should be. Where's the fun in that? But while the show is so full of heart and with actual fans working behind the scenes, I doubt if they listen to any criticism that they can't pull this off better next season.

[readingtheentrails]

10 characters/10 fandoms/10 tags

Tagged by @missmacfire, thank you!

Okay, let's go!

1. Larissa Weems - Wednesday (2022)

Look, I'm obviously gonna pick Larissa first because I have made some genuine friends through the Larissa/Gwendoline fandom and that means she is my #1 baby girl/Menace Principal.

2. Moiraine Damodred - The Wheel of Time (2021)

It was hard to decide between Moiraine and Siuan, honestly, but Moiraine won out just because we get so much more screen time with her. She was the reason I came back to tumblr in the first place and I have such a lovely and supportive discord community thanks to her/the show. Her dedication to the mission about all else just gets me so 🫠

3. Aloy - Horizon Zero Dawn (2017)/Horizon Forbidden West (2022)

Aloy best girl 😍😍😍 I think the Horizon series might be my favourite games of all time. They are so much fun to play, the story is so interesting and Aloy is a great protagonist. She is strong, independent and doesn't bother trying to fit in. She does her own thing and I really respect that.

4. Xena - Xena Warrior Princess (1995)

Xena was so special to me as a little baby gay. The thirst I experienced was unbelievable but because her relationship with Gabrielle was (barely) subtext, it was safe for me to watch in a conservative rural environment.

5. Utena Tenjou - Revolutionary Girl Utena (1997)

This prince saves herself! Utena is iconic and this anime is one of the first shows that ever got me thinking about gender roles and patriarchy. Utena doesn't always get it right but she does try her best to help her friends.

6. Astarion - Baldur's Gate 3 (2023)

Look, I just love him. I would let him devour me with no regrets. I'm still in Act 1 of the game and he has absolutely seduced me with his charm.

7. Nadja of Antipaxos - What We Do In The Shadows (2019)

I cannot get enough of Nadja. The perfect all-powerful absolute idiot. Her own worst enemy. My beloved girlfail queen 👑.

8. The Captain - Ghosts (2019)

I love the Captain so very much. He's from an era when he literally would have been imprisoned for being open about his sexuality so he's so repressed and uptight but we see these little glimpses that are just wonderful and he's played with such care.

9. Kassandra - Assassin's Creed Odyssey (2018)

I still can't believe there are people out there who choose to play as Alexios when Kassandra is right there! She's amazing, such a badass and I never want to play another AC game because no other protagonist will ever be as good as her (also Ubisoft is evil).

10. Tissaia de Vries - The Witcher (2019)

Look, I just obviously have a thing for teachers who are a bit mean. Sorry not sorry to be a stereotype!

No pressure tagging @dianneking @weemssapphic @h-doodles @beaujes and anyone else who sees this and wants to do it

[ddlcbrainrot]

how do you think the group dynamic operates between the girls (and mc i suppose) in non-game universe?

i love girlfail monika (it’s canon) but she’s still the president of the club so does she take on a leadership role even outside of the in-school club activities? would mc as a character still serve as a catalyst in how the girls interact or do you see that just a product of game design?

sorry if this doesn’t make sense sjdhfj

oh god this is going to take a while for me to answer 😃

the dynamics i usually imagine for the girls in a non game au is the side stories dynamic tbh. i mean, the side stories are still technically a game but since no one is aware it doesn't dramatically change any of the character's personality or relationship with the others.

girlfailure monika still definitely at least tries to be the leader of the group. i do think her whole "im so put together" facade worked best at the start of the club though. the more the girls got to know eachother, the more they started seeing monika as a dumb teenager just like them and not as the perfect student that she was knows for at school. even then, monika still is very much that "a single mom who works two jobs who loves her kids and never stops" person in the friend group

now here is where we get to completely headcanon territory. mc doesnt show up in the side stories, so there is no real way of knowing how his appearance would shake things up. i do think him becoming a member would definitely change the dynamics of the club, after all everytime one of the girls joined the dynamic changed as well. its just what happens when new people show up in general.

the girls at this point however have gotten super close, so introducing a new person would be very awkward at first, much to sayori’s disappointment. i love sayori, but she definitely expected the girls and mc to become close friends immediately. natsuki feels weird about having a new person in her safe space (especially a guy at that). yuri is anxious about meeting him, but she has already learned that people don’t inherently hate her, and he is sayori’s friend, so maybe it’s not so bad. monika falls back into her president persona out of habit. mc can probably feel that his appearance shaked things up. i’m not saying the girls don’t like him, they are obviously friendly to him (well, maybe natsuki isn’t that friendly actually), but it’s clear they think of him as “sayori’s friend” and not a club member.

i do think that he would eventually get closer to the girls, it’s really just a matter of time. maybe sayori notices him feeling left out and talks to monika about it. monika takes it to heart, she is the president how could she not notice? she was so happy about getting closer to the girls she forgot to make room for new people. but it isn’t time to feel bad about herself, she has to make it up to mc. after monika realises how mc feels she would definitely try to include him more. the more he is included, the more close they all get as a group.

the only two i could see needing more time to warm up to mc is natsuki and yuri. natsuki is not really comfortable with him (with most new people in general actually) but they eventually bond over manga and anime. yuri, unlike natsuki, isn’t passively aggressive towards mc, so he initially doesn’t really try as hard to get to know her. she is pretty friendly to him after all. perhaps when he finally gets close to monika and natsuki he realises that yeah they are friendly but they aren’t really friends. so, he tries to get to know her. normally yuri would see this as him taking pity on her, but she has already learned that lesson from sayori. unlike natsuki who would probably have an entire arc for becoming open to mc, after some time of just hanging out i think they would eventually become friends.

anyway the question was if mc would change the dynamics between the girls, and my answer is yeah at first, but as he settles in they also settle in back to their old dynamics with the main difference being that now there is one more person to have a dynamic with.

as for the dynamic between each girl and mc :

monika and mc -> for some reason i think he’d be the closest to her out of all the other girls, outside of sayori ofc. they both consider sayori as their best friend, actually i think they would really bond over sayori lol. like, both of them would just be like “yeah she’s the best” and then shake their head as in saying “understandable”

sayori and mc -> best friends. they have so much history together the others sometimes feel as if they are intruding. they definitely have their problems to get through in their relationship, i’ve already gotten into it before so i won’t be repeating myself

yuri and mc -> they may not have much in common, but they are still friends. i can see them being those friends that don’t really talk to each other much but when they do once in a blue moon they’re like “huh… this was so nice we should do it more often”

natsuki and mc -> they have a very playful friendship. a lot of teasing from both sides. i don’t think they would really talk to each other about serious topics tbh. they mostly view each other as “fun friend to hang out with”

uhh there’s probably more to be said but i e been writing this for like… 2 days now. i’m tired, gonna go sleep. thanks for the ask!!

[yandere-daydreams]

hi. i strongly feel like your chiori fic is underrated so i’d like to establish that i’m one of its avid enjoyers. something about her perfectionism and desire for permanence being applied to everything but at the same time having to wrestle with her infatuation with a darling who goes against that exact notion,,,, delicious. also the little furina snippet you wrote about peeling oranges,, 😭😭 it was so cute she is my princess frfr i’ll peel every orange in the world for her. it also proves that you are indeed capable of writing cute fluffy things yet choose to veer into the realm of the off putting and traumatic,,, you truly have too much power

ahh thank you!!! it was commissioned, but i was very proud of how that piece came out, and chiori became something of a background fave of mine shortly after <3

as for the furina stuff, i do think my own personal lesbianism contributes to why i don't write a lot of harsher stuff for female characters and why men simply,,, do not get to feature in fluffier pieces. i probably could do more if i really, really tried, but whereas furina is my beautiful girlfail princesswife whom i would never dishonor with my filthy little dead dove fics or the implication that there would ever be a situation where i am NOT deeply in love with her, it's just,,,, so incredibly easy to point at whatever fictional guy happens to cross my peripheral and be like 'yeah i could see him committing atrocities'. my judgement is definitely biased but at least it contributes to my work.

[mercymaker]

𝑾𝑰𝑷 𝑾𝒉𝒆𝒏𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓

i was tagged by the lovely @katsigian & @ruinbringer to drop some of my WIPs here and surprise surprise i am actually working on things!!!

i am tagging all the lovelies to nudge nudge them: @everlong1997 @kelemvorr @grymforge @voerman @rigaudon @visceralwit @lord-woolsley @yaviyavadoo @dameaylin @vinghen-tmblr @mrdekarios @dameayliins @alistairs & a bunch of people i absolutely forgot but brain's melting as you'll see.

1. First is mal/astarion fic that's sucking all of my soul out (in a good way) and the first few times i sat down to write it i ended up with tears in my eyes. it's sweet and hurty at the same time. i haven't touched it with neither proofreading nor editing so it might be a bit yikes but it is what it is:

“I was never very good with a bow,” Maleane sighed as soon as the arrow jumped away from the string, flying straight past the tree, through the branches, to land in an embarrassing thud on the ground.

Her father had tried to teach her when she was little, lining up a row of sacks filled with hay along the edge of a fence. Yet no matter how hard Mal tried, no matter how many hours she poured into loosing arrows into the targets, the bow proved as unyielding as it had been the first time she’d tried. While the drow followed instructions better now that she was older, Astarion’s efforts proved to be just as futile as those of her father’s.

Yet, the spawn’s intentions didn’t come from the same altruistic need that Lathorien had been known for. He didn’t approach her with the clever proposition to actually teach Maleane some of his fine archery tricks. It was an entirely different set of skills that he intended on using, a technique much more covert and insidious, the rest of the performance was nothing but a decoy. Astarion wanted to get close to her, and as she stood there, bow in hand, fingers pulling on the string, he swiftly shifted behind her. Just another one of those games they used to play with each other. Lies, manipulation, guile. The rogue adjusted her hold on the metal grip, his other hand pulling her hips to the side. He thought himself so subtle and clever. Yet, as Astarion moved away to give her enough space for a shot, something inside him shifted uncomfortably. A notion that sent worry down his esophagus, to fall into the pit of his stomach with an unsettling thump. He didn’t want to let go.

(he's such a boyfail to mal's girlfail lmao)

2. i am still working on those little moodboards, although very slowly. they are taking me much longer than i'd anticipated somehow. but mal's folder is getting there.

3. i have the layout of this gif set that's been sitting in my wip folder since early september, but in order to get the footage for it, i need to finish the game. it's an uh.. possible ending for my sweet lil bun maleane

[carnivorousyandeere]

random inquiry but that post about a boundary respecting kidnapper yan (i absolutely love the concept btw... literally the purest form of love ever 😭) made me think... which ocs of yours would fit into it? i think Mika is like the first one that comes to my mind? he seems like way too timid to impose themselves on her darling? other than the whole "killing them and bringing them back as a ghost" thing lol. Wisteria would probably not really care much about this (since she kind of just drugs her darling on one of the fics to better hold them in her arms 😳). Girlfail Thorn seems the type of girl to just not understand "boundaries" as like. a concept 😭. hope i got those right!!

-🌹

You’re definitely right about Mika, Wisteria, and Thorn! Mika would be more timid about personal space. Wisteria knows she ought to give you more space but just… can’t bring faeself to. Thorn has no real concept of boundaries and personal space, in either direction.

The yandere that I think of the most for this so far has to be Marcus, the therapist. He oversteps mental and emotional boundaries with a practiced expertise, generally subtle enough to not set off any alarms in your mind, but is very careful to respect your physical boundaries and personal space, even after kidnapping you. Although he has a vested interest in coaxing you to disregard your own boundaries and let him in sooner rather than later ;)

In varying amounts, also applies to: Sarina, the Cryptid, the Vampire Moth/Butterfly, Mason Cyrus and maaaaybe Hana depending on the context from the Werewolf Pack, the camerawoman and the psychic from the Ghost Hunting Crew, Mehri Tasha and maaaaybe Tai from the werecat pack, and Isla and Eris from Cliffside Inn.

[midnightdemonhunter]

GOD THAT WAS GREAT !!! I'M ACHING !!!!! fuckin UHHHHH could we hear some about mikan & junko too then? junko & sonia? junkoooooo & akane & nekomaru? the last two in particular i always struggle with thinking of as despairs, & i'd love to hear your takes on them & literally any fleck of the remnants you want to discuss <3

THANK YOU!!!! I spend my days constantly thinking about Junko with class 77 and the remnants, so I'm absolutely delighted to get the chance to talk about them!! (put under Read More cause i have a LOT to say)

The big pain about Mikan and Junko to me is the idea that Junko is just NICE to her. Like she bumps into Mikan on her first day of school and laughs off Mikan's apologies. She says good morning to her every time they meet. She doesn't blink at Mikan's ramblings. Like she's giving Mikan a normal amount of attention and because Mikan is so starved for attention Junko becomes the love of her life. And it's like MAN she would have felt this way about whoever treated her like this and Junko just happened to be the first.

I think Junko's big thing pre-tragedy is to ask fucked up hypotheticals to everyone she knows, and she has a blast doing it with Mikan-- who's always happy to answer insane medical questions. And then after the tragedy...well Junko has always forgiven and embraced Mikan's worse traits-- surely Mikan owes her Beloved the same!

In terms of remnant Mikan...I feel like my ideas are the least revolutionary? She's one of the few remnants who 1. Has a reasonable amount of fics/art 2. Has a reasonable amount of GOOD fics/art So i don't have a lot of unique concepts with her?? I do absolutely love the idea that she is one of the less crazy remnants-- since for all we know, she's a mild one!

I really think Sonia would love Junko. Junko is a blunt, morbid person who would delight in Sonia's serial killer obsession, and they would have a great time binging horror movies and discussing Hypothetical Fights to the Death. Sonia is one of the many people Junko dates in the lost years, and they're sparkling blondes on the surface-- very violent cheerful conversations below it.

In the end...Sonia proposes to Junko, and offers her a spot on the throne. Junko happily accepts! Junko then precedes to happily kill herself in a very non hypothetical killing game, breaking Sonia's heart. Now Sonia is a bride abandoned at the alter, who wears her wedding dress permanently in honor of her departed love. She has BIG Mrs Havisham vibes.

I very much respect all Girlboss remnant Sonia concepts but unfortunately I have doomed her to be a sad girlfail girlcry. She finds the idea of anyone finding her attractive after Junko horrifying, and mutilates herself as a way of preventing this. She has chosen Junko over her kingdom, and she is very aware of this choice.

ARGH AKANE AND NEKOMARU. Honestly I agree with you, these two are really hard to nail down as remnants. Nekomaru especially, since he is both gay and seemingly very emotionally healthy, so it's harder to imagine him going to any of the lengths the remnants go to for Junko. However I try my best to justify and imagine it!!

In school, both Nekomaru and Akane were Junko's sparring partners. (separately). Nekomaru is very concerned about Junko but is also under the impression that he can fix her. HE CAN NOT. Junko wants to see how far she can push him in their fights, and how violent he can get with her. She'll leave their sparring sessions bruised and bleeding and beaming. Akane's sparring sessions are much less bloody, but much more homoerotic. Junko always loses the fights but wins the arguments.

Neither of them realise how much Junko means to them UNTIL she dies on live television. Nekomaru feels like he failed one of his athletes, and Akane only realises she was in love now that Junko's gone. Akane becomes determined to never get attached or become weak again, and stops eating. She avoids Nekomaru out of repressed guilt on how badly she's treating her body. She also kills a lot of people she used to care about as a way of cutting ties Whoops.

Nekomaru....is the most emotionally healthy remnant who moves in with Souda and is still happy but...he also cuts off his legs to replace them with prosthetics which contain Junko's bones so uh. There's that. He also really enjoys violence now! Thanks Junko!

Basically, I have pretty clear images on where Nekomaru and Akane are at Hopes Peak and as Remnants, it's just the inbetween I find hard.

Getting back to more general here, but I really do have a LOT of remnant thoughts, as you can see from my ask blog (which I'm very slow with but still remember) and all the fics I've written. Speaking of remnant fics, I'm gonna plug Those Who Carried On here because it's where I've started putting all my other standalone remnant concepts that exist basically to expand the possibilities of the remnants. That fic is a delight to work on and I very much want everyone to see it!

If you're interested in more of my remnant or class 77 Junko dynamic thoughts, please feel free to send more asks like this one! This is really only the tip of the iceburg, and I'd love to discuss my personal remnant ideas, the interpretations i love in the fandom and the ones I don't, as well as any other remnant/lost years concepts! (as well as my seething hatred of dr3) If you personally want to talk about this stuff more in-depth with me, hit up my tumblr dms and I can keep talking. I'd love to hear your thoughts as well! Once again, thanks for the ask and the excuse to ramble!