#to act like they're in love??? plus the i think we're supposed to make out thing

[zxoaii]

Touch

fem! reader x bodyguard Choso

Summary: After the being sent to attend an event, Y/n and Choso find themselves more caught up with each other.

SMUT

WC: 2k

Wattpad: _Bolter

[ Y/n ]

"You look good in a suit." Choso looks at me while I adjust his tie. "You are stunning. No one is going to notice me with you right next to me." He's always so sweet.

"Thank you."

The elevator door rings out and the doors open. Choso offers me his arm. I take it as we walk into the foyer of the ballroom.

"Good evening." The host draws our attention to him. My bag clicks open as I retrieve the invitation. "He's my plus one." Of course, if he knows who I am he'd know that.

Money and Jujutsu Sorcery don't usually meet but somewhere, they did. I wouldn't say my clan is completely good but we are a force to be reckoned with.

My mother is the current head of the clan and because of my apparent lack of cursed energy, I was assigned a bodyguard.

I've had several throughout my life but this one is my favorite. Choso is a gentleman. He's caring and friendly. Not to mention, he is not bad-looking at all.

He isn't even a Jujutsu Sorcerer. He's a half-curse.

We walk into the crowded ballroom together. I love parties. They're a nightmare for him. He wouldn't ever say it out loud though.

Choso instinctively takes his arm away from me and falls two paces behind me. Technically we're supposed to act like he isn't here.

Still, it saddens me to lose his touch.

"Ms. Y/l/n, you look incredible. The last time I saw you, you were only a teenager. It's been so long!" I'm thrown into a conversation before I can tell Choso he should stand with me.

The night starts to drag on with insignificant conversations one after another. Being polite is exhausting. Especially when it's spent being polite to people who can't help but be self-obsessed.

As soon as I get a chance I excuse myself to go get a drink. I take Choso's arm and lead us to the drink table. "Do you want some?"

Choso shakes his head. Oh well. I take a glass of champagne for myself. It's a shame this is all they choose to serve. Still, it's better than nothing.

"How long have we been here?"

"45 minutes."

I want to spit my drink out. Only 45 minutes? It feels like we've been here for hours. I've been talking for hours. It's impossible.

"Seriously?"

Choso nods and scans the room. "Come on, there's not actually anyone here who's going to do anything to me." He gives me an unsure glance. "How long do we have to stay for?" My feet ache already. It's freezing in here. I would rather be anywhere else and I'd rather it just be him and I.

"You're supposed to stay for an hour and a half at least."

"What if I say I'm sick?"

Choso takes my empty glass from me and returns it to the table. "We came all this way just for this." He reminds me.

He looks so good in his suit. If I could have a picture of him dressed up like this I'd keep it in a locket.

"Y/n!" A voice calls out excitedly from behind me.

I really hate parties.

.  .  .

Choso sits in the front seat of the car as we're driven to our hotel. I can't stop admiring him. My cheeks flush when he looks at me through the rearview.

We hold eye contact until I look away.

The driver eventually stops in front of our hotel and opens my door for me. "Thank you." I step out of the car. Warm humid air wraps itself around my bare skin.

Choso follows behind me as I make my way inside. I can't come up with any valid reasons as to why I'd need to go to his room.

The walk through the lobby, then the elevator ride, and finally the walk to my room are all too short. I don't have enough time to think of something.

I stop at my door to give myself a second to think.

"Are you ok?"

My hand lingers on the doorknob for a moment before falling to my side. "Choso, you should come in with me."

I turn to look at him after I ask. "What?" This is the first time I've seen him so caught off guard. Maybe that's because he usually stands behind me.

"I want you to come in with me."

"We have our own rooms." Despite his now hardened reaction, his cheeks are red with blush. "Ok." I stop pushing and unlock my door.

"Goodni-"

Choso's hand lands on the door to stop it from shutting. He looks down at me from his place in the doorway. I step out of his way and he walks into the room. The door shuts behind him, leaving us in darkness. Some of the city lights illuminate parts of the room.

Just enough so I can see him.

My heart beats heavily in my chest as I reach out to touch him. Choso steps closer to me and allows me to start undoing his tie.

It falls to the floor but my hands remain on his chest. I have to stand on my toes to reach his lips. Choso leans in and meets me in a kiss.

My hands grip his shirt in fistfuls. Our kiss becomes increasingly desperate. My back meets the wall with a thud. One of his hands lands on the wall next to my head. The other finds its way onto my back.

Choso follows my spine with his fingers. He reaches the nape of my neck and takes the zipper of my dress. The straps fall from my shoulders as the zipper is drawn lower and lower.

When the entire thing is unzipped I let it pool around my ankles. Choso lifts me and carries me across the room. He handles me so gently. I'm laid carefully onto the bed.

My heels are slipped off my feet and then tossed across the room. Choso's lips start at my ankles and trail upwards. Each kiss leaves me more and more entranced by his touch.

As his lips meet my thighs he starts to linger longer. My fingers reach out and grab his hair. He continues up to my hips and for a moment I think he might keep going until our lips meet again.

Instead, he hooks my underwear with his fingers and gives himself more access to me. His touch runs hot across my skin as he pulls my underwear down completely.

"Is this ok?"

"You don't have to ask."

My hands encourage his movements. Choso's lips meet my core in a heated kiss. The kiss feels starved like he needs me to live. He shifts my left leg over his shoulder to give himself better access.

"Oh my god..." I sit up, resting on my elbows to look at him. Choso is still completely dressed. Despite how good-looking he is in his suit, I want it off.

"Take your shirt off."

Choso doesn't falter or stop. Instead, he works his jacket off and lets it fall to the floor. He starts working on the buttons down his shirt until he can take that off too.

His back is painted with scars that remind me of where he came from. My eyes are drawn down by his. Choso watches me through lustful hooded eyes.

His tongue presses against my clit causing my legs to bend instinctively. The dim lights from the window draw harsh shadows across his body.

Choso's hair is a mess from my hands. It falls into his face and tickles the inside of my thighs. Still, he deepens his movements.

The graze of his teeth against sensitive flesh causes a gasp. My hips grind against his mouth as he presses his tongue flat against me. Choso lets out a deep moan that vibrates through my body.

Pleasure starts to build up within me overwhelmingly quickly. "Don't stop." My pleas are answered by Choso's quickened kissing.

He moans once more. My eyes fall lower, following his arm. Choso masturbates as he eats me out. "Shit." The sigh drags on with my orgasm.

Choso doesn't stop until I fall back onto the bed. He pulls away breathlessly and fully removed his pants. His toned chest is also littered with scars that only continue to turn me on.

"Can you continue?" He licks his lips and runs his hand along my thigh. "Yes." Choso nods and reaches up to remove my bra. "You're fucking beautiful." His hands run along my body as if to memorize the feeling.

I shift to the edge of the bed, sitting on my knees so I can kiss him. This kiss is soft. Choso's hand carefully holds my chin. I follow him blindly as he sits down on the bed.

We pull away for a moment. Gentle hands guide me onto his lap. Choso holds my back as I fit him inside of me. The pain turns to pleasure within a minute.

Our eyes stay locked as I roll my hips. My nails dig into his back as I move against him. "Y/n." My name comes out as a plead more than a statement.

My desperate movements become quicker at his unsaid request. Choso peppers kisses along my neck and shoulders. He finds a spot and begins to suck on it to leave a mark.

I tilt my head to the side to give him more access. "Ah- Choso!" He bites down on my neck. I don't know if he drew blood or not but his tongue traces the bite mark several times before he moves on.

Choso's hands grip my ass. He guides me vertically in addition to my horizontal movements. Our moans grow louder together as I follow his movement.

"You're so fucking perfect." Choso catches my lips after his comment, only for a moment. He watches me with such loving eyes my heart flutters in my chest.

Has he always looked at me like this?

The buildup of my second orgasm comes along with his. His grip on me tightens, I feel the twitch of his cock inside me, and his head falls forward onto my shoulder.

Choso mumbles words I can't hear over the sound of my own moans. My orgasm washes over me so intensely that my legs twitch at his side.

We hold each other for a minute before I shift off of his lap to lie down. Choso collapses down next to me. My hand finds his, intertwining our fingers.

"You're... Unbelievable."

The smile on my face feels like it might never go away again. "Do you like me, Choso?" I look over at him from my spot.

"Like you? Of course I like you." He meets my eyes for a moment before shyly looking away. "Do you have deeper feelings for me?"

If the lighting was better I think I'd be able to see that bright red blush all across his face. "I do." His eyes search the ceiling for anything to look at other than me.

"I have deeper feelings for you too." I sit up so he can't avoid looking at me. "You do?" I brush his sweaty hair from his face. "Of course." Choso doesn't return my happy grin.

Instead, he sits up and meets my lips in another passionate kiss. My arms lock around his shoulders to hold him closer. I'd stay like this forever if I had the choice.

Choso pauses for a moment then pulls away. He rubs my thigh as his eyes trail along my neck. He stops at the spot I assume he had bitten. My fingers feel across the skin for a moment before finding the mark.

"I'm sorry. You just tasted so good."

"Don't talk."

I lean back in and happily take another kiss from him. The bite mark will be hard to hide, especially since nothing I packed covers my neck.

Still, if he wanted to bite me again he could.

We could do this all over again as many times as he wants.

[velvet-games]

in the middle of working on a lucifer redesign :)

thoughts/explanations + minor character analysis under the cut (this was supposed to be short but it ended up being very thorough lmao):

honestly love his canon design so I'm kind of working from that more than I'm trying to rethink stuff from scratch

I'm gonna admit right now that a lot of the design choices were very self indulgent lol; I just want him to be pretty :<

circus stuff~

I've seen a lot of people raise their eyebrows at the circus motif, so I was going to try something different, but I actually think it makes a lot of sense!

I think freakshows/circus acts have been tied to this idea that certain identities/abilities are strange and shameful, only valuable as dehumanizing entertainment -- they're mistakes, freaks of nature

but at the same time many circus performances require a lot of skill and work and love that can go unappreciated, each and every performer at the very least a person worth respecting

I think lucifer sees hell as a freakshow/circus he's been forced to lead and try to control

a bunch of wayward toys meant to be bright and beautiful that have been twisted into something terrifying

and he needs to discover a more empathetic, appreciative, and loving way to think about sinners

and also to realize that it's not about him or his mistakes; it's about a group of people with their own emotions and autonomy that he needs to respect

anyway

all that to say: we're keeping the circus ringleader thing!

I think a whip would make more sense for a ringleader, esp since alastor has a staff already (but they're enemies/foils so maybe their designs should reflect each other?)

there's room to turn the whip into a snake maybe

in the pic I made it look like his tail bc I considered making his actual tail a goat tail (cute! but the longer one suits him better I think)

maybe an apple on the top/handle still

the tux honestly looks a little too formal/cool for him most of the time lmao

so I think he should take off the jacket/have the toymaker apron on instead unless he's fighting

vaudeville doll~

lucifer has a lot going on tbh: circus ringleader, angel, devil/demon, snake, goat, vaudeville porcelain doll, toymaker, etc.

I think I'm gonna take out snake just to simplify a little, but I'll talk about that more later

I was also going to take out porcelain doll but

1) the rosy cheeks are super cute

2) fits with the circus theme

3) fits with the idea that he's both a toy and toymaker (an angel that tried to play god)

uhhh there's a couple self indulgent doodles of him in a vaudeville doll dress lol. not relevant to the design at all; I just like drawing stripes and ruffles

I ended up making him sort of androgynous in a lot of ways? (not that he wasn't already lol) which works for him I think

part of it was the vaudeville doll thing; I wanted to give him (keep?) the eyeshadow and add those little vertical marks you see on them sometimes

also because I really liked the puff sleeves in one of the references I used; it kind of emphasizes an extended hourglass shape with the puffy pants

plus I love drawing the more classic tuxedo shape <3 very yummy lines and details

hair/shape~

I fucking LOVE when people draw him with messy hair, so I made that permanent

I also think (esp since he's blond) having the hair stick out in tufts kind of makes it look like a star (morningstar, lightbringer, etc. etc.)

even more so with the pointy horns (those are also fun to draw cause they're right in the corners of his widow's peak)

I drew a random triangle on one of these as a reminder to keep the pointy/triangular shape language throughout lol

squares would def be wrong with the implications of sturdiness and stability

I think circles would be wrong too? he's vulnerable and ultimately very soft inside so I kept a lot of round lines, but I don't think he's the traditionally bubbly/friendly/peaceful archetype circles are usually used for

triangles are apparently dynamic, dangerous, and unpredictable, which is a little closer to what I'm going for

(shape language is a very flexible rule btw; I'm not saying they determine everything about a character or that one shape has to mean exactly one thing)

he's also a depressed, tortured soul, so I feel like he should look just a little unhinged and exhausted <3 (hence the eyebags on top of the messy hair)

angel stuff~

(sidenote: cherub and seraph are singular, cherubim and seraphim are plural. even the show gets this wrong tho, so feel free to say whatever ig)

I'm pretty sure most people agree lucifer was probably a cherub? cherubim only have 4 wings so I might go with that

I do think it makes more sense if he's higher ranking like a seraph tho ... it's hard to decide whether to go with the show's ideas about angels or actual religious texts cause both are interesting in their own ways

snake~

ARHHGHJF idk how I feel about his nose

again I thought about taking out the snake motif, but he honestly looks good w/o a nose (I mean it's there obviously but you can't see it if it's just snake slits lol), and I definitely like the idea of him having a forked tongue or his eyes turning into slits when he's angry

also also

mini rant on animal motifs in hazbin:

I get the impression that a lot of people think it's a bad thing that you can't tell what animal a character should be? and/or that a motif has to be clearly present in the entire design to be good

and I kind of just accepted that until I started thinking about ozzie's design from helluva boss

like the original demon he's based on is really just that fucked up and mixed with animals you can't always identify

and chinese dragons are like a billion different animals even though they sort of just look like lizards at the end of the day

like obviously if you want the audience to associate a character with a specific animal (like if you want people to think a character's spooky because they're a spider or something), then you do want the animal motifs to be clear/consistent

but sometimes you just want certain elements there and it doesn't matter if the audience picks up on it (at least consciously)

and I think with someone like lucifer, having a lot of animals/concepts mixed together in an ungodly combination makes sense lol

so idk

maybe we'll just give him the nose/tongue

I did try just giving him a button nose in some of these for the doll thing tho

goat/charlie~

urgh I hate realizing I should've designed certain characters together lol

I took out the rosy cheeks in my original charlie design since I wasn't thinking about lucifer, so I put them back in this time lol (and generally thought about how they should be visually related)

I like that it enforces the idea that charlie's lucifer's creation (toymaker makes a doll in his own image yk)

also they both have puff sleeves now :) (charlie's design is basically princess dress silhouette but make it a suit)

I also gave her goat ears, so I figured lucifer should have them too? idk because I like the way his hair looks a lot better without them, and I kind of like the idea of giving them diff combinations of goat features (maybe she should have a goat tail?)

also drawing this made me realize I have no idea why charlie has a puppy nose??? I thought it was the goat thing for some reason but that doesn't make any sense

maybe I'll just give her no nose

anyway! fucking incredible if you read all of that; idk what possessed me to write so much about a half-finished design lol. feel free to leave suggestions/answers to the questions I had!

[iris-sistibly]

I know I need to calm the fuck down first but one word to describe episode 6: STRESS!!

📍I love seeing Hyun-woo and Hae-in having a...sort of second honeymoon in Germany but I couldn't really enjoy every scene because I'm stressing out at how fucking OBLIVIOUS the Hong family is like bitch y'all are surrounded by snakes and they're so complacent 😭😭😭 I mean it's not really their fault that there are opportunists who'd earn their trust first then slither their way to bite them in the ass, but I just find it ironic at how protective they are at their family business and wealth but they can't see through the REAL people who has every intention to bring them down.

📍Speaking of which, I have read a fan theory somewhere that Mo Seul-hee is the mom of Eun-seong and Da-hye. Could be, OR Grace could be Da-hye's mom considering how Grace acted towards her. But why are they so keen at bringing the Hong family down?

📍Maybe it's just me but I don't think Da-hye is that bad, I have a feeling that she'll eventually come to her senses and take Hyun-woo's side and expose Eun-seong and co.

📍My overthinker/delulu self thinks that Soo-cheol and Da-hye's baby is actually Hyun-woo and Hae-in's kid. I mean, it wasn't shown how they lost their baby...yet. So Hae-in either miscarried, or she gave birth to a still born child? But what if the child is actually alive and one of those evil bitches cooked up some shit to make it seem like Hyun-woo and Hae-in's baby died, and then that baby was registered as Soo-cheol and Da-hye's kid? I know it sounds insane, but we're only on episode 6 so more crazy shit could happen in the future episodes, you'll never know. But my normal self says I've watched too many Filipino dramas growing up (and yes, that shit happens a lot in Filo-dramas).

📍Speaking of that kid, another theory is...what if that kid is actually Eun-seong and Da-hye's? Soo-cheol is a dumbass, and again, those bitches could have manipulated that baby's DNA test result or something. Again, that's just me being an overthinker, also I hate my Filo-drama mindset.

📍Aunt Beom-ja being so concerned about Hae-in and her dad but I also appreciate the fact that she respected her niece's request to not tell anyone about her illness. I also hope that she'll be able to help Hyun-woo clear his name and uncover Seul-hee and gang's dirty little secret.

📍BUT Y'ALL KNOW WHO STRESSED THE SHIT OUT OF ME THIS EPISODE? BAEK FUCKING HYUN-WOO!!! I am so freaking annoyed that he didn't tell Hae-in about the divorce when he had the chance. He was probably worried at how Hae-in would react plus the latter was going through medical treatments so he probably didn't want to put too much stress on her, but Hae-in was bound to find out either way so...yeah I do get why he chose to keep the divorce to himself but he could have just told the truth and suck it up, and perhaps they could communicate better when it comes to issues like this.

📍One thing I noticed about Hyun-woo is that he's brave in so many ways but also a coward on one thing. I mean he talks with Hae-in about nice things and all, and he is his wife's confidante, but I don't think I've ever heard him talk the way Hae-in does, meaning he never had the balls to talk to his wife about the..."unpleasant" side of their marriage. Hae-in was able to talk to him about her illness, the last will and testament that her mom pressured her to write, and Hyun-woo didn't even think about bringing up the divorce papers.

Prior to episode 5, I really thought that Hae-in was the one who shut him out but it was actually the other way around. Wifey may seem cold and nonchalant but if there's one person she'd listen to, it's him. Perhaps he doesn't want to say something that would upset Hae-in but the point is...she's his wife, she's supposed to know what he thinks, how he feels about certain things, even the not-so-pleasant side of their relationship. I really hope that in the next episode or the episode after that he'll be able to communicate better.

📍Hae-in's mom is terrible af. Imagine blaming your own daughter for the death of your son. I mean she didn't deserve to lose a child, but it's unfair to put all the blame on Hae-in (like why?). It's not like she endangered herself on purpose, and she had the audacity to be upset when Hae-in did something nice to her in-laws? Like what is wrong with this woman? Why can't see realize her own mistakes?

📍I kind of teared up when Hae-in was telling Hyun-woo about the things the latter should do when she dies. She could die, and this show might give us a bittersweet ending but when that time comes I'd be really, really hurt. Also, Hae-in confessing that the only reason she wrote her will about Hyun-woo not getting anything should they divorce was so that she'll be allowed to marry him 😭 (just shows she fought hard for him and she'll do absolutely anything to be with him). God I hate her mom! And yes the epilogue was so cute, now we know that they have always been in-love with each other. But I guess...they need a time-out 🤷.

📍Hae-in called Hyun-woo "yeobo" 🥹🥹🥹

[quinnxey]

acolyte review (before season finale)

i was really interested in this show esp because its based in the high republic. this is the first time we've gotten a media recreation other than glimpses in jedi: survivor and I'm also pretty sure the kids show disney made was also based in the hr time period. but anyway - other than the books as well, this is the first live-action retelling of a hr story.

i feel like a lot of people didn't like it because of that, but it really hooked me in. I've always been pretty into the hr book series and have loved this idea of "before the chosen one" trope. in the acolyte, we're 100 years or so b4 anyone like obi-wan or anakin or luke have been born. its another really great setting up - plus, as an avid hr reader, it helped me visualize what was going on during that whole shebang

but so - during the start of the acolyte I was a little bit wary and a tad bored. i feel like they started with a fairly slow (if murder is slow) introduction to the story, but I really do understand why they did it like that. once shit hit the fan and we were getting jedi action (plus the dents of twins? alive?/whats going on? sort of thing) I was really starting to get interested. the characters in acolyte are SO well done - like honestly its kind of craz how good they're written. even the "good guys" have good writing, which can be hard to do for heroes when the villains usually have all the sweet ass storytelling.

i thought the force here was sooo well done. like this idea of osha not being able to use the force after some time - ESPECIALLY her using the excuse of "if you were a jedi" (or something along these lines) "you would know that the force gets weaker if you don't practice with it" like girl ok! and with qimir and him being like dude, no.

QIMIR! ok so i understand the whole reason people like him is because of his looks and the fact that he was naked (which I will get to) but I'm SOOO interested in his character arc. his manipulation tactics are honestly so believable that IM having a hard time trying to discern whether or not the jedi are good or bad. i think I've always been fairly pro-jedi esp with how the orig tri plays jedi out to be and how the hr books have all these really anti-jedi antigonists. I've always believed the jedi to be a good force of nature, and haven't really paid much mind to this idea of "what if". in the acolyte, it feels like. they're REAL people.

idk i feel like sometimes it gets hard to see the real people in jedi and not thin k they're just some servants of the light or whatever. for me, I feel like that also comes from the "no relationships" motto, which sort of defeats the whole "human/person" idea for me. i hate thinking jedi arent people and don't have faults, but with how a lot o the media portrays them, that's how I've felt for a really long time. in here, I felt like I was seeing real people in real situations. idk

with how sol was acting with osha ("do not confuse [her] emotions with your own") I was sooo in love with that. him not knowing whether or not its his emotions or the force pulling them together (because we all know the force puts padawan/master together when it knows they're a good fit) but still continuing. him choosing to SAVE OSHA INSTEAD OF MAE. and going on to say he "did his best" and "tried to save both of them" to osha and flicking the blame on mae by saying the fire was all her fault (which it was, but he deliberately didn't tell osha what "really" happened ((in the words of mae I suppose))) but this isn't me saying that sol is a bad person and should totally get stripped of his title or whatever - someone (not sure who) on here talked about how he was the only one out of all the jedi on the trip to actually go and do something about his guilt. he went and he trained osha to the best of his abilities, he trained younglings (telling them NOT to trust what they initially see, to keep searching for answers), and he went on trying to make good with mae even after he knew she was going to kill him.

but so on the dark side (plus I guess qimir being naked) I was really interested in this idea of jedi not being able to harm the unarmed. we see this happen with sol and aniseya, where she DOES technically look like shes about to go off and kill someone with her whole dust act, but she is STILL technically unarmed. sol goes and stabs her because he has no idea what is happening. cue 1st action. 2nd action is when we have the scene between sol and qimir where he almost attacks him while he's "unarmed" (pls I don't trust this man) but osha stops him. with OSHA, we see this happen when she sort of attacks qimir while he's unarmed - and not just unarmed, also litterllay butt naked. that's like the full ass definition of unarmed. it goes fully against jedi code - if she had killed him, she would have killed him unarmed and with no dignity, which no jedi would ever want to do. because she had the option to do it, he basically tested her - it was his way of seeing whether or not she was a "good" option for an apprentice. he prob would have taken her anyway, but with how it went with mae, he was defo being wary.

but him being a sith for me was pretty easy to see right off the bat, since he disappeared and then sith master just "appeared" I thought, oh yeah, that's qimir. but as the fighting went on and I went between the costume differences between him and feeble qimir, I thought, well...no?? it doesn't make sense. he doesn't look the same - and then it WAS HIM. but also I think this idea of osha becoming sith apprentence and mae becoming jedi apprentice would be so interesting. ying and yang but they switch lmao

but I'm supppeper excited for the season finale!!! my prediction is that osha accepts being qimirs apprentice, mae accepts being sol's apprentice (if that happens), and maybe/maybe not they find osha and qimir and qimir convinces osha to fight against her past master. idk. would love to see some kyber bleeding in s2. love!!

[yogurts-bullshit]

CW: HAZBIN HOTEL SPOILERS AHEAD

Alright so here's my take on the new Hazbin Hotel season.

Bad. ):

The only good parts were vox/alastors song and the first half of Lucifer's episode. THE WHOLE SHOW IS SO FUCKING LAZY. They stripped everything that made it good. It's not funny anymore, it seems like there was no thought put into it, the placement of the music doesn't make sense a LOT. Sometimes they throw in little throwback jokes to be like "hey remember the pilot? Remember when this show was good?"

And it's so FAST, like the whole thing with the extermination timeframe being cut in half felt like such a lazy cop out. To me in read like they don't think they are gonna get another season and so they knew they only had 6 episodes to shove in all those plot points. Or they just wanted instant gratification for everything and felt like because this show has such a big fan base already they just assumed they didn't NEED to introduce you to these characters, like you should already know they are and have a connection with them. Like Hazbin Hotel thinks because it has a popular pilot it's a legacy show like the Simpsons and doesn't need to introduce anything, you should know it all by now.

And goes by so quick but despite how much time we are supposed to see go by, these characters NEVER FUCKING GROW. They're supposed to! They have groundbreaking realizations about who they are and stuff, and then a second later they are THE SAME PERSON AS BEFORE. And then there is that whole scene in the final episode where Charlie is like "look! Angel Dust has redeemed so much!" But I really feel like he hasn't, and we haven't seen any redemption from him at all. Plus there was this whole song about the similarities between Husk and Angel (Loser, Baby), which don't get me wrong, I loved, but it just really revealed how much of fucking clones they are, which is SO FUCKING LAZY.

Plus all of the "big reveals to keep you hooked and shock you!!!" We're just things that people have theorized about for 8 fucking years since the first concept art was released. Like the whole "vaggie is an exterminator!" or "Husk was a Overlord!" The whole time I got the impression that this was supposed to be a big thing but I was just like... Yeah.... I know.

Oh and Zestiel was also dope as fuck in his 2 minutes for screen time, but I feel like I only liked him because he was acting like what Alastor was SUPPOSED to be, but they made him really nice I feel like. And I understand that Alastor is canonically supposed to be a nice, gentlemanly Mama's boy, but I feel like this show felt like since all of the leaks and lore and stuff released about these characters, it had to show that IMMEDIATELY so instead of that being a slow build up and reveal it dumped it on you instead of showing you who Alastor depicts himself as and it felt like a mockery to the depths of his character. The show didn't earn being able to show how kind Alastor is.

And I feel like that's the reason that I think the show is so lazy because, yes, it has all these big cool reveals and moments, but the show doesn't earn any of those moments. Like there are so many big reveals, like Charlie's big song about her daddy issues, that I feel like could have hit so hard! If we had mentioned her daddy issues more than 2 times beforehand. Or with the whole Carmilla (I might be spelling that wrong) thing with the angel. The angels death could have been such a big story and plot hook and even if they didn't wanna carry it into the next season, they could have made the reveal and big season finale thing. It just felt so weird that instead of it being something big, it was just this lady who we don't even really know, who walked into screen, sang about how she did it, and then we never see her again. Cause I mean like, say what you will about shows with lost of filler early on, but at least they build on everything. You get to know these characters and this setting so that when there are big reveals and songs and moments with them you really feel it. Instead in hazbin all of the moments just feel so unearned and underbaked.

Plus instead of just embracing the fact that there are new voices, they had all the new voices basically do impressions of the old voices, like Blake Roman was basically doing a poor impression of Micheal Kovach the whole time and it brought him down so much. Like, I like Blake Roman, he's a good voice actor, we didn't have to pretend he's Micheal Kovach. 

Really, honestly, I was thinking about it today, and Hazbin Hotel is a show about a bunch of dead people realizing that the heaven and hell system is messed up and trying to fix it and redeem themselves in the process. Y'know what else is a show with the same concept? THE GOOD PLACE. One of my favorite shows, very beautifully written, and every single point and moment Hazbin Hotel makes, The Good Place does 30x better.

so yeah, there's my Hazbin Hotel rant. Did not like the show, really pissed off about it, I'm gonna go rewatch the pilot, and then probably rewatch The Good Place.

[melonisopod]

I still really like the way DunMesh introduces Kabru's party. Where they're clearly set up to be foils to our main party but not in a way that the narrative is pointing at them and saying "These guys suck and you should hate them!" They could just as easily have been the main characters and have the Touden party introduced second and it would have worked just as well IMO.

Cause I think a 'lesser' show would have set up characters like them as unpleasant jerkwads that you immediately can't stand. Maybe Mickbell is like that but even then he comes off more like a "funny asshole" than a genuinely detestable person. But the show goes out of its way to show that Kabru is incredibly smart and perceptive and knows and trusts his crewmates. The fact that he stopped Rin with a kiss tells me the two must be pretty close (it was pragmatic but I don't think she'd have reacted that way if they weren't at least on good terms, her main gripe was the illusion magic making Kabru look like a fish).

Plus, even though his reasons for going after the Touden party are /wrong/, he doesn't know that, and has no reason not to believe they've acted maliciously against his crew. So even while his party innately has it in for our heroes they're not bad people.

There's less that we know about Shuro and his current party and so it's harder for me to glean exactly what's up with him, but I also don't think he's set up as a 'bad person we're supposed to hate' either. I think the fandom is a little hard on him for his one-sided crush on Falin too - for all the "she's just like her brother" jokes she really isn't, not "exactly" at least. Falin seems a bit better at masking than Laois and has a better gauge for handling people, which makes her more "tolerable" in their eyes, hence why more people are willing to "tolerate" her monster obsession.

I know that Shuro has/had feelings for her and that it didn't go anywhere but that's...fine? There's no indication he acts entitled or pushy or doesn't respect her feelings or boundaries, and just having a crush on someone isn't a morally bad thing. I haven't seen the "outburst" when he and Laois fight either so I dont' have a lot to say here, just that I relate heavily to Laois, but I dont' think Shuro is bad for not speaking up on his dislike of him either.

As much as I desperately wish more people would tell me when they have a problem with me, how awkward is it to have to tell someone that to their face? How do you even say that? "By the way, I find you really annoying and can't stand you, I just want to clarify that so you stop assuming we're friends," I would love for someone to let me know but also imagine having to be the other person. I wish there was a nice way of saying it (and Shuro DID have a "nice way" of "saying it" but Laios is too autistic to pick up on subtle cues)

I still kind of hold the opinion that every character in DunMesh is some degree of autistic, but it's possible Laios is like the one guy who never really learned how to mask beyond "never talking about his special interest in public".

[a-confused-spoon]

⚠️ WARNING: HEAVY DOSE OF SARCASM! DON'T TAKE ANY OF THIS TOO SERIOUSLY! ⚠️

...I- okay, so-

Let me get this straight:

You make a show about cycles of violence and establish it as the main cause of suffering

You establish the main villains as victims of the different levels of said cycle (Claudia - interpersonal / Viren - historical / Aaravos - cosmical)

You also give each and one of them a sob story as to why they are in the place they're in, one that the audience is very obviously supposed to empathize with

You ALSO also make the cosmic council child murderers as well as apathetic assholes and basically imply they are the cause of everything

...and we're supposed to root for said council to stay intact and face no consequences? There's no one above them, so unless they punish themselves there'd be no repercussions on them for what they did and eventually caused

It's been a while since my post about Viren in s6 and I recognize that most of it was typed as an immediate reaction to it, as in I could verbalize it better or whatnot. Yet I still stan with what I ultimately said, and while Viren is gone I'd like to reiterate that he was deemed unredeemable by the very creators and (to add a very important something) the fact that everything he does from s2 ep9 'till the end of s3 mostly stems from Aaravos's manipulation doesn't matter- cause yeah, after the pentarchy thing he would've been done if Aaravos didn't persuade him into going forward.

Taking this into account, plus the fact that they confirmed someone else might die, how am I supposed to think there's going to be a satisfying and rewarding ending to this series?

It'll go in 1 of 3 ways:

OPTION 1: Miraculous Ladybug style

Ezran talks it out with the Star Council (don't pay attention to the fact that Viren did far less demage and Ezran still gave him the "you don't deserve any [mercy]" treatment) because that's how he solves everything and everybody is supposed to take his "but love!" speeches seriously because hey that's the moral of the story so he's right! (don't pay attention to the fact that literally everytime he does this he never actually tries to get the person he's talking to to reason, he's just "but don't you want peace and love too?🥺" as if the show didn't try to make a whole deal about the weight of history's influence, it's just either you're a naturally loving person or fuck you) and they end up agreeing for some forsaken reason called 'convenience' and not only they change their ways but they also grant some big miracle like repearing Katolis's Castle, Harrow being freed from the bird (even though I remember vividly they said that was the plan at first and then changed it because it was unfair to Callum and Ezran's grief, but this was before the saga was greenlit) and/or the lava river being replaced with a garden or something.

OPTION 2: if you're manipulated you're still compliant therefore every villain is unredeemable

Aaravos gets killed by the Nova Blade and Claudia either kills herself because something happens to Terry or she gets killed in the process, maybe by Soren- not because it makes any sense obviously, but they already had him kill Viren that one time and we had no kind of repercussions of it (PTSD, conversations about it etc.) so they might as well pull another shocker that results in absolutely nothing narrative-wise, and since the brother-sister relationship that was oh so important in the first act now counts less than the baby glowtoads surely they wouldn't have a problem giving them more angst (aka the only thing the magefam is allowed to get out of each other apparently).

OPTION 3: the best case scenario still doesn't solve the problem

Claudia gets redeemed, Aaravos doesn't. Turns out Aaravos lied or only shared a fraction of the truth but Claudia will not find out about it (only the main heroes will) and the reason for her flipping won't even be about her character finally finding guidance in herself instead of always relying on what other people may or may not suggest- it'll be EXACTLY that by Soren or Terry (hence no actual character development, just a change of circumstances) or alternatively she does it to save one of them (hence no actual character development because literally everything this girl ever did was already out of love); the Star Council that still killed an innocent autistic child stays intact and we all just pretend it's fine because it's what the heroes wanted.

(...these are exaggerations of course, I am joking... but I wouldn't be too surprised, y'know?)

I hope book 7 proves me wrong. Truthfully.

[tomurasghoul]

SHIGADABI MARRIAGE

includes: post-canon, fluff, a sprinkle of todoroki family angst, kurogiri and shigaraki having a father-son relationship, magne is alive, everyone is alive and happy yippee!!

-

It's been a few years since the war, and the League of Villains had inevitably split up, though they're still friends.

It may come as a surprise, but Shigaraki and Dabi have really found eachother. They've stuck together ever since the war ended. Though their relationship has been complicated in the past, they're a couple now.

'How does Touya Shigaraki sound to you?' Dabi asks.

They were sitting on the couch, both minding their own business, when the question ripped Shigaraki out of his thoughts.

'What?' He answeres dryly.

'How does Touya Shigaraki sound to you?' Dabi repeats himself.

Shigaraki was not sure what to make of this. Is this a joke he doesn't get? Is he really being proposed to right now?

'Are you proposing to me?'

'I suppose I am.'

Shigaraki had to take in what just happened. He just sat there, looking out into the distance with wide eyes while Dabi was waiting for his answer.

Before he started dating Dabi, Shigaraki had never really thought about relationships. He was always too busy being All For One's protégé to pay any mind to it; but now he was being proposed to.

Meanwhile, Dabi was getting impatient. He considered the two of them as good as married already, so why was Shigaraki so shocked? Did he not want to marry him?

He got the sudden urge to explain himself as to not look ridiculous.

'You know, I just thought... since we already live together and have been dating for a while- you don't have to of course, but, like...'

He felt even more ridiculous than before.

Shigaraki scooted closer and put his head on Dabi's shoulder.

'I would love to marry you.'

Throughout the next few days, they immediately started planning their 'wedding.' An official wedding would be out of the question for ex-villains like them, but Mr. Compress said he'd prepare a speech and act as the officiant, and Toga and Magne already claimed their spots as groomswomen.

When Shigaraki told Kurogiri about their upcoming wedding, he couldn't help but shed a tear. He was so proud to see the person he thought of as his son get married.

Dabi, however, has not been having such a great time the past few days. Of course he was happy that Shigaraki had agreed to marry him, but he couldn't help but wonder wether or not to invite his mom, Natsuo and Fuyumi to the wedding.

The entire reason as to why he wanted to take Shigaraki's last name, was because that would be the closest thing to completely cutting ties with his family he can get, but he knows that deep down, Endeavor and Shoto are the ones he really hates.

Dabi doesn't know much about healthy relationships, but he does know that he never wants to treat Shigaraki the way Endeavor treated his mom. So, he decided it was best to ask Shigaraki for his opinion on the matter, since that seemed like the most healthy and responsible thing to do.

"Tomura..." Dabi knocked on their shared bedroom's door.

"What do you wa- I mean... Yes, Touya?" Shigaraki was still trying to break the habit of snarling at people.

He was laying on the bed, not doing anything.

"Do you think I should invite some of my family to the wedding?" Dabi laid down next to him.

"Well, they're your family, but in my opinion, you should only invite people you're sure you actually want at the wedding." He hesitated for a moment. "But you probably shouldn't be asking the guy who killed his family for advice on this stuff."

They we're both quiet for a few minutes until Dabi finally spoke up.

"You know what? I won't invite them. It would only cause tension and our wedding is supposed to be a happy day. Plus, you're the only family I need."

Family. He sees him as family.

Shigaraki couldn't say anything. Instead, he just laid his head on Dabi's chest and hugged him tight.

Shigaraki is not the best with words, but with small actions like these, he still showed that he loves Dabi just as much as he loves him.

Their wedding didn't take much planning, since it would be a small event at their apartment with just the former League members attending. So, a few days later, everything was set.

Mr. Compress had finished his speech and Magne and Toga had picked out the perfect suits for the husbands-to-be and matching dresses for themselves.

As Shigaraki was getting ready, he noticed himself getting oddly nervous. It wasn't even an official wedding, but everybody was dressed nicely and was taking the whole thing very seriously.

The moment he looked in the mirror and saw himself in the navy blue suit that was picked out for him, everything felt even more real.

He sat down on the bed and tried to calm himself down without scratching his neck.

What he didn't know, was that whatever was happening outside the door, was what he really should be worried about.

Dabi was nowhere to be found.

The wedding was supposed to start in half an hour, and Dabi was gone.

"Quick! Somebody go stall Tomura!" Toga said while they all frantically tried to call Dabi.

Mr. Compress carefully opened the door to the bedroom.

"Oh, dear! You almost made me faint!" He said while dramatically pretending to faint. "You look magnificent!

Tomura ignored his antics and looked at the clock.

"What's the hold up, Atsuhiro?"

Mr. Compress still desperately tried to distract Shigaraki while Dabi was still nowhere to be seen.

In the meantime, Dabi had realized that he forgot to pick up the wedding gift he got for Shigaraki, so he quickly went out to go get it.

He just didn't think about the fact that the others might get worried.

When he came back, Toga punched him in the stomach for making everyone worry and for almost being late to his own wedding.

The only thing they had to do now, was wait for Shigaraki to come out.

Everybody got to their places and Mr. Compress was ready to give his speech.

Kurogiri went into the bedroom room to tell Shigaraki it's time to start, when he saw him struggling to tie his tie.

He looked kind of embarassed when Kurogiri saw him struggling with such a simple task.

"It's okay, Tomura." Kurogiri said as he helped him fix his tie.

He was actually happy that his help was still needed sometimes.

When Shigaraki finally walked "down the aisle", Dabi was is awe. He was only walking from the bedroom door to the living room, but the fact that that was his soon-to-be husband made it much more special.

When Shigaraki had taken his spot across from Dabi at the makeshift altar, Mr. Compress bagan his speech.

He was talking with lots of emotion in his voice and theatrical hand gestures, but Shigaraki and Dabi barely heard a word he said. They were both just staring at eachother, checking eachother out in their matching suits.

Even though they were wearing the exact same thing, they both thought the other looked much better in it.

After 15 minutes, Mr. Compress finally said the words they were both waiting to hear.

"You may now kiss the groom."

They didn't hesitate for a second and immediately slammed their lips together in a passionate kiss, not even caring that everyone was watching.

Toga and Magne giggled and squeeled excitedly. Kurogiri cried.

The newlyweds finally let go of eachother, and Dabi felt it was time to bring out the wedding gift.

"We may not have enough money for expensive rings, but I atleast wanted to give you something."

When Shigaraki opened the box, a puppy jumped out. A Corgi.

Even though he can control his quirk now, he still put his hands up as to not touch the dog.

"How long was it in the box for?" He asked concernedly.

"Relax. He was only in there for a little bit."

Dabi noticed that Shigaraki was on the verge of tears when looking at the dog.

"Wow, you care more about the dog than me? You never cry when you see me."

"Don't worry. I wouldn't trade you for the world."

Shigaraki and Dabi may not exactly be your typical picket fence family, but they had exactly what they wanted. Eachother.

[lemonhemlock]

My all time favorite angle of the Valyrian gods versus the Faith debate, is that a lot of the fics/takes around it by Team Black seem to like the Old Gods (which fair enough, I too like the creepy trees. team stark 5ever) or at least play lip service to it to make the Faith of Seven seem less cool (no one has the vision for how insane fantasy Catholicism can be except for GRRM himself) but also including Targaryen characters being respectful/kinda into the Old Gods, which KILLS me. I blame the wildly non-canonical weirwood in the Red Keep’s godswood in the show. It drives me INSANE. What is that doing there!!!!!! The Red Keep has no weirwood!!! Who planted it there???? You telling me that Maegor or Jaehaerys took the time to plant a weirwood for the Old Gods???? If I see one more fic where a Targaryen marries someone not of the old gods under a weirwood tree I’m going to kill someone.

I’m SO defensive of the weirwoods because I know none of them have delved into the fucked up human sacrifices that likely created weirwoods plus the rich symbolism that they create (hello Sansa in the Eyrie, I love you), the erasure of the North-South religious and cultural divide, and acting like the Targs would be so cool with the Old Gods for no reason is driving me nuts.

I just hate the show’s weirwood tree, it makes no sense. I will never find peace as long as I keep seeing scenes from the show set under it.

(Sorry for being insane in your inbox again )

Don't worry about it, your inbox drops lead to interesting discussions! 💚

Totally agree with you on the Old Gods & the unsavory blood ritualistic imagery (like hanging entrails from the branches of weirwood trees). I mean, it may sound heavy metal, but if we're supposed to be critical about religion,* this should definitely come under the magnifying glass, too. As is the super creepy idea that Bloodraven is spying on everyone using the weirwoodnet and manipulating historical events like that.

I also don't see why Targaryens should be Old Gods fanboys either - what could they possibly gain from this? It's such a fanon interpretation, because the old religion doesn't have any organized structure that could act as a political actor. There's this projection happening, because Christianity has flaws IRL and a fraught history, when people encounter its fantasy equivalent, they automatically think any other religion is better. I'm waiting for Cult of Starry Wisdom acolytes to come out of the woodwork and preach how much better Nyarlathotep is than the Seven Gods puts together.

As for the godswood in the Red Keep - Ned tells us it has an ancient, huge oak. That kind of tree can only grow like that over a very long period of time. There's no mention of a weirwood in KL that could have been cut down; also I don't think you can plant weirwood trees? Else I think people would do it more often in the North. I honestly think it's there just for nostalgia reasons for the audience. Though I wonder if George agreed with this addition and why. Maybe the lack of a weirwood in KL was an in-universe limitation he imposed on Bloodraven's power?

*at least that's what they think they're doing, by writing all these critical essays on how problematic the Faith is, but they never bother to do a comparative analysis with the other religions available in-universe. Or they peddle their own headcanons as fact, like how supposedly Valyrian society would have been so much less sexist than Faith-worshippers, ergo their religion should reflect that.

[acourtofthought]

i don't wanna start anything really, just have to get this off my chest, but i don't get the hype for azriel. he creeped me out when i read the books (like i get that mor isn't being forward with him, but to get to tge point in which cassian has to act as a buffer between them?? when they're all supposed to be this super close family dynamic friend group? it just made me feel uncomfortable. plus, that bonus chapter makes things even worse. he comes off as entitled and even a bit possessive, as if he is owed a mating bond/relationship with elain. and the fierceness with which he gets attatched to these two women, in short period of times developing what seems more of an obsession than a crush... just weird for me)

this is not a critique of anyone who finds him likeable, hot and all the other adjectives, btw. i would actually love to get the hype lol...

I think it's easy enough to pick out Az's good qualities and see exactly why people like him but I agree, I don't understand where people are feral for him.

I realize we all like different things but it's still difficult for me to fully grasp it.

I.E., I realize that some women are really attracted to strange men in prison. They're not wrong for their attraction, their attraction to those men doesn't effect my life therefore it's not my business. However it's still confusing to me how that attraction comes about.

The Az thing isn't quite that extreme 😂 and I realize that as a SJM future MMC, we're all supposed to eventually be into him (that's usually the point of a romance author writing about a specific guy).

So maybe it's more of a I don't understand why people are feral over him right now.

First off, I'm not sure exactly what the Az at the end of his journey is going to look like. I really have no idea how dark Az actually is or how much of his personality will remain broody and closed off. Does he like torturing people? Does he feel bad over it? Is he always going to argue against Rhys and Feyre's orders? Is he going to start being nice to people outside the IC? Are we going to see a 90 degree turn around of his character? 45 degree?

Second, a very large portion of Az's character right now is obsession over females in a really unhealthy way. Which can sometimes be thrilling in certain romances (dark romance / mafia romance) but that's not the kind of author SJM is and because of that, it's difficult for me not to recognize his behavior as a red flag in this specific series. Also, it's not sexy considering he's acting like this over two females at the same time. The best thing about the obsessive male trope in dark romances is that he's fixated on one person.

Az as an individual is a cool character.

Az as a love interest is (right now) awful to me. If I was Elain or Gwyn, I would not find him appealing if I had a front row seat to his simultaneous thoughts on Mor and his thoughts on Elain.

Try it, pretend you're Gwyn right now and have a crush on Az. But then imagine that you hear how he yearns for Mor while simultaneously jerking off to Elain's headache powder and flippantly talking about killing an ally because that ally got a bond with the third sister while his brothers are with the other two.

Now pretend you're Elain with a crush on Az. Not only are you hearing the way he talks about you to Rhys but you hear how he can't confirm being over Mor and you see him being amused by Gwyn, having admiration for Gwyn and feeling happy over the thought of her happiness.

No matter what thought Az is currently having for any one female, it's tainted by the thoughts he's having for the other two. Even though he wants to kiss Elain, he's still happier around Gwyn and not over Mor. Even though he seems amused by Gwyn and shows admiration for her, he's still got thoughts of Mor (love) and Elain (sexual) running through his mind.

It ruins the romance for me and that is why it's so difficult for me to understand the Az hype at this moment.

[strangestcase]

Questions about your view of Hyde in relationships (for research purposes and bc I want to put your version of Hyde in my mouth and chew him like gum /pos):

-How does jealously work for Hyde? Does he only feel it for certain people or in certain situations? What are situations that would make him jealous? To use current rp relationships as examples - how would he feel if Dorian started flirting with a waiter while they were on a date vs Dorian coming back covered in hickeys? Or someone flirting with Gabriel vs Gabriel being in a relationship with more than just Hyde?

-How does Hyde express love, since they seem to be unable to verbally articulate it a lot of the time? In more simple words, going by a commonly known system, what would be their love language? How do they prefer to receive love vs how do they show it?

-This is only half a relationship question but. If your Hyde sat down with a modern day psychologist and a DSM5, what diagnoses would it walk out with? How do these different things effect it’s relationships with other people?

Apologies for the several questions. Please let me know if this many questions bother you. I just want to put your Hyde in a salad spinner so very bad /pos

AAAA thank you! I love developing my little guy (horrible old man that kills)

-Hyde is a pretty jealous guy when it comes to the people he's latched on specifically. Usually they're very careless- he is disconnected from humanity in general and what any dumb human being does is NOT his business... but if it involves the very few people he tolerates, then yes, they are jealous, even possessive, with the last threads of his moral compass acting as a buffer at times to prevent him from getting downright creepy. If Dorian started flirting or making out with someone during a date he'd get more mad that he's not paying attention to it and "getting distracted".

nOW, if we're talking Gabriel, breathing in his direction would be a perfect recipe for disaster. And Hyde only lets him see other people because (through gritted teeth) thats what makes Gabriel happy. What, nobody said Hyde was a good person to date.

-They show love through physical attention and body language, like... walking over to someone, getting close, touching them, nuzzling them, the works. However, it's aware their touch puts people on edge, so ironically enough he avoids touching the people he loves the most, at least at first.

But, in general, I think their love language is, in terms of giving love, more like, quality time, you know? If he can't touch you at least it can sit by you in silence, reading a book, just... blessing you with his presence, I suppose. And this isnt just a Hyde think; Jekyll has always been like that. In terms of receiving I think he's the type to like gifts and little details like preparing a fancy date or expensive stuff, they LOVE to be pampered and made to feel special.

This means that, if Hyde REALLY loves you and does not only see you as a fucktoy OR a temporary fling, he will be simultaneously very touch starved AND very skittish. He's basically a cat. He wants to cuddle but he's afraid you will not like it, which is something that never applies to one night stands or week-long things.

-Eddie Hyde is undiagnosable <3 ok ok i was kidding. I think he'd be diagnosed with ADHD, autism, dissociative depersonalization, a nasty addiction to (gestures broadly) lots of things, and maybe also ASPD or at the very least w antisocial behaviors plus paranoia.

I think that if he was diagnosed as Jekyll the ASPD and the ADHD would have been less noticeable because Jekyll is MASKING SO MUCH it hurts, but conversely, they would have gotten the OCD label slapped on. I'm not entirely sure if Jekyll/Hyde has full on OCD but his brain is indeed intrusive thoughts central. Their thoughts are 80% HHHGMGHGM YOU DID A BAD YOU'RE GOING TO HELL FOREVERRRRRR.

If you want a honest answer: Jekyll doesn't like people very much, with few exceptions, and is INCREDIBLY arrogant and self-centered to the point he has ZERO qualms with being mean to their friends (all three of them) and his "social" persona is just an elaborate act that drains him a lot. So as Hyde he just... lets it all out and that's why he's LIKE THAT.

And? please? dont put Hyde in a salad spinner, he will get dizzy.

[these-detestable-hands]

okay pie i need you to be a hater with me for a sec. what do you not like about tgaa im fascinated by that

OOO BOY

I'll be very brief about everything

3d: the models and animation do not have anywhere near as much emotion as og trilogy (compare literally any PW killer breakdown to Ashley Graydon)

Investigation phase: less stuff to examine and half of investigation is just Sholmes being a silly goober which I do like but I missed silly stuff like ladder/stepladder or just extra dialog.

Characters: the writing feels very shallow in some places. PW prosecutors are amazing because they're all freaks who are obsessed with Phoenix but Van Zieks doesn't even come close to that. He's described as being scary and we're supposed to be scared of the reaper thing but he's shockingly cooperative in court and his hatred of Ryunosuke is racism, and even that is mild compared to how Franziska would whip him and call him foolish like 5 times in a single sentence. You're not scared of someone if you're just told to be, we need to be shown it as well, or at least have us learn about him more than a minute pre trial to build up his reputation as terrifying.

Ryunosuke and Susato also just feel a bit flat to me. They're kinda just stoic without the small extra details that make Phoenix and Maya's dynamic so good. Again, part of what really makes PW so good is the extra stuff when examining. It also gave you more of an insight into how Phoenix and Maya interact with each other but you lose that a bit in tgaa.

Iris is just a chid prodigy, never been a huge fan of those. Franziska was fine because she just did one thing and her being an obnoxious child prodigy all mostly happened off screen, plus there were consequences (eg, she now acts really weird). Meanwhile, Iris has a degree, is an inventor and an accomplished writer on top of also doing lots of house chores.

I think having Iris be a child prodigy is fine, but they need to let her fail, be wrong and be obnoxious so she isn't just a Mary Sue.

Final case: oh my GOSH the final case was so boring. The defendant being Gina is fine because Gina is good and I liked the twist of Sholmes getting shot so it's limited how much he can help you, but. Ough.

Again going back to PW, everything is so personal. Turnabout goodbyes is all about Edgeworth and his problems. Phoenix is so passionate to defend him because of their past and the finale of having MVK turn out to be the killer is so perfect because it's so personal to the Mcs.

But then in gaa1-5, Gina is the defendant because she was at the wrong place at the wrong time. Sure, she was there out of love for Iris, but the murder of Windibank was an entirely parallel event that had nothing to do with us. The defendant could've just as easily have been a random new character and the story wouldn't change much because Ryunosuke is passionate about defending everyone. I also don't like the peephole twist.

Ashley Graydon also is just not a good killer to end a game with. MVK and Engarde (including 3-5 in this comparison isn't fair bc 3-5 is the finale of the trilogy) are absolutely amazingly written villains. I don't have to go into detail why MVK is amazing you get it. Engarde plays dumb the entire time before the reveal that he's a bitch!!

But Graydon! You know from the first scene he's in that he's an evil bitch and not even in a fun way, he's just very plain and boring for a final villain.

Uh tldr: good premise and some parts are good (jury, soundtrack, character designs, gaa1-4) but it feels like a first draft

[mermaidsirennikita]

Lol okay I have to ask who you think the worst bton hero is? (Is it Philip? For me it's Philip)

Yeah dude, it's Philip. I absolutely loathe him. Like, right off the bat, let's get one thing clear. He raped Marina. By his own account, she was just laying there (crying, I think?) non-responsive, absolutely in no mental state to consent. Do I think this is historically inaccurate? Nope. But this is... Br*dgerton. Like, there is hard stuff in this series (especially in When He Was Wicked) but it's never truly dark. Plus, there is zero commitment to seriousness or accuracy in these novels; Anthony and Kate marry because he got caught trying to suck bee venom out of her boob Benedict's book is a Cinderella retelling. In general, we don't expect romance heroes to act like--accurate. They're supposed to be romantic. And so much of TSPL is lighthearted, and to have this framed as something Philip had to go through~ (when like, he knew Marina didn't want it, and he absolutely did not have to do that; hell, even if we're going to argue "but heirs", which is not an excuse, he had! a son!)... gross as hell.

And on top of that, he's an exceptionally boring uncharming man, who's like "but plants", and seems to have little to no interest in raising his kids properly until Eloise swoops in. "But Maria and Captain Von Trapp" the difference being that like... aside from Von Trapp being an otherwise hot and clearly principled man, he IS involved in the raising of his kids--like, maybe too much lol. He's just too strict with them. He obviously CARES, or else he wouldn't have them so in line. And he caves IMMEDIATELY upon Maria setting him straight and like, becomes a teddy bear.

Philip is so flat. And so dull. Then you add in him doing what he did to Marina? His wife's mental illness and suicide (after he pushed her further by assaulting her?) being His Tragic Backstory? No.

I mean tbh, the only Bton heroes I truly like are Anthony (also a dick, for the record, but a fun one) and Michael (sexy lovely genuinely caring puts it down, the only Bton hero I buy as a seducer; she's all "Anthony is a rake" lmao okay the only woman we see him with besides Kate is an opera singer he's financially supporting... Michael doesn't need to put the money down, once he starts really trying with Francesca she literally has to run away to Scotland to avoid dropping her panties, and he still just follows her and makes her do it anyway). Everyone else ranges from "dislike" (Philip/Benedict/Colin) to "I forget him completely" (Gareth and Gregory... if it was death or recounting a single detail from those books... I'd be screwed) or "middling to fair" (Simon; who, unlike Anthony, I find much more interesting on the show).

[3gremlins]

having astarion musings playing through the final release version of the game with seeing his background now (i don't remember it being in the EA but i could also have just missed it). might be vaguely spoilery so cut for that plus i'll tag it (i'm still only in act 1 tho, so if i guess anything correctly i was just lucky. also don't tell me if you know!)

so if you read the background description under his section in the inspiration menu, you'll notice he's got the charlatan background. This bg is all about deception and manipulation, like you'd generally pick it if your character was a con artist.

This *could* be just a lying for survival kind of background (or b/c you were kinda bored and lost and got into fooling people for fun/to protect yourself and your insecurities and aren't at your core, malicious- the moist von lipwig [discworld] type as it were, where you can be redirected in a less destructive path) but I was thinking it would be SO interesting if he really is lying about EVERYTHING.

like if it was just a lying for survival bg, you'd think he'd instead have a criminal or urchin bg, like your life was rough and you did what you had to, but the charlatan choice makes me think we're supposed to be clued into him not being at all what he says (like what if there is no vampire lord at all and he's setting you up/using you for some kind of con/manipulating your tav in such a way to benefit him later at his true villain reveal?? just interesting to frame what he tells you in light of his background/what he gets inspo from).

obviously it would hurt a bunch in the romance/friendship arcs, but i also would love to see something that wild play out (i feel like larian games are tricksy enough that they might but idk i could also be reading to much into it). but what if the creepy scar/writing on his back was actually put there by someone trying to stop him and if you help him translate it/get rid of it/etc, you're actually unleashing something terrible?

unfortunately my chars tend to be very ride or die so as long as a character's not actively hurting animals or children (and also himbo/thembos so they're not going to be that aware of deception), they'll probably stick it out and it'd go from "i can make him better" to "he has made me worse" XD

[supercantaloupe]

lying face down on the floor

didn't get my internship. autism swag too strong for the kennedy center i guess i mean why else would i be rejected from three separate internship positions already. they couldn't handle me (<- trying to act cool about losing an opportunity in her dream job/field)

but it does mean i can go to spain this summer. which. i mean. spain is cool. excited to go back. and i love getting to travel and play. even if i do have to pay for the trip (on a scholarship, but still) myself instead of doing a job and getting paid for it.

although it is technically a mission trip with a korean church group's youth orchestra so i have no idea if i'll like. have anyone to hang out with or relate to. idk i guess i'll just bring a book to read while everyone's in bible study or whatever. not like i've had much luck in the past making friends with anyone whilst traveling even when they're my peers...except when i went to italy with my own youth orchestra in high school...i always get along better with other music people but like. idk. i don't see myself getting super buddy buddy with a bunch of kids and i have no idea who there'll be in terms of other adults to associate with either. idk. i'll enjoy the scenery and food at least

i need to look for a new job for the summer now tho. probably retail or food service. which. will probably be soul sucking. but. i need something to do and some way to earn cash. and it's just until the end of august...at least i have the fellowship lined up for next fall thank fucking gd. if i didn't. idk. i'd just melt into a puddle of goo or something

oh and i have to cancel my gig with another local orchestra too. i was supposed to play EH on scheherezade for a concert in june with them but it's during the spain trip so. i feel bad about cancelling on them but at least it's with a month and a half of warning. plus i offered to lend/rent them my instrument cause i don't need it for my trip. that way at least they can have someone cover the part without me and maybe i can make a little bit of money from it...not much tho i don't have the heart to charge a lot

well i went over to see the apartment again and got a few more things sorted out there. i'll be switching to the smallest room rather than the biggest now which is fine cause i don't need a big bedroom and the rent is cheaper and very reasonable for this city. i get extra storage and desk space in the basement too since i have the smallest bedroom. and i'm buying a bunch of furniture from an outgoing tenant including bed desk chair and dresser for relatively cheap too so i don't need to get or move any big pieces like that myself, convenient. i'll probably move in first week of may and boy am i looking forward to it. i want undergrad to be over already i am so tired of being here

oh also dan texted today to tell me he's sick! fucking wonderful! he said he got someone from the conservatory to cover which i think he means for tonight's rehearsal? honestly i don't even care at this point if he's out for the concert tomorrow i or his backup contact will cover the first parts for him but i will go literally fucking insane if he's still out of it by sunday. he says it's just something he ate and he should be fine by tomorrow but You Can Imagine Why I'm Not The Most Confident. i mean fucking hell i haven't even met the second player he got for my trio yet...we're supposed to rehearse tomorrow afternoon for my recital sunday morning. and brother i feel like an e string about to snap

[sweepseven]

Do you think there was a way to make Banana Spheel as a show? Whenever I saw the marketing I wish it went for more of a cabaret style like Zumanity instead of Vaudeville.

No. And to this day I am blown away that that idea ever made it out of its first meeting. Kooza had only very recently gotten its act together by that point so I suppose I recognize their interest in working with David Shiner again so soon. But as a Cirque fan and a New Yorker, it is still unreal to me that they really said, "sure, put the weird clown show on Broadway."

The biggest slip up was (and continued to be for some time after) Cirque's insistence that it deserves a permanent place on an NYC stage. It wasn't yet the corporate force it is today, so it didn't have quite the brand recognition outside of Vegas to draw customers in on the CdS brand alone. Plus Banana Shpeel had a fundamental misunderstanding of basically every audience it could attract:

1. NYC tourists (the true Broadway market): would prefer a traditional Broadway show, which this is not.

2. Existing Cirque fans: not likely to go all the way out of their way to NYC if they're used to seeing one touring show every couple of years.

3. NYC locals: have probably the widest array of entertainment options in the world and the highest standards in the world to match.

4. Local NYC Cirque fans: there's like ten of us total and we're all colossal snobs 😈

Plus it was vaudeville! A dated, polarizing genre that probably no one outside of clowning has a real fondness for! You can't even be nostalgic for it because no one who liked it the first time is alive to like it the second! It was both different for Cirque and different for Broadway, which meant it would have had to be really exceptional to work. Buuut it wasn't. It was actively bad. And what's worse, we saw them repeat some of these mistakes with Zarkana and all of them with Paramour, too. (Wintuk gets a pass because it was seasonal lol.) I love Cirque and I love NYC, and I wish the former would finally learn that the latter adores it as a visiting lover but will never accept it as a full-time partner.

Maybe, maybe it could have worked if Cirque had done it cabaret-style like you said and held it off-Broadway in a smaller theatre. But they never would have taken that hit to their prestige, and here we are. RIP BS. 🍌