#whereas the series itself didn’t lol

[akkivee]

Next time we see Hitoya he has to be the biggest loser imaginable. We need the gag of Jakurai just retelling stories from when they were in school together. We need loser boy Hitoya—

i think it is a huge missed opportunity to like, not have at least one (☝️) middle school hitoya joke lmao. bat’s being taken pretty seriously tho and their comedic value seems to be falling on kuukou lol so i wouldn’t be surprised if we don’t get any school stories between them 🤔

[jarimaa]

Gojo Satoru and Iori Utahime/ contrast

This is not particularly a ship post, I don’t mind the ship either. (I just want to analyze them outside of romance). It's just that I was rereading Jujutsu Kaisen manga and had some drafts of characters that struck out to me, Utahime being one of them, Goodwill event reread made me appreciate so many characters even more, because this is the arc where all students and their stories are fleshed out. These characters really develop from what we have seen till now in the manga.

Utahime stood out me as a character the moment she was introduced during the first read itself (and nah, it was not her scar), this time around I decided to investigate her character more, if it was any other series I probably wouldn’t have, but it’s Gege Akutami, his minor characters are written beautifully with unique roles.

As I mentioned before, she stood out, because we literally didn’t know any other teacher except Gojo in the story, the first teacher to be introduced in the story after Gojo was her.

From her reactions to Gojo clearly showed she was not his fan. That was like pretty standard reaction to Gojo in vicinity, pretty much what we saw from other characters initial intro as well, Megumi finds him idiotic, Nanami doesn’t respect him, Gakuganji hates him, Shoko is apathetic, Ichiji is scared of him and called him lazy (Gege really made sure to tell the readers how annoying Gojo is lol). But since she was a fellow teacher, I wanted to know whether she aligns with Gojo or the likes of Gakuganji, is she with the Higher ups or much like Shoko, doesn’t care about politics all together. Her shrine maiden outfit was interesting as well (it’s like Kikyo/Kagome from Inuyasha), that was also interesting to say the least.

Utahime, from her posture and speech patterns appears to be a very elegant woman. Her worry regarding Miwa, prioritizing safety of the students, being genuinely happy that they are safe, gave us the conclusion that she is a very responsible and good teacher to her students.

Her alignment with Gojo was quickly answered as well since Gojo trusted her enough with a very important task and information. Gankuganji didn’t include her when he gave the task to Kyoto students to kill Itadori, I believe it was because either she wouldn’t agree to it, or convince her students not to follow him.

Her interactions with Gojo also stood out, since there are many characters who don’t respect Gojo but trust him, she is one of them. However, no one really went “out of the way” like her and threw a cup of tea at him. Nanami thinks work is shit in general, he has same kind of distaste for Gojo that he had for his boss, Shoko doesn’t overtly react to anything, Ijichi in general has low self-esteem. All these characters don’t break out of their usual character patterns while interacting with Gojo. Whereas Utahime, who is more like a responsible teacher and calm headed individual, breaks from her usual character with Gojo. Her dislike of Gojo is very genuine. I think that for a no-nonsense individual person like Utahime, she does not appreciate Gojo’s personality and mightier than thou behaviour. Utahime wants respect as fellow sorcerer and senior, she does not behave insecure, she doesn’t even hide her scar with mask or makeup shows how unbothered she is about it, I like that about her.

From what we know about the past Arc of Gojo, Utahime is the only confirmed senior of Gojo, Getou, and Shoko. Mei Mei is most likely older than Utahime (mei calls Utahime by her given name, but uta addresses her as ‘Mei-san’, I think she is at least 3-4 years or even more older than Utahime, personally). Kasukabe was not even mentioned in that arc so he is ruled out as well. Utahime has probably studied in the same school as them, and that’s why she is pretty close with Shoko. I think it's also the reason Gojo trusts her so much, since he has known her from the days of his youth.

Gojo however doesn’t trust Mei Mei, its was quite clear in goodwill arc, but for some reason he does acknowledge Mei, and calls her with honorific ‘mei-san’. Mei is a woman who grooms her brother and uses him as part of her technique, she is apparently more respected by Gojo than a genuinely good human like Utahime. Thats probably because Gojo puts strength on pedestal. Mei was ready to do anything to become strong (so that she can earn more money lol), I think Gojo respects that, whereas I don’t think Utahime prioritises strength over the connections she has, which can be considered, at least in Gojo’s eyes (cause he cant really relate to normal human experience), as weak which stuns her individual growth as sorcerer. Utahime isn't selfish or someone with ego, she is one of the very few adults we have seen that actually care about students on personal level.

From her limited manga panels and Databook information, we can make out a few things.

• She IS smart and doesn’t believe in what is told to her outright. When Gojo pointed out about the possibility of mole, she didn't believe him immediately, rather when the attack in the event happened it was then she acknowledged Gojo’s theory to hold weight. She doesn’t react without enough information, as shown from the past arc with her mission with Mei Mei. I would conclude that her specialty is her level-headed thinking.

• She genuinely cares about the well-being of people around her on a more personal human level, as shown with her she interacts with her students and how she wants Shoko to quit smoking. Unlike many jujutsu sorcerers, she is not selfish or possess ego. Her kindness is also returned as every single one of her students loves her.

Weak Utahime?

I personally dont even think her it's relevant to her characterization, but maybe that's just me. I think her character shines when it's contrasted with Gojo's, but fighting or not fighting doesn't matter much to me, being stronger doesn't make you good character. But a simple answer to her being weak would be no. From this statement of Gege alone.

If she had no offence at all, she would probably be grade-less like Shoko/Ijichi. Well, she is not. That means she fights. She has quick reflexes from what we have seen with her encounter with the dude with luck CT. Also, she was quick enough to react during the attack from Kenjaku.

She is working in Kyoto, the capital of the jujutsu world, and she is directly under the noses of higher-ups. The fact that she is a head teacher in Kyoto is itself commendation because it’s not a position just anyone not worthy enough would have been appointed to. Higherups love traditional techniques, as mentioned by Panda during encounter with Haraki and Kirara.

I believe Utahime’s technique is one that higher-ups would love. They would not put someone with less knowledge or capability as in charge at all. She is not just a mere high school teacher. Her position is the same as Gojo, but in Kyoto, she supervises sorcerers.

Her not being grade one is irrelevant to me as well, many sorcerers in jjk don't seem like their grades plus their is a lot of politics surrounding grade system itself, so those rankings are probably not even correct markers of strength or strength areas. She has survived till date is impressive enough, haibara died early (both him and nanami were unable to deal with a grade 1 curse back in the day, that’s how fast sorcerers die) She is a full fledge sorcerer. She takes missions as well if we go by this panel from 0.5.

Gojo and Utahime contrast.

• Gojo’s relationship with his students is well, decent. He goes out of his way to teach and save strong ones (I can’t imagine him being a good teacher to, say, Momo or Miwa). He also literally sent Inumaki and Panda to get their asses completely destroyed by Geto cause he knew it would piss off Yuta and give him his powerup, not so great move for a teacher. He recognises their struggles but at the same time doesn’t seem to understand them. Save Yuuji and Yuuta, no one really respects him. Whereas Utahime’s students adore and protect her, they solve their problems together. They genuinely want the system to change and let their intent know about this during all the vs battels in Goodwill arc. Kyoto kids were really trying Tokyo kids to understand the problems in the system, but all of their common remarks were ‘I don’t care’.

(Gojo is a nuanced character, he ain't this perfect human people make him out to be, while he does care about people around him, he does NOT understand them well, this comes from the solitude he lives in. While he does not want to be alone, he also doesn't understand anyone who is not as strong as him, which furthers the gap between him and others, his entire character is quite tragic honestly.)

• Utahime’s CURSED TECHNIQUE was a delight. It can boost anyone within a zone, including herself. How it contrasts with Gojo, you might ask. Gojo is the strongest when he fights alone. Everyone else just drags him down, it is spelt out to us multiple times in the story. Whereas Utahime can help even someone like Ichiji cast a powerful barrier, at the same time give Gojo a great boost. Gojo’s technique literally separates him from the world, but Utahime brings them within her zone.

(Utahime technique was brilliant! Its honestly like literal manifestation of how she is as a human herself. She values connections, and her technique is probably THE best support technique in jjk. It makes others strong, including the caster. She is dragging no one down, and no one is left behind. Its almost like people feel weaker with Gojo around, and they get stronger with Utahime around, lmao.)

• This brings another contrast, individual/isolation and collective/connection. Utahime asks her students to get along, they even fight together, have each other’s back, and are even emotionally more connected to each other. While Gojo tells Megumi that everyone dies alone, and jujutsu is an individual sport, he is teaching his students to value individual strengths more.

(Needless to say that both things are quite important, but Gojo’s conversation with Megumi was quite interesting because, ironically, Gojo died because of the very same reason, he fought sukuna all alone, not that anyone could have helped him without dragging him. Also funny cause the reason students and others were able to defeat sukuna was because they worked together. Yuji came out of that cog mentality, where he was trying to discard his humanity to become a curse killing machine, to become more human/more himself once again, and flipped the game which was being played on sukuna's rules, where superior ego/strength wins, and made it about humanity, where yuji saved megumi and defeated Sukuna, love yuji my boy.)

• Their CONNECTIONS with other people are also something to look at. Gojo’s character central theme is his isolation/solitude. Many ppl say how he was used and never saw as humam in the story, well its not incorrect, but it's not completely accurate either. Most of the people he trusts didn't see him that way, including his students, they might not be as close to him or even might not respect him, but they always saw him as human, their whole frustration was that he HIMSELF didn't see as one, he behaved mightier than thou, thats why canonically Utahime and Nanami really dislike his company. He is the cause of his own solitude, shoko literally says, "What do you mean alone? I was there," shows us that much. He draws that line by himself. In chapter 236, he even acknowledges that, despite loving people around him, he didn’t understand them, and wasn't understood by them. He saw others as "different" than him, him and geto were "strong" according to him, means they were like "same" species, to him others were different species, he can love them and be loved by them, but there is no deep understanding. There was a reason he longed for a bond like once he had with geto, where they were equally strong. That's why he tries to reach out to sukuna, he projected his own isolation on sukuna, while sukuna doesn’t feel that way, sukuna has entirely accepted his solitude, he has completely discarded his humanity, he just wants to be the pinnacle. Gojo isn't much different from sukuna, he is quite self-centered and egoistic himself, it's just that, if Sukuna is "perfected ego" then Gojo’s ego is not perfect, he didn’t entirely disregard his humanity, he did crave connections, that's why in that battle, sukuna won. In a battle of strength and ego, a perfected ego always wins.

I can say for sure Shoko is canonically closer to Utahime than Gojo. She got so worried Utahime didn’t call for two days, Utahime sends her parcels to Shoko, she stopped smoking cause Utahime insisted. Utahime probably bonds with her on a more personal and human level. Unlike gojo, Utahime is very very human, she doesn’t possess that kind of ego, Shoko and Utahime’s friendship last more than a decade but Gojo couldn't even keep that one bond (Geto) he created with someone else, because what initially brought Gojo and Geto together was strength, but what keeps Uta and Sho together is human connection. Utahime is genuinely more loved and is closer to people. Gojo is well, he is alone and on top above everyone else.

(Again, not to say Gojo and Shoko are not close at all, Shoko is also one of the people Gojo trusts, but she is definitely much more closer to Utahime.)

Utahime is everything Gojo is not and vice-versa. Gojo can do a lot of things others can, but if there is one thing that he absolutely can’t do, is what Utahime can (making others stronger).

The problem with these two is that, even though they have aligned goals, shared values, same path, and a lot of trust in each other. They DON'T really respect each other's way of life. Utahime can't respect Gojo’s self-centered behavior that he seems unaware about (lol) and the way he is unable to understand others more personally by deluding himself in his head that strength is needed to form connections, neither can Gojo respect Utahime who doesn’t seem to care much about strength in first place.

On paper/in theory, their team is great if they work together. They complement each other, but Gojo is still stuck in his own head about his isolation. Granted, Utahime can not provide him the satisfaction of equal fight and equal strength, but why does she need to? Her beauty is that she isn't like Gojo. She values bonds, she knew her students so well that she was able to find out about mole through the process of elimination. Watching Gojo and Utahime working together was a delight. The 200% hollow purple technique was amazing.

The problem with Gojo is that all his relations will end up in tragedy, because his entire character is tragic itself. He couldn't even maintain one bond he formed in his life and also couldn't even be the absolute strongest and pinnacle. He couldn't even discard his humanity entirely to become like Sukuna, but he couldn't even fully accept it to become weaker and more humane, he wanted to die fighting someone stronger, he loved his powers and strength. So he did end up tragic, but as he himself said, he was satisfied with it, so who am I to take that away from him.

I am pretty sure Utahime will live in the end or at least I want her to live, but it's Gege's story (a beautiful one as well) so it's his wish. I do wish some more interactions with her and students.

Peace out ✌️

Again, be respectful people. I am a jjk fan, and I sometimes like to write analysis. I like to stay far, far away from discourse, so please don't do that here.

[hatosaur]

FINALE THOUGHTS.........AAAUAUGHKGHSLFJSLJFSLJFSLFJSLFJ

i’m fuckin floored.

i’ve been feeling this way since the first episode, but it really and truly feels like i finally got to experience the last of us the way people did in 2013. i was so late to the series. i’d watched the cutscene movie before, but i only really played the first game AFTER i played the second.

i acknowledge the things they got wrong about story, the pacing issues, the misunderstanding of ellie’s character in ep 8, but this show is so, so special to me. to see these characters in a whole new light, re-examined for the new medium, was everything i could’ve ever wanted from anything in the franchise.

when i got hyperfixated to tlou in 2020, i didn’t really know exactly why. i thought, “maybe it’s because i’m a pandemic and so are they, ellie’s a lesbian who has a complex relationship with her father, and so am i.” but now i know that it’s because it’s a dark game about a dark world where dark things happen BUT it’s not about the “darkness of humanity” like everyone says; it’s about love. that’s all it’s ever been about. that’s the beauty of the series.

(sure hope i’m not sounding like craig when i talk about it like that lol)

i don’t really know why i doubted whether or not they could pull off the last stretch in 44 min, but they did; in fact, they knocked it outta the fuckin park. obviously, it felt much longer in the game because of gameplay segments. the episode itself felt like it ran for just as long as it needed to.

we got the good ellie and joel bonding bits! these really showcased what we can’t really see in the game. what’s artful about the game is that during the parts where ellie is spacing out because of what happened in colorado, the story relies on us observing how different she is from before and feeling that sadness that what had happened changed her, with joel and in his stead; in the show, however, it’s all joel. we get to see his sadness over seeing how different she is and that’s the strength of the show. the fact that joel’s emotions and feelings are emphasized and used as the narrative driving force for what he does in the final act. i think i’ll be defending these changes in character for the rest of my fuckin life.

side tangent: i love the subtle differences between game-ellie and show-ellie. i talked a LOT about the differences between the joel’s, but never really the ellie’s. in the scene where joel and ellie look at the giraffes, game-ellie is so optimistic about her “purpose” to the point of brushing off the potential consequences joel brings up. show-ellie is quietly hopeful, more reserved. both reacts fit their versions; game-ellie focused a lot on the bright side, whereas show-ellie’s trauma is entirely different because of the different and admittedly minor circumstances presented by the show. with that, we’re able to see how different the outcomes where and i think it’s fascinating.

it’s strange to think about, since ellie’s whole thing is being a brash kid, but overall, game-ellie was more apologetic, squeamish in a flighty kinda way, and anxious. show-ellie is meaner, more ferocious, more foolhardy; it’s like they jacked her characteristics up a few points. i like this new vision of her a whollllle lot. there’s really no beating her being played by an actual kid too. major plus.

back to the episode. the star of the show was obviously the big scene in the hospital. i LOVE this scene. you’re not in joel’s shoes this time. you have to watch him kill every. single. person. that he encounters in the hospital. it’s different to play the video game and do this yourself because you’re meant to be joel; now you have to watch what you probably did (if you played the game), free of control of the situation, and witness the weight of this decision. it’s shot to gruesome and horrifying that this one guy is killing an entire building of people.

and it’s only further shown how monstrous the act is when joel enters the surgery room and speaks in monotone, like he’s a machine on autopilot.

from there, the episode plays out pretty much the same way it does in the game (EXCEPT for joel’s lie. which i found interesting. like what is this change going to do later on?) and it ends just as beautiful. no extra scenes. just the cut to the credits. what a show.

this post is already long but i find it funny how in the bts, bella’s like, “ellie knows he’s lying,” probably because that was what neil intended from the getgo and he informed them of this, but it’s so crazy because people spent years debating what it meant (which, again, i missed out on and will never know the complexity of because i played part first 😋✌). def one of the those moments where i envy the people going in blind because i’d lose my mind.

ANYWAY. really great show. i loved it soooo much. i give it a 9. generous i know but it’s tlou, cmon. cannot waitttttt for season 2 and for people to shit themselves all over again in anger.

[michellemisfit]

hey you! can you believe it’s the end of the year? 🥳✨🥂

to wrap up another fucking fantastic year of loving on ian & mickey & each other, please share:

your favorite thing you created this year

a fanfic that you can’t wait to reread

a piece of fan art you can’t stop thinking about

happy new year! cheers to another go around the sun! xx

I was just about to start doing my make up and get dressed, ready to go out and greet 2023. But I’ll totally stop for this!! 🙌 Thank you @gallawitchxx for including me 🥰

1. I should say my drawings for the Gallavich Gift Exchange, seeing as it’s my first piece of fanart, and I only write fic once every three years or so lol

But GGE happened like 5 minutes ago, whereas before that I spent about 6 months working my arse off to find perfect matches for our boys for my Gallacats 🐈‍⬛🐈, and I’m still really proud of like 90% of them, and downright smug about 20% of them. Including the below. Which never got the love I felt it deserved. - I was pleased as punch when I thought of this match, and then managed to find the perfect pictures for it. - angst as fuck, sure, but clever… right?

I still haven’t worked out how to link to a tag search result, so here’s the link to the original post for the above (sad Ian), and you can hit the 🐈‍⬛🐈 tag from there, if you fancy browsing my Gallacats :)

2. A fanfic I always always always go back to is @gallavichy’s Cooperative Gameplay. However I have literally just finished re-reading that five days ago, so that will tide me over for a couple of months, hopefully! lol

So instead… I must say that after all of the hard core socialising and all of the fancy food that Christmas brought, I have been craving the peace and quite and simple pleasures of… maybe a dingy little diner? 🤔

Just this perfect place, where you get left to your own devices, have coffee, have a piece of toast, work your way up to some good food, eventually good company, and then one day you slowly fall in love… @loftec’s None The Wiser, anyone?

3. I have adored @mariemarion’s work since back in the Shadowhunters fandom, and decided - for the first time ever - to commission artwork this year. I loved the entire process, and I’m obsessed with both pieces she made for me!

I would also be remiss if I didn’t given shout out to @steorie whose sketch of Ian and Mickey’s faces is one of the first Shameless fanart that immediately made itself at home in my brain.

And that was before realising just how much colour stephi manages to pack into her pieces of art, making me wish I wasn’t such a basic pencil bitch… haha

And I’d like to send some love to @suzy-queued for her Kinktober Series. The pieces were clever, funny, silly, hot, and often downright filthy… all of which is GOOD, of course! But I also admired the fact that Deena completed every single day of the challenge. Crazy inspiring, that! Hats off to you!

[fideidefenswhore]

Thoughts on the new AB series trailer?

general thoughts before i dive in,

this project is from the same creators/producers as the last czars about the romanovs, which was...trash, respectfully (tbf, they did actually cover the pogroms, which was shocking but, uh...other than that), so i don’t have high hopes. my expectations are that this will, to some extent, be trashy. there are some historians as panelists on this series whose work i really admire, i’m looking forward to hearing from them, but ultimately they didn’t have creative control, so i’m tempering my expectations with that knowledge. 

so...yeah, it will probably be sensationalistic and trashy to some degree (i mean, i think that they’ve cast two soap stars as the leads is...a hint unto itself), i will probably have some issues with it. and yet, i don’t really mind, as i have that buddha nature ❤️

*cracks knuckles*

ok, let's begin:

the headband of maroon pipecleaners, the camo-esque pattern of the gown, the weird glitter-sequin coupling on the square neckline... my eyes are starving for beauty.jpeg

i’m guessing this is mary boleyn, but the way she’s asking it does not give off the vibe that she’s asking about someone mary herself has slept with before? more on that later (altho if this docuseries is going to argue the possiblity that mary boleyn wasn’t henry’s mistress, i believe it’ll be the first...beyond that, if they argue their affair ended before her marriage to carey, the same)

what if i told you i’m a mastermind? kinda vibe.

tbh, the idea that anne mandela effected henry viii into proposing marriage (second only to the depiction that she mentioned it as a joke, he took it seriously, and then she couldn’t back down from it...i mean, i would sort of potentially enjoy watching this even more, so long as it wasn’t some kind of TOBG bullshit, if only because it affords her more agency and that’s always more compelling to me than a character falling into something ipso facto ‘accidentally’) is so batshit that i’m kind of here for it (i mean, this is a docudrama, so. potentially i could enjoy that even if on the face of it is ludicrous; beyond marrying anne of cleves after their first meeting, there’s few times one can point to where henry did something he didn’t really want to do) 

then again, given that this season will be three episodes, as per one of the contributors on twitter, this ☝️ exchange could just as easily be about henry percy. i almost think it fits that better. 

this 👇 could be about settling for being henry viii’s mistress, or it could be about james butler (also in wolsey’s household at the time) versus henry percy as marital options for anne (assuming this is wolsey, which...yeah, i’ll go out on a limb, lol:

and one assumes this is henry percy:

particularly because she’s wearing the B necklace here...

whereas it seems like in scenes where she’s queen, she wears the HA pendant:

let’s continue.

well, she’s not wrong.

‘in an age’, well, i’d like to say we’re well beyond that age. but!

ok, let’s get down to the crux of the matter-- this seems to primarily be a documentary about henry & anne’s relationship (to call it a ‘romance’ has earned several, including the above, accusations of ‘abuse apologism’... even by one of the historians on the panel, so . interesting they wanted to contribute to this, but whatever). a lot of panic has been made about this, but the last on the subject, LWCH, did, by all accounts, treat anne’s predecessor fairly and poignantly? lipscomb said henry&anne were cruel to catherine, and even visited and paid reverence to her memorial. anne’s stepdaughter was not derided by the presenter, but was, for the most part, ignored (sort of an issue in and of itself, but i’m failing to recall any recent AB-centric drama that did not depict her fairly...the recent amc-adapted series was a very sympathetic portrayal, if not an in-depth one, but then, it was a miniseries)

so, getting into that (considering the focus on him in the promo photo releases, he seems to dip in and out scant times):

me @ the possibility of an actual portrayal of the “great reverence and a joyful countenance” moment  👇

SO IT’S GONNA BE FOREVER

OR IT’S GONNA GO DOWN IN FLAA-AAMES

real talk, there were two recorded fires during the time in which anne was queen. the first, in the summer of 1534, took down the charing cross mews/stables, which were adjacent to whitehall. the second, more infamous, was the ‘fire in  her bedchamber’ of january 1536. considering the first is very little-known, the shot is of a bed and its hangings, and the second incident is now firmly a part of the tudor zeitgeist, my money is on the latter.

that, or it’s a heavy-handed metaphor for an incendiary sex life. which, like...

and then i peeped the borman influence (borman and weir are thick as thieves, fwiw), and i believe i’ve tracked it down to the second:

going for the recusant tradition, are we? 

henry in black, anne in yellow...it’s pretty easy to ascertain what/where/when this scene is meant to be. 

poor harried henry, won’t anyone think of how he’s suffered? /s

in the end, chapuys’ interpretation of this dynamic seems to be the one that wins most docuseries:

the king himself is not ill-natured.... it is this Anne who has put him in this perverse and wicked temper, and alienates him from his former humanity 

for whatever reason, the concept/framing of this narrative is very attractive/appealing to people. the idea that henry was innately good and evil temptress anne just did her utmost to divorce him from his humanity dies really, really hard, it’s...biblical, really. isn’t it sad that this harridan henpecked him into exiling catherine, executing thomas more, etc. 

track it all the way down, though, and you see the cracks. was there animosity towards, and blame placed upon, anne after, say, the execution of thomas more? probably, but there’s more that indicates henry defended from her that (violently, even, is the implication, by contemporary report, during the same month: “[the king] nearly murdered his own fool, a simple and innocent man, because he happened to speak well in his presence of the Queen and Princess, and called the concubine "ribaude" and her daughter "bastard” [....] he has now been banished from Court” ) than encouraged it/partook/ than otherwise... (the story of him tearfully blaming her for that execution during a game of dice arrives only in the 17th century). the truth, as lucy wooding has said, is really more intricate than most narratives about henry allow. 

anyway, for whatever it is worth (considering all he did regardless...probably not very much) i do think henry wanted to be good, but i don’t agree that anne alienated him from his humanity. i think kingship/royalty did a pretty bang-up job of that on its own. the only grain of truth to this is that, i think, in henry becoming an even more supreme authority (a process/progress in which anne was very active), it enabled him to come to the place where he was the ultimate arbiter and this is, ultimately, other factors aside, what killed her. it was his judgement, as ultimate religious authority, that their marriage was invalid and his that she wanted to kill him and would have first, his convenient acceptance of a story that tied loose ends and absolved him of any blame: that their failure to have sons was hers alone, that the miscarriages were not lost children of his own but products of her adultery (i don’t think enough attention is paid to that the adultery accusations only begin on october 1533, i think that’s monumentally important re: his psychology on this).

stray observations until i move to under the read-more for sensitive subject matter:

uncanny. 

my initial reaction to the casting of henry was, probably not beefy enough to play even GM henry. then i peeped his insta and went...maybeso.gif

he’s posted about this project a fair amount, whereas the actress that plays AB, while very active on social media, has not, afaik..idk what to make of that, if anything. 

wolsey, wyd?

if they do this well, emotional catharsis. if not, voyeuristic. 

arriving at what i’m most concerned about in this trailer:

so... i mean, potentially i am reading this wrong (im autistic, so tbh, i don’t always pick up emotional/tonal cues well, whether onscreen or otherwise) but he looks very sexually intense/angry here and she is...crying?

so. not great, admittedly. the sun is trashy enough that they would call this series ‘steamy’ even it includes scenes of a dubcon nature. i hope i’m wrong. 

okay. i believe i have extrapolated as much on this 30 second trailer as was humanly possible. see you all on boleynsgiving, and may the odds be ever in the favor... of those who favor this concubinage  ❤️

[yelena-bellova]

Safe Haven: tfatws!Bucky Barnes x fem!reader - Chapter Six

chapter five - Chapter Six: Ten Minutes - chapter seven

Series Masterlist

Plot: Y/n, Sam, Bucky and Zemo investigate around Riga for any sign of the Flag Smashers, Y/n and Bucky spend some unconventional time together.

Word Count: 6.9k

Warnings: spoilers for episode. 4, a little language, flirty Bucky (which is a warning in and of itself, Walker’s an asshole, Y/n is still a badass, sloooow burn, lil’ bit of spice 🔥

A/N: First off, I just want to thank everybody for all the kind messages/asks/comments you've left on this series. I honestly didn’t expect this kind of response when I started writing this and have been blown away with each chapter. Seriously, it means a lot! 🥰 Okay so I’m not gonna lie, this chapter’s a little slower than usual whereas next chapter is going to be...well, if you’re reading this you’ve seen the episode so you obviously know lol. But this chapter sets up some pretty big shit so it’s not useless, enjoy!!

----

I felt like a bit of a romantic cliche as I threw myself facedown on Zemo’s living room couch, hot off the heels of my realization about Bucky. But seeing as we didn’t have any leads and the Super Soldier wasn’t back from his “walk,” I felt I had earned it. “Hey,” I felt the weight of a jacket land on my back, “Whatcha got going on in that head?” I chuckled into the pillow, if Sam could see the thoughts bouncing around my brain, he’d have his wings on in a flash and would be flying around the city hunting Bucky down. Luckily, Bucky wasn’t the only thing I was thinking about. I turned on my side to see him sitting on a barstool in the kitchen, “I don’t think I give you enough credit for what you do.” “What are you talking about?” 

“I knew that avenging wasn’t some cushy day job but,” I swung my legs over the couch and sat up, “I never realized how hard it actually was and this isn’t even one of the harder missions!” Sam smirked and raised his brows, “An army of Super Soldiers isn’t enough for you? You want more?”

I rolled my eyes, “I’m just saying, you’ve faced a whole lot worse. I tangle with a couple bounty hunters and I’m gonna be aching for weeks,” I rose with a groan, eliciting a chuckle out of Sam, “Don’t get me wrong, I like what we’re doing, but I definitely underestimated how challenging it was.” “You’re doing a better job than you think,” Sam said, “I know yesterday was hard on you, but you’re handling all of the really well. I’m proud of you.” I made my way over to him and put an arm around his shoulder, “Still regret bringing me?” “Nah,” he locked an arm around my waist and pulled me into his side, “It’s nice having you here, it’s like having a little piece of home with me.” Since we were in grade school, Sam had been one of the only constants in my life and sitting in the middle of Latvia chasing down Super Soldiers, I had never been more thankful for him. I knew that becoming Captain America was out of the question but if ever there were a Cap that I would follow, it would have been Sam.

The front door and the bathroom door opened at the same time, revealing Bucky back from his walk and Zemo from his shower.

“Well, the Wakandans are here,” Bucky announced as he came to the center of the room, “They want Zemo. Bought us some more time.”

“Were you followed?” Sam asked, both of us unwrapping our arms from around one another. “No.” “How can you be so sure?” Zemo asked, staring out the stained glass windows.

“Cause I know when I’m being followed,” Bucky replied, coming to stand across from me on the other side of the kitchen island.

“It was sweet of you to defend me at least,” Zemo said. 

“Hey, you shut it,” Sam turned his attention to the Baron, “No one’s defending you. You killed Nagal.”

“Do we really have to litigate what may or may not have happened?” Zemo replied.

I leaned up against the island and squinted at the man, “There’s nothing to litigate, we all watched you shoot the guy.”

“Sam, Y/n…” We both turned to face Bucky, staring down at his phone intently. “Karli bombed a GRC supply depot.”

“What?” I said breathlessly, “Were there any casualties?” 

“Eleven injured, three dead,” Bucky read the article, “They have a list of demands and are promising more attacks if those demands aren’t met.”

Zemo walked around the island to grab a pack of cookies, “She’s getting worse. I have the will to complete this mission. Do the three of you?” “She’s just a kid,” Sam said calmly, defending the young girl so many saw as a villain.

“You’re seeing something in her that isn’t there,” Zemo waved him off, “You’re clouded by it. She’s a supremacist. The very concept of a Super Soldier will always trouble people. It’s that warped aspiration that led to Nazis, to Ultron…to the Avengers.” “Hey, those are our friends you’re talking about,” Sam stepped quickly.

“The Avengers, not the Nazis,” Bucky followed up with. 

Sam continued, “So, Karli is radicalized, but there has to be a peaceful way to stop her.”

“The desire to become a superhuman cannot be separated from supremacist ideals,” Zemo said, “Anyone with that serum is inherently on that path. She will not stop. She will escalate until you kill her,” the room’s silence became a whole lot heavier, “Or she kills you.” “Maybe you’re wrong, Zemo,” Bucky spoke up, “The serum never corrupted Steve.” “Yeah,” I agreed, peeking over my shoulder at Bucky, “But it didn’t corrupt you either.” Zemo picked up a ring shaped cookie on his finger and pointed to Bucky, “Touché, but there has never been another Steve Rogers, has there?” He popped the cookie in his mouth and shrugged, turning away from us to make further use of the kitchen. 

“Well,” Bucky made his way to the living room, “Maybe we should give him to the Wakandans right now.” “And you’ll give up your tour guide?” Zemo asked, searching through cupboards. 

“Yes,” Bucky answered harshly before sitting himself on the couch, leaning his head back and shutting his eyes.

“From my understanding,” Sam said, “Donya is like a pillar of the community, right? So when I was a kid, my TT passed away-“ “Your-“ Bucky squeezed his eyes shut and leaned forward, “Your TT?” “Yeah, my TT, yeah,” Sam replied plainly. 

“Who is your TT?” Bucky annoyedly and confusedly asked. I chuckled at the exchange from beside Sam, “His aunt. The whole neighborhood had this big ceremony, it lasted like a week.” “Maybe they’re doing the same thing for Donya,” Sam finished.

“Worth a shot,” Bucky shrugged.

“Your TT would be proud of you,” Zemo said to Sam before tossing him a wrapped candy, “Turkish Delight, irresistible.” ——

We were out the door soon after and heading to Donya’s last known location, a refugee camp in the downtown area.

“Shame what’s become of this place,” Zemo commented when we arrived, “When I was young, we used to come here for fabulous dinners and parties. I knew nothing of the politics of the time, of course, but I remember it being beautiful.” It was hard to picture the beige building ever having been beautiful, the setting was so dismal and grey. It was filled with children and workers, refugees, who all collectively looked worn down. The GRC poster that hung on one of the walls that showed smiling families with their mission statement ‘Reset. Restore. Rebuild.’ was a stark contrast to what those words actually delivered.

“We’ll take a look around upstairs,” Sam said, gesturing to me before turning to Bucky, “See what you can find out and keep an eye on him.” 

I left with Sam, climbing the quiet building’s staircase and wandering down the hall. Sam headed through an open doorway that led to a sewing room. “Hey, kid,” he called to one of them, “Excuse me,” he approached one of the only ones who hadn’t run out of the room at our presence, “You heard of Donya Madani?”

“Um,” the girl said, rising from her seat and making for another room, “No. Sorry, no.”

We stood there dumbstruck in the suddenly empty room, it wasn’t until Sam caught the Flag Smasher’s handprint symbol on a sewing box and pointed it out to me that the locked lips made sense. I took the lead and navigated through the crowded rooms, spotting another young person leaving at the sight of us. “Excuse me, do you know the name Donya Ma-“ The boy shut the door on me before I could finish my sentence, I turned to Sam who was close behind me. “Something’s not right,” I mumbled, walking in step with him further down the hall. We finally stumbled upon what looked like a classroom, one man crouched was next to a desk helping a kid and a table with two others who didn’t bolt at the sight of us. 

“Excuse me,” Sam announced our presence, “Do you know a woman by the name of Donya Madani?”

The teacher stood to his full height, “We’re not refugees, for we have nothing to seek refuge from. We’re internationally- displaced persons, for what it’s worth, and we don’t trust outsiders.”

“No, I understand,” Sam stepped forward, “I’m not from here, but I have a pretty good track record of helping out.” “I know what happens when people say they’re going to help out,” the teacher tiredly stated, “Nothing. The Global Repatriation Council promised to send more teachers, supplies. That was six months ago.” “What’s your name? I can make a call,” Sam offered immediately, ever the helper.

“I know who you are, but I can’t trust you. I’m sorry,” the man dismissed him, grabbing his other two students and ushering them out of the room, “Let’s go.” The silence was sobering for us both, we may not have found anything about Donya but we’d certainly stumbled upon something of importance. And as we left the building with our heads metaphorically hung, I could feel that he was just as impacted as I was by it. “I didn’t realize it was so bleak,” I said as we went down the stairs, “The government’s done a great job of painting a different picture for people like us.” 

“That could be said for a lot of things,” he replied, “But no, I didn’t think it was this bad either.”

We rejoined Bucky who was watching Zemo intently as he sat in front of a grouping of kids, a pile of candy in between them. “This is starting to feel like a dead end,” Sam commented.

“The hell is he doing?” Bucky accompanied.

“And why in Latvia does nobody raise an eyebrow at a stranger offering kids candy?” I observed as Zemo stood, approached the kids once more and came back to us. “Cute kids,” he smiled, leaving the three of us to share an unconvinced look after.

——

We returned to our hideout shortly after, defeated and all too aware of how fast the clock was ticking. 

“Well, I got nothin’,” Bucky said as the three of us made our way to the couch, “No one’s talkin’ about Donya.” “Yeah, it’s because Karli is the one fighting for them,” Sam replied, “And she’s not wrong.” “What do you mean?” Bucky’s tone was low and exhausted, but I could have sworn that his eyes brightened for a millisecond when I plopped down next to him.

Sam sighed, “For five years, people have been welcomed into countries that have kept them out using barbwire. There were houses and jobs. Folks were happy to have people around to help them rebuild. It wasn’t just one community coming together, it was the entire world coming together. And then, boom,” he snapped his fingers, “Just like that, it goes right back to the way it used to be. To them, at least Karli’s doin’ something.” “He’s right,” I chimed in, memories of how the world was for five years flooded my brain, “Things were messy but they were…one. Everybody came together because we needed to, there was less room for segregation or prejudice. When things went back, the government made some really bad decisions. And for those of us who weren’t blipped, it was difficult to watch. I’m not saying that I support the Flag Smashers but I do understand why Karli’s doing what she’s doing.” “You really think her ends justify her means?” Bucky’s furrowed brows bounced between Sam and I, “Then she’s no different than him,” he gestured to Zemo who was making tea, “Or anybody else we’ve fought.” “I didn’t say that. She’s different,” I argued, tucking my legs under me and twisting to fully face him, “She's not fighting for word domination or something, she’s fighting for those who’ve lost everything. She’s just...misguided in her approach. ”

Zemo came and set the tray of cups and tea down on the table in front of us, a little too quiet. “That girl,” Bucky addressed him, “What’d she tell you?” The Baron kept up his silence as he thought to himself, eyes flicking between the three of us. “The funeral is this afternoon.” I blinked and awaited the rest of the answer, “That’s all you want to say?” “You know the Dora’s coming for you any minute,” Bucky stated, a bit of amusement in his eyes at the thought of the Wakandan warriors taking him away, “In fact, they’re probably lurking outside right now. Keep talking.” “Leaving you to turn on me once we get to Karli,” Zemo hummed, “I prefer to keep my leverage.” Exasperatedly, I looked over to Sam who looked just as done with the Sokovian royal as I was. Bucky rose from beside me and circled around to face Zemo, ripping the glass heeled in his hands and launching it at the wall, it shattered upon impact. “You wanna see what someone can do with leverage?” Bucky growled, I had to ignore the pit in my stomach that developed anytime Bucky’s voice reached a low decibel.

Sam and I were up and ready to deescalate the situation, him stepping behind Zemo and me placing a hand around Bucky’s metal arm. “Take it easy,” Sam said cautiously, “Don’t engage him. He’s just gonna extort you and do that stupid head tilt thing.” I turned in towards Bucky, the close proximity allowing me to talk softer. “He’s not worth it,” I muttered, his head moving slightly in my direction as I spoke. 

“Let me make a call,” Sam said, walking off and slapping Bucky on the shoulder as he left.

My loyalty to Bucky prevented me from leaving until I knew he was alright and wouldn’t pummel our only lead to a pulp. As his stare lessened in intensity, so did my grip till my fingers ghosted over his bicep. “You want some cherry blossom tea?” Zemo awkwardly asked. “No, you go ahead,” Bucky answered with contempt, walking away with me following close by. 

“So what are we supposed to do?” I asked as Bucky and I walked through the luxurious apartment, “Sit on our asses until he decides to give us breadcrumbs of information?”

“He’ll talk, eventually,” Bucky grumbled, “Even if I have to make him.” Why I was finding this side of him attractive, I couldn’t make sense of. Shoving that aside, I took the more practical approach. I gripped his arm to stop him from going further, “He wants to screw with your mind, don’t let him.”

Bucky bit down on his bottom lip and dropped his line of vision to the ground, silently admitting that I was right. There was something so strange about how easy him and I had become around one another so fast. I could level with him now like I’d known him for ages and he’d actually listen to me. The oddest part was that it felt so natural.

“Now,” I dropped my hand from his body and went to place it on my hip, “Sam’s on the- ow!” 

“What? What is it?” Bucky jumped to attention, his metal hand instinctively reaching for my arm.

The pain had stemmed from my abdomen, radiating down to my waist. I pulled up the hem of my shirt and looked down to see an ugly purple bruise on my side. “Shit,” Bucky mumbled, bending down but quickly popping back up with an innocent gaze, “Can I…?” “Yeah,” I quickly replied, watching him crouch down to get a look at the injury, one of his metal fingers running over the colored skin with a featherlight touch. I prayed that he didn’t take notice of how my breath hitched when the cool Vibranium made contact with my body.

“How did you get this?” he asked with a laser-like focus on my stomach. “Must’ve been from yesterday in the shipyard,” I eked out, we were in close enough proximity that he was starting to cloud my head, “One of the bounty hunters had me in a death grip at one point.” 

Bucky shook his head, his tongue darting out to wet his lips as he rose back up. “I’ll be fine, it’s just a bruise,” I said, pulling my shirt back down when a lightbulb suddenly went off in my head, “Although…” “What?” “I think I’ve got an idea on how you can work out your aggression and this,” I pointed to my side, “Can happen less.” I made my way down the hall, trying to find the right door that would lead to the right room. Turning each knob, I finally found a set of french doors that led to a terrace with a view of the beautiful city. Expecting and correctly guessing that Bucky had followed me, I spun around to face him. “Teach me how to fight.” “Are you kidding?” Bucky’s scrunched in disbelief, “No.” “Come on,” I pleaded, “I think we can both agree that I’m lacking in combat skills and if we’re going to end up fighting more Super Soldiers, I need to be more prepared than last time. Plus,” I pointed a finger at him, “You’re pissed and you need to let it out.”

Bucky scoffed, “I’m not going to let it out on you.” Rolling my eyes thoroughly, I created a force field to separate the two of us, “I’m pretty sure I can handle myself. But if you want to let me get my ass kicked, that’s fine…”

I watched as he let out a single chuckle, “You’re really gonna be like that?” “Yes,” I replied, trying to contain my smile, “I’m really gonna be like that.

He took leisurely steps toward me and started to circle me. I turned with him to keep the force field between us, smirks spreading across both our faces. “Alright, fine. As long as you promise not to go full throttle on me,” he gestured to the hands that had blue energy flowing from them.

“Fine,” I thinned my eyes at him, absorbing the force field back into my body, “But you better keep that arm in check.”

We separated from each other and I walked to my corner of the terrace to remove my jacket. When I turned to see Bucky doing the same, my eyes fell to his fit torso that was threateningly to bust the seams of his tight black t-shirt. In the Latvian sun, you could see the outline of each muscle of his chest and each vein that bulged in his arms was highlighted. Since the first time I’d gotten close enough to admire him, I’d had no shame in admitting to myself that Bucky was attractive. Now that I was actually starting to fall for him, there was a nervousness that came with appreciating his roguish good looks. I shook my head and dragged my gaze away from his body, trying to focus on his eyes as we walked towards one another. Not that I was any better off, they were just as enticing as the rest of him was… “Do you know how to punch?” he asked, I held up a fist and he examined it, “Okay, so that’s a no.” He placed his hands on my hips gently as to not disturb my bruise and turned me around, “Bring one of your feet back and out a little,” he instructed, I listened and he took a step back to accommodate me. “Now,” his hands moved to lightly grasp my arms, “Tuck your elbows into your body.” I swallowed hard as I followed his directions, his chest was now almost flush against my back and it was more than distracting. The closer Bucky and I got, the more muddled my thoughts became until he became the only clear one. With him pressed against me, his hands gently holding my arms and his breath fanning my shoulder, it was a miracle I could remember my own name.

“Now squeeze your abs, as long as it doesn’t hurt too much,” he said softly, inching a little closer as if to make sure I could hear him properly. Goosebumps I hoped he didn’t see erupted across my skin, I did as he said and ignored the pain it caused me. Bucky could have given me any instruction and I’d have followed, I was completely under his spell. 

His hands left me and he came around to stand in front of me, “When you swing, you want to move with your whole body. You’re gonna push off with that foot,” he nudged my furthest ankle with his boot, “And turn your hips with it, but don’t over exaggerate or else you’ll lose your momentum. Your hand,” he took my improper fist into his palm and positioned my thumb below my fingers, holding onto it as he looked back up, “Should look like this.” My lips parted as I watched him mold my hand to his liking, my heart rate picking up as our eyes met. Bucky let go and held out his flesh arm to act as my target, smirking once again, “Alright, give it all you’ve got.”

I swung my fist forward and met his hand, only succeeding in making contact and nothing more. For a second I forgot that I was fighting a Super Soldier.

“Good,” he commended me nonetheless, “Again.”

I readjusted my stance and brought my fist forward again, I still couldn’t move him.

“Again.” Smack.

“Again.”

Smack.

“Again.” Smack.

“Again.” With hardly a thought, I focused my energy out of my fist as it collided with Bucky’s palm and sent his arm back in a mist of blue. I pulled my elbows back into my torso, gasping at what I’d done but not entirely unhappy with the results. Bucky looked just as surprised, turning to me with widened eyes and his pouty lips shaped in an ‘o’.

“Did you know you could do that?” he asked.

“I don’t know, the idea just came to me,” I answered, “Can I try that again?” Bucky held out his palm again and I repeated my attack, his arm jolting back upon impact once again. “I think I may have just made this a fair fight,” I said slyly, challenging him with one raised brow.

“I think you’re exaggerating a little,” he shot back, I could see the mischievous gleam in his eye that accompanied his words.

I shrugged innocently, “Guess we won’t know until we test it.” 

Bucky’s wandering tongue darted out to the side of his mouth as he smiled, “I only taught you how to punch, but alright.”

He took a step closer to me, slowly and playfully putting out a hand towards me to act like he was going to attack me. I held my hand up and built a small force field to block him. Going a little faster, he raised his metal hand and I repeated the action of shielding myself. We kept going until him and I were moving across the terrace with me creating force field after force field to block Bucky’s attack. When my back hit the ledge, I shot up into the air and landed a few feet behind him.

“Is that a fair fight?” Bucky asked as he approached me.

“No, it’s not,” I sighed and lowered my head, looking back up with a smile, “It’s actually a little too easy.”

Bucky started throwing punches, me blocking each one with my palm radiating energy to lessen the impact of his hits. I was so focused that I didn’t see him lift his foot until I had landed on my back with a groan after he’d swept my leg. He pinned me, holding my arms above my head and gripping my wrists so I couldn’t attack. I squirmed a little, unable to move underneath his weight that simultaneously crushed me and sent a thrill through me.

“You were saying?” he smirked, our faces only inches apart and his lips just a little too alluring to continue ignoring. This was a different Bucky than I had become used to, he was playful and flirtatious. We were getting down to who he really was when we weren’t dealing with such serious circumstances.

Taking away the temptation to close the distance between our mouths, and eager to point out he’d made a mistake in pinning my wrists, I lifted and aimed my hands at him, firing two blasts at his shoulders. The grip he had on me was lost as his full weight landed on me, I quickly locked my legs around his and used my energy to flip us so Bucky landed on his back with me on top of him. I pinned his hands at his sides, two steady blue streams flowing from my fingers. Bucky tried to wrestle out of my hold to no avail, I took great joy in leaning over him and giving a shit-eating smile.

“You’re right,” I shook my head, “It’s not fair.”

Bucky breathily chuckled and stopped fighting, instead letting himself be defenseless underneath my body. At some point, the laughter and grins faded and the reality that I was straddling Bucky became very real. If I released my hold on his hands, I wondered what he would do. Would he scurry to lift me off of him and leave as quick as he could? Or would he dare to put his hands on my waist like he had in Madripoor, pulling me into him as close as he could? Nervously, I absorbed the energy back into my fingers and freed him, his hands laying limp where they were but his blue eyes held no intention of looking away. We rested there, trying to catch our breath and not daring to make a move that would shift either of our bodies or the moment. “Bucky, Y/n, where you at?” I heard Sam’s voice drift down the hall.

Stolen moments, that was all I could get with Bucky. I had only just discovered how I felt about him, I didn’t know how to handle it but I knew that when I did get time with him, it never lasted long enough. I unhappily levitated off of him and landed on my feet nearby, leaving him without a word to open the door and find Sam.

I looked down the hall and spotted my brother walking down the hall in search of us. “Hey,” I called, he turned around and changed his course, “Any leads?” “Sharon’s got access to a satellite, she’s gonna keep an eye on the camp,” he said, “And Zemo agreed to take us out to meet someone who’s got information on the funeral. Where’s Buc-“

Bucky appeared at that moment, his jacket back on and covering his build while carrying mine in his hand. He handed it to me, his eyes darting up to meet mine with some sort of meaning in them, “Did he say where he’s taking us?” “No,” Sam answered, “But at least he’s talking.” 

The three of us headed down the hall and out to the living room where Zemo was waiting on us like a parent waiting on their children to get ready to leave. We left and entered the city once again, me trying to keep a little distance between Bucky since my cheeks were still burning. The memory of how he’d felt under me was still all too real and I needed to have a clear head for what was about to go down.

We hadn’t been walking for more than ten minutes when an unfortunately familiar voice sounded off in our vicinity. “Karli Morgenthau is too dangerous for you guys to be pulling this shit.” “Ah, how’d you find us now?” Bucky called across the street, John Walker and Lemar Hoskins hurrying down a set of steps toward us. “Come on, you really think two Avengers can walk around Latvia without drawing attention?” Lemar replied.

“No more keeping us in the dark,” Walker seethed, “You could start by telling us why you broke him out of prison.” I over animatedly shrugged my shoulders and looked between Sam and Bucky, “You told us to stay out of your way so that’s what we did. Can’t have it both ways, Walker.”

“And he broke himself out technically,” Bucky answered Walker’s original question.

“Oh,” Walker was practically spitting with rage, “This better be an unbelievable explana-“ 

“Hey,” Sam stepped in and placed a hand on his chest, “Take it easy before it gets weird.” Walker promptly stepped back and took a breath.

“I know where Karli is,” Zemo offered, stepping to the side along with Bucky and ready to continue on our path, before being stopped by Walker.

“Well, where?” “All we know is, it’s a memorial,” Sam answered, “So we’re gonna intercept her there.”

Zemo gently moved Walker’s hand off of him, and led the way, Bucky, Lemar and I following. “That means civilians,” Lemar said, “High risk of casualties.” “We won’t let that happen,” I replied, “And if they’re fellow funeral goers, neither will Karli.” 

“All right,” Walker said, joining us along with Sam, “We’ll move in fast, take her by surprise.”

“No, I wanna talk to her alone,” Sam protested. As much as I wanted to stop my brother in the street and question the validity of his sanity, we were a united front against Walker and I couldn’t drop it. I’d wait for my turn to voice my concern.

“I’m not losing her again,” Walker pushed back. “Look, the person closest to her died, she’s vulnerable,” Sam argued, “If there was ever a time to reason with her, it’s now.” “What?” No. Wait, no! No! Stop. Hold on,” Walker jogged to get ahead of us, his sidekick following suit, “Stop, okay? I think we’re way past reasoning with her, unless you forgot that she blew up a building with people still in it.” “Sam, you walk in there cold, she could kill you,” Lemar may have had a problem with the plan, just like Walker, but he came at it from a different angle. That I could give him credit for.

“And if I go in hot and the op goes wrong, more people will die,” Sam countered confidently. “You’re gonna let him do this?” Walker addressed Bucky, “Are you gonna let your partner walk into a room with a Super Soldier alone?”

“He’s dealt with worse,” Bucky replied, “And he’s not my partner.”

“I used to counsel soldiers dealing with trauma, okay?” Sam stated, stepping around us to stand in front of Walker, “This is my wheelhouse.” “Yeah, I know. And I know those soldiers, which is why I know this is a bad idea,” Walker shot back. “Wait, John,” Lemar stopped him from going any further, “If he can talk her down, it might be worth a try.”

We stood, anticipating whether or not we’d have to fight harder or if Walker would agree to let Sam handle the situation his way. He scoffed and shifted his weight between feet before turning to Zemo, “We’ll deal with you later.” “I’m sure it will all come to an agreeable conclusion,” Zemo replied and gestured down the path, “My associate is just up ahead.”

We looked ahead to see the same little girl the Baron had been offering candy to earlier in the day. I fell in step alongside Sam and lowered my voice, “Are you sure about this?” 

“Did you act like you agreed with me just to piss of Walker?” he asked, equally quiet.

“…Maybe…” 

He pulled his hand out of his jacket pocket and we bumped fists, “Trust me, this is our best option.” 

The five of us watched Zemo approach the child, handing her something and guiding us to follow where she was leading. She took us to an older factory, bringing us in through the back door of the boiler room. “Karli’s in there,” Zemo said.

Sam broke from our group and headed for the doorway while Walker slammed Zemo up against a furnace. “Hey,” he called to Sam, “You got ten minutes,” he handcuffed Zemo, “Then we’re doing things my way.”

With Sam gone and me not there to protect him in case things took a turn, there wasn’t anything to do but wait. Walker paced, Lemar stood and Bucky stared. I was leaned up against the brick wall that held Zemo, trying not to think of all the ways the plan could go wrong. Karli was young, quick to help but also quick to fight and the sight of Sam may be enough to trigger her into attacking before listening. But Sam wasn’t usually someone to get cocky about something he knew he couldn’t handle and I trusted his judgement. I just wish that I was trusting it in a less dangerous situation. 

“Y/l/n.” I turned to Zemo, “Huh?” “In Madripoor, you said your last name was Y/n Y/l/n,” he continued in a hushed tone so nobody else would hear.

“So? What’s so interesting about my name?”

Zemo paused like he had just come to some conclusion I wasn’t going to be made privy to. “It simply sounds familiar.”

“What does that me-“ “Hey!” Walker exclaimed, staring me and the Baron down, “What’re you two talking about?” Zemo turned away from me like we’d never been speaking, the confusing conversation dissolving in the already tense air. “Nothing,” I lied, pushing off the brick wall and brushing past Walker, “That concerns you at least.”

I landed at Bucky’s side, he nodded his head towards Zemo and looked back to me. “What was that about?” “I’m not sure,” I answered, there was something unsettling about how Zemo’s gaze rested on me, “But I don’t think it was nothing.” We waited in another thirty seconds of silence before an antsy Walker spoke up again, “No, no, no, no, no, this is a bad idea.” “It hasn’t been ten minutes John,” Bucky said, “Just sit tight.”

“Don’t do that,” Walker looked over his shoulder at us angrily, “Don’t patronize me.”

“Then don’t start whining because you’re getting fidgety,” I replied, annoyed with his lack of patience, “Sam knows what he’s doing and if you let him do it, this could all go a lot smoother than Munich.” 

He walked away, staring at the wall in deep thought before coming towards us. “I’m goin’ in,” he stated, punctuating his words with a punch to the shield. 

Bucky stepped forward to block his path, I quickly stuck a hand in between their two bodies and created a force field to further state our point. My apprehension about leaving Sam to handle himself had lessened when he’d assured me he had it under control but I wasn’t sure if there was anything that would get Walker to back off. 

“This is all really easy for you, isn’t it?” Walker grumbled, staring Bucky down, “All that serum runnin’ through your veins. And you,” he skimmed his hand over the unpierceable shield I’d made, “With that X gene of yours. Your brother,” he pointed at Bucky, “And your partner need backup in there. Do you really want his blood on your hands?” The images that Sharon had planted in my head were filled in by Walker, it suddenly became all too easy to picture Sam’s lifeless body on the ground. Just like the one I’d left in the ship yard. No, Walker was not in my head, I wouldn’t allow it. The man who had threatened me with the accords, who waved the name of Captain America around like a free ticket to do whatever he wanted. He could manipulate whoever he wanted, except for me. “You’re not getting past us, Walker,” I firmly stated, bringing his widened eyes to me, “Sam’s got this.” There weren’t many people that stood up to Captain America without a second thought, and the irritated expression on his face reflected that. “So that’s how it’s going now? You’re giving the orders?” “If it means giving Sam a better chance of ending this, then yes,” I countered, digging my heels further into the ground.

He looked me over, debating his options, “Fine.” After observing him for a few cautious seconds, I dropped the force field and stepped to the side of Bucky. No sooner than when my hand fell to my side did Walker shove past Bucky and storm up the stairs, the two of us quickly rushing to draw him back. “Walker!” Bucky shouted.

I aimed my hands out to pull him back in, the blue energy barely leaving my fingertips when Lemar came up behind me and pulled my hands down to my sides. I tried to wrestle out of his grip but he didn’t let me go until Walker had safely gotten up the stairs to a point where I couldn’t see him. “Are you serious?!” I cried as Lemar shot ahead of me up the stairs leaving me to follow pathetically. “Captain’s orders,” he replied over his shoulder as we hurried to catch up to the heated, impatient joke of a Captain. 

“Karli Morganthau, you’re under arrest,” I heard Walker announce, spotting Bucky taking the stairs two at a time behind him.

As I entered the room, my hopeless eyes met Sam’s surprised set. Karli was just as shocked, the redhead asking Sam if it had been the plan all along to bring us in. Lemar pushed in front of me and Bucky, acting as a barrier to prevent us from interfering any more than we had. Bucky attempted to shove his arm away just as Karli landed a punch to the shield, sending Walker and Sam flying back into a table. I used my energy to shove Lemar back, freeing Bucky and I to jump into the fight. Bucky bolted after Karli who was making a run for it while I helped Sam to his feet. “We said ten minutes!” Sam exclaimed, glaring at Walker’s retreating form. 

“I tried,” I said as we made for another staircase to try and catch Karli on the other side of the building. We went through a series of various halls, there was no way to make heads or tails of which way was right. Sam tugged me and led me up another set of stairs with no luck in finding her. “Shit,” I mumbled. On the opposite side of the landing was Bucky, looking just as confused as us. “I lost her,” he said defeatedly. “This place is a maze,” Sam panted.

I took a look at our surroundings, spotting a window and quickly forming an idea. “She could be out of the building by now. Bucky,” I ran to the nearest window, “Help me out.”

Catching on quick, he raised his metal arm and landed a whopping punch, shattering the glass and leaving a gaping hole. I took a few steps back and took a running start, ignoring the sounds of Sam’s protests and diving out the window. I threw my hands out to my sides and expelled energy, ceasing my fall and allowing me to shoot up higher in the air. I landed on the building’s roof, taking a look at the city below me and trying to spot Karli’s mop of red hair. I stayed atop the ledge searching until I heard gunshots from inside the building, dropping and flying back in through the broken window immediately. My blood ran cold with fear, Sam and Bucky weren’t where I had left them. I rushed down the closest hall, hearing a commotion from a room somewhere in the building and praying desperately that they weren’t in the middle of it. I wasn’t sure if I’d ever been so relieved to see the two of them as when I’d spotted them after turning a corner. Upon hearing my boots slapping against the ground, Bucky and Sam turned, both their faces showcasing the same relief. “Thank God,” Sam breathed, waiting for me to catch up with them before tearing off again.

We ran through the building until we found the one hall we hadn’t been down yet, we entered to find quite the scene. Walker was standing over an unconscious Zemo, vials of the super serum smashed on the floor and no sign of Karli.

“What did we miss?” Sam asked, still a little breathless from our chase.

I wasn’t a naturally angry person, but the irateness I felt with John Walker was enough to make my face warm with rage. He had proved that arrogance and impatience were his main modes of operation. He had no problem giving the orders but following someone else’s lead was nearly unbearable for him. His eagerness to jump headfirst into battle may have served him well in aspects of his career, but in this case it had ruined everything.

“You said ten minutes,” I gritted out, staring down Walker from our position on the stairs. His eyes didn’t carry an ounce of remorse for what he had done. Without another word, I turned on my heels and stormed out of the room without waiting for Sam and Bucky. We’d come so far only to lose to a completely preventable situation. I’d never worked with Steve professionally, but I knew that he would have never have sabotaged a mission because of his ego. Just one more reason why John Walker could never truly be Captain America.

----

A/N: I find myself having to reel myself in when writing Walker or else I’ll let my hatred of him show through a little too much lol. Let me know what you thought or if you’d like to be tagged :)

Safe Haven taglist: @tanyaherondale​ @wanniiieeee​ @asoftie4bucky​ @edencherries​ @i-reblog-fics-i-like​ @ttalisa​ @gcfty @withyoutilltheendofthismess​ @rinaispunk​ @weirdowithnobeardo​ @felicityofbakerstreet​ @godlypotterwhodiaries @eternalharry​ @voguesir​ @mizz-kraziii​ @okayline​ @smellmymisunderstoodfluff @wanderin-stories​ @nicklet94 @intricate-melody​ @aesthethickks​ @stumbleonmywords​ @simplybarnes​ @21bruhs​ @lostinwonderland314​ @superbookishhufflepuff​ @kaelyn-lobrutto24​ @zozebo​ @fandomxreaders @kittengirl998​ @sarai-ibn-la-ahad​ @i-know-i-can​ @x-judyjude-x​ @thebi-valkyrieofvalhalla​ @buckverse​

[bookofmirth]

The english side of me REALLY jumped out with this one lol

Possessiveness, jealousy, and overprotectiveness are staples of the romance genre, especially when it comes to paranormal romances, so much so that it’s expected for people to overlook the problematic aspects of possessiveness, jealousy, and overprotectiveness because these concepts in the romance genre are meant to be viewed not only as hot and sexy, but indicators of love and showing that the person cares. Despite their tendency to fall in the yellow flag zone, these concepts are meant to further the romance itself. And when you begin to question these concepts as they appear in different romances, there’s almost always pushback with people saying the books are “just fiction”. But what happens when there’s evidence that shows why these three concepts aren’t always healthy or hot/sexy in a romantic pairing? What happens when the narrative is using these concepts to show how they can be detrimental to a character and those romantically associated with that character?

Possessiveness/Overprotectiveness

In romances, it’s always in the man’s nature to be possessive and overprotective. These two concepts are usually used to show that a character is protective of their partner and we see that happen with almost all of SJM’s endgame ships, but they’re almost always portrayed as good/healthy because of the equal partnership that is present in those relationships. Thinking about acotar, a relationship where possessiveness and overprotectiveness were depicted in a negative light was between Feyre and Tamlin. Their relationship was imbalance and Tamlin’s possessiveness/overprotectiveness of Feyre stood out in the barriers he placed on Feyre when they were together: not letting her leave the house/keeping her in the house; saying everything is for her “protection”; only letting her talk to Alis and Lucien/limiting her interactions with others; telling Lucien to back off from Feyre because Tamlin saw him as a threat and that she could fall for him instead; having Feyre be dependent on him by not teaching her how to fight/learn how to use her powers; controlling every aspect of Feyre’s life at the beginning of acomaf; among other things.

Males in acotar feel an intrinsic sense of entitlement to their mate and are described as being protective and possessive over their mates. When people say that A is exhibiting “mate behavior” towards E, obviously there is a positive connotation associated with that phrase because of how the males act around their mate. But the thing is A isn’t E’s mate. A’s possessiveness of E is treading on the waters of Tamlin-ville because: A speaks for E, which is oddly similar to what some of E’s stans do in fandom discussions (as if E herself reached out of the book to personally tell them things that no one else knows); he makes it known that E shouldn’t help with the Dread Trove, which is an example of A attempting to limit what E does; and he subtly expresses a sense of entitlement over E in the bonus chapter during his conversation with Rhys when he questions if the Cauldron was wrong in pairing E with Lucien. A’s “mate behavior” is completely different from Rhys and Cassian because Rhys and Cassian are canonically mated to Feyre and Nesta, which plays a role in how they act towards them. Also, neither of them attempt to limit what Feyre and Nesta do even if they worry about their safety. To say that A is exhibiting “mate behavior” towards E would have the same effect as saying Tamlin was exhibiting “mate behavior” towards Feyre. I think that the reason A’s actions towards E are described as mate-like is because thinking otherwise calls his actions into question. I assume some people aren’t ready for that conversation because he’s been portrayed as the sad bat boy in the fandom for so long that it’s probably hard for people to come to terms with this not being the case.

When people say A being overprotective of E is similar to Rhys and Cassian being overprotective of Feyre and Nesta, the comparison becomes incomparable because A is overprotective of E to the point where he goes against what E wants to do (E stating she wanted to help find the dread trove, a scene in which A was present and later A said E shouldn’t be exposed to its innate darkness), while Rhys and Cassian know Feyre and Nesta are capable of fending for themselves in dangerous situations. It’s just ironic that A’s overprotectiveness in this moment contradicts E’s “choice” of wanting to help, yet I don’t see that being mentioned in those “choice” arguments.

Jealousy

Jealousy in the romance genre is always meant to further the romance between the love interests and we see that happen with rowaelin and chaorene (and probably other SJM ships too). But when the jealousy and the romance are disconnected from each other, that’s meant to show something about the character who is jealous and what they’re jealous of. On the second page of the bonus chapter, it’s established that A is envious of Cassian and Rhys and that the reason he remained downstairs by the fire was so that he didn’t get swallowed up by his jealousy in his room. Then on the third page, it’s revealed that the reason he stayed by the door at Solstice was because “he couldn’t stand the sight of it, the scent of their mating bond, and needed to have the option of leaving if it became too much”. There is a blatant reimagining happening with A’s bonus chapter to make it seem as though his jealousy is romantically coded when the jealousy has nothing to do with his relationship with E and more to do with him. This reimagining has to be a case of people seeing what they want to see because I highly doubt people are out here failing literature class.

The Romance Genre & SJM

A and E’s interaction in the bonus chapter is frequently compared to Wings and Embers. The only similarity between these two chapters is the sexual undertones, which is part of the reason why I think people compare them in the first place because everything else (the structure of the chapters, their contents, and the amount of characters involved in them) is different. I think people are hiding behind the sexual undertones of the bonus chapter in hopes that it somehow overshadows not only the oddness of A’s interaction with E, but the ending of the bonus chapter as well. And even more than that, A giving away the necklace is compared to Cassian tossing Nesta’s present in the Sidra. Since A is able to give the necklace away that should tell you about the significance of the necklace’s connection to E herself (if A can easily give it away to the next person on the street) whereas Cassian regifting Nesta’s present would probably be meaningless to someone else because it was Nesta specific.

We know that acotar is more romance heavy compared to tog and cc so I can see why people lean more on the conventions of the romance genre as a basis for their arguments. And this is fueled by SJM saying this new trilogy will have one couple per book. However, the downfall of these arguments is that oftentimes the plot, narrative structure of this new trilogy in particular, and individual character progressions are secondary or afterthoughts to the romance they support. These arguments lack any real substance because acotar has proved time and time again that both the romance AND the plot work in tandem, going against the broad strokes of the romance genre formula where the romance is primarily in the spotlight.

Basically, why do you think A’s possessiveness, jealousy, and overprotectiveness of E is romanticized? Why do you think A and E’s dynamic is constantly compared to feysand and nessian? And why do you think people take issue with A being compared to Tamlin?

I think that the reason A’s actions towards E are described as mate-like is because thinking otherwise calls his actions into question.

THIS

I hate the whole discussion of "mate behavior" because the series doesn't even explain that very well. Rhys can't explain why people are mated, if it's for reproduction or being "equals" (in what sense, who knows), the courts all handle acceptance/rejection differently, the consequences of rejection are unclear and make it seem like the woman is beholden to accept on pain of... causing someone else pain.

I agree 100% that people (maybe unconsciously) try to ascribe "mate behavior" to Azriel in order to excuse what would ordinarily be inexcusable. He doesn't have some magical thing making him act this way. Neither did Tamlin, and we know how people view his behavior. And that's another thing with "mate behavior" and the bond. Why would Tamlin and Feyre not be mates, if all it took were these extreme possessive and protective behaviors? Why aren't Az and Mor mates?

And it's not even about Elain! Az acts like this with Mor, and we know there isn't a mating bond there. Azriel has zero reason to behave the way that he does, not in the same way that the mating bond gives Rhys and Cassian an "excuse", flimsy as it is, for the way that they act around Nesta and Feyre. Even that excuse is crap, because we have Rhys out here leaving Feyre's abusive ex alone, and then we have Lucien doing the same with Graysen. The definition of "mate behavior" that some of the fandom is working with... is sus.

The fact is that no matter how "overprotective" and possessive Rhys and Cassian were, they never prevented Nesta or Feyre from doing what they wanted. They might have gotten their hackles up, but then they backed off. Rhys sent Feyre into the Weaver's cottage. Nesta went to war. There is a balance between caring deeply and passionately for these women, and recognizing them as individuals whose autonomy should be respected.

The jealousy is 100% not about Elain. It's not about Elain being with Lucien. It's not about Mor, because we know that it's not really about Mor sleeping with Helion. Azriel has 99 problems, and 98.5 of them are about his childhood and his loneliness. The other 0.5 problem comes in the shape of a snowball.

The only similarity between these two chapters is the sexual undertones

You know I haven't done a full blown comparison between these chapters, but I'd agree. The entire Wings and Embers short was about Nesta and Cassian. There were no other characters and they learned a great deal about one another. What did Elain and Az learn about one another as people in the first third of his POV? Nothing. There was no tension between them other than sexual. Cassian thought Nesta's name over and over, thought about her as a person and her personality and how she made him feel. Azriel literally only thinks about fucking Elain. There is nothing wrong with fucking, obviously, but that's not love. (Maybe I should fully compare them idk.)

It's when we look at everything he doesn't say in conjunction with how he treats Elain and Mor in other scenarios... that's troubling. People can misread our 😬 at his behavior all they want, but the fact is that Az didn't have a single kind, original thought about who Elain is. His POV gave us zero extra insight into who Elain is as a person, which is... startling, if we are supposed to think that they know one another so incredibly well and have such intense feelings for each other. Why would we not get additional insight into her character? We get a lot of insight into Az's character for sure. But following his POV, if he loves and knows this woman so well, we should feel that. We should know why he loves her, what he knows about her, we should... just get some more damn insight into her character, if we are in the POV of someone who supposedly knows her so well!!!!

You know it's funny though, because the Az and Elain interaction in his POV mirrors when Nesta imagined a threesome with Az and Cassian. Close, and potentially pretty hot, but it never really happened because then it would mess up sjm's plans for the future.

Okay now to your ACTUAL questions haha and not just my reactions to what you said.

I agree that romanticizing Azriel's behaviors is the better option for people who ship it because otherwise the alternative is to accept them for what they are, which is not about Elain at all. Az has an even longer history of being all "mate behavior" on Mor, but no one thinks that's odd? I think that some people pick and choose their evidence, which is a big reason why I keep shoving Mor into these conversations. If the "mate behavior" argument was genuine and had a solid foundation, then the people making these claims would still ship moriel.

The whole thing with Az and Tamlin comparisons.... oh boy. I think there is a lot there.

I think that people don't want to see Az as anything less than perfect sad boi that Elain can fix with her love.

I think that people have a difficult time seeing emotional abuse IRL, to the point where even people who experience it directly struggle to come to terms with it, so why would we willingly embrace its presence in fiction? It also flirts with a lot of the ideas you mentioned being present in a lot of romance, though I'd argue a lot of those elements are becoming passé.

I think that Tamlin is Fandom Enemy Number One while Azriel is Self-insert Book Boyfriend Number One, and maybe people don't know how to reconcile those things. (This is quite literally true, I checked AO3 for reader fanfics and compared numbers between the bat boys, Az/reader fics win by a landslide.)

There also seems to be a refusal to see or accept nuance. I'm not even talking about moral complexity because I don't think that either Tamlin or Az intend to behave the way they do. They aren't villains. It just reminds me of people who somehow don't think Nesta was absolutely horrible through much of the series, even though a huge focus of her arc in acosf was coming to terms with how she had treated people. Anyway...

People see "gwynriel shipper" or "elucien 💕" in a bio and just dismiss arguments before trying to understand them

People try to justify their actions of their faves, which I understand!

People don't understand how subtle emotional abuse can be, and how there doesn't have to be clear intention.

I still plan on pulling out evidence from the book about times when their behaviors mirror one another. But it's like I've said for months - Tamlin is a cautionary tale. I don't think Azriel will go that far, but the foundation is there. The fact that acotar/acomaf was so, so explicit about how Tamlin's behavior was not okay, and yet people can see that same behavior in another character one book later and want to try to excuse it... sigh. Way to miss the point, fandom.

[flabbergasties]

So I just finished Dickinson and I’m not sure how I feel about the ending. I liked the ending sequence of Emily in her room and then the beach scene but the rest of the episode felt a bit like a let down. I was disappointed that we didn’t get to see her rejoin her family at the end after Higginson left when the whole season was about her trying to bring them together and she also never got to talk to her dad again after episode 8 which I found a bit odd. And of course it felt wrong for her to have no interactions with Sue in the series finale. Could I get your thoughts on the last episode please? I always like to get a second opinion when I’m disappointed by a show

alsdkfjal yes i am always here to talk dickinson, let's do this

I think the last episode, like all the episodes, is imperfect. It helps me to view it as what it is: a separate entity completely from the series itself. To me, episode 9 is the finale. Episode 10 is like...an ode. It feels almost like what Alena wanted to write all along — and it's written, really, like a One Act play. I see wayyyyy more theatre in it than in other episodes, and it's got a totally different stylistic tone.

(Whereas episode 9 kind of shores up loose ends and leaves everyone happy, the way a series finale would.)

Seeing it, then, as a separate entity from the series does admittedly help me excuse some of the failings you mention...because the entire episode is existing more in metaphors than literals.

What I mean to say is that I don't think the Emily we're interacting with in Episode 10 is the same Emily that spent the whole season bringing her family together, or the whole series trying to get Sue, etc. etc.

I think the Emily we're interacting with in Episode 10 is like...the idea of Emily Dickinson. The mythos of her. The mythos of all of them: Lavinia, the cracked sister; Sue and Austin and the baby next door...

Idk lol that...doesn't make sense. And I don't want to come off like I'm saying the last episode is a grand work of art — because, as far as "making a cohesive show" it's probably bad practice to have the finale be ... about the idea ?? of your character ?? instead of your character herself ??

But it is an interesting perspective — an episode that captures the mythos of the historical figures as we know them instead of the characters you've made us fall in love with for three seasons.

And I think that mostly because I do actually sort of appreciate the way that Episode 10 leaves Sue as this sort of Wife and Protectress of Emily's Art. They're not with each other in the literal sense, but Sue is downstairs, entertaining Higginson as if Emily were her husband and she's meant to be a "wife." Using the one tool she's been able to hold onto amid all the trauma she's undergone: the tool of feminity. The tool of housewifery. Hostessing. "If I can create a home for this stranger — the way I have fought for years to create a home for myself — then I will get what I need" has been her motto since day one. And here, we're seeing it employed in order to protect Emily's legacy.

Something I believe irl Sue did for 27 years after Emily died — often, tragically, failing, but trying nonetheless.

And in that sense, I'm glad that Sue and Emily don't reunite in episode 10. Because they don't need to. Because they worked together *apart* for so, so long irl. And I think that last look upstairs exemplifies that: Sue is there, with Emily - Emily is there, with Sue - even though they're not together. It's not romantic or sexy but it's just...the truth of how irl Emily and Sue loved each other for a long time.

(Does it fit with the character arc of Show!Sue and Show!Emily? Lol no not in the slightest. So you can see where my dilemma is: Decent commentary on these people irl. Horrible consistency with the show itself.)

(And re: Emily/Mr. Dickinson - tbh I think the handling of the Emily/Mr. Dickinson dynamic was always a little flawed, and the fact that it's not picked up again before the finale is...not surprising to me. Disappointing, but not surprising.)

OKAY THIS GOT LONG I'M SORRY. I think the point of all this rambling is that Episode 10 is a halfway decent portrait of a poet in a one act stage show; it is not a very good ending to a three season Apple TV show (but I'm not sure it's trying to be a good ending to a three season Apple TV show).

[bumblingbeasblackhole]

Why Momo Yaoyorozu would have been a more effective hero as a plus size woman.

Hello all, it’s time for a BNHA rant. A rant in my opinion that is long over due, and that my friends is on one of my favorite characters in the franchise. Momo Yaoyorozu AKA Creati.

Buckle up lads were in for a hefty analysis. (Note the read more) I promise it’s worth the read.

Now, we all know Class 1-A’s vice class rep and resident braniac Momo.

Just in case you’re new here or need a refresher, Momo’s Quirk is called Creation. The basic breakdown of her quirk is that her body uses the Lipids (fats) in her body to create any inorganic material of her choosing.

Now, there’s two key things to remember about her quirk.

First, her quirk requires her to use her physical body reserves in order to function

Second, she has to know how to make those matierals. From bottom to top. That means she has to not only have a design of what she wants in her head but the exact molecular compounds to create those objects as well.

Momo to her credit does this well. She’s been flushed out slightly enough to see various instances where she’s had to improve either on her knowledge of materials and compounds or her speed to achieve the full creation of an item. It’s something we see from her constantly in both the Manga and the Anime.

For example, the first time we are (formally) introduced to Momo’s quirk she creates a few items

A staff for herself, a sword for Jirou, a net to contain the thugs, a thick insulated blanket large enough to cover both her and Jirou, and finally the remembrance of her hero suit.

These items all together begin to wear Momo out as she’s left panting and even tells Jirou that she has a hard time creating such taxing objects on her body. This is stated to the audience the first time we see her in action. It takes her time, concentration, and most importantly her body’s lipid reserves.

This is the first time we see Momo wear herself rather thin. While this in itself is impressive and a great introduction into the character and her abilities and strategic wit in a battle, the rather more harmful implications are yet to be seen. This incident, while foreshadowing her later issues, does not compare to other instances later on the series.

There are three key issues with Momo as she is currently.

Her body/character design inherently limit her abilities as a hero.

The push for her to be a sexy hero/character is ultimately determinetal to her effectiveness as both a character and a hero.

Her intellect is not reflected by the way she operates as a hero. Instead, it is often negated for the sake of her design.

These points seem vague or over harped but I’ll go into detail about them. (Hang in there, this is well thought out and developed, I promise)

But before I get into the key issues and solutions, there’s a lot that’s absolutely fantastic about Momo.

Momo is a great character because she is more than the typical snobby rich girl trope. In fact, she’s not at all snobby. She is the most helpful, kind, and oblivious rich character I’ve ever seen. It’s part of her personality sure, but it’s not the only factor. It’s more or less just a gag for laughs between the other characters.

She is also relatable in the way she has self worth issues, different from Midoriya’s self worth issues. She was never (that were aware of) beaten down or belittled. Her issues sprouted from the way she was confident in her abilities, intellect, and quirk only to be thrown in the deepend UA.

Which idk about y’all, but honestly that shit hits home. If you were ever the smart-kid-who-learned-quickly-and-skated-through-school-only-to-be-out-of-your-depth-with-new-self-worth-issues-when-that-is-no-longer-the-case (or anything similar) than you catch my drift. So score for relatability.

Alas, onwards.

Let’s tackle the first problem.

The way she treats her body now is detrimental to her quirk usage long term.

I’ll explain,

Momo’s quirk functions relatively similar to another hero we are later introduced too, Fatgum.

Now I know what you’re already thinking,

“Bea! She’s supposed to be sexy! She’s supposed to be feminine! Her quirk burns it all so she can look like that! Fatgum has to only store it all!”

On some levels you’re right.

On most though, incredibly wrong.

Momo’s figure is one of the main (and slightly controversial) aspects of her character. I mean, look at her design versus Fatgum’s

See the key differences? I sure do.

Fatgum’s quirk is called Fat Absorbtion. Basically it grants Fatgum the ability to adhere any objects to his body and make them sink into his body fat upon contact with it. And/Or he can build and channel all of the fat in his body into one overpowered and energized punch or attack. (As seen in the overhaul arc) which leaves his body, you guessed it, deprecated and thin. Much like Momo’s, they both use their body’s fat as a tool whether through expelling it or storing it for later use.

I point this out because we see time and time again throughout the series where Momo pushed herself to the limit where she has to expel extraordinary amounts of her body to get the job done. But in reality she only makes a few larger objects. This compared to Fatgum who uses his fat reserves strategically and only in the toughest of battles does he push his body’s reserves to zero. Whereas Momo does this constantly. This is because of her inefficient way of treating her quirk and ultimately, her design.

Let’s discuss some prime examples:

In the training camp arc, Momo makes roughly 15-30 masks for all of Class B students, and half of Class A. Which in itself is a tall order. When we see her again, she’s bloodied, exhausted, barely conscious, worn, and welded to Awase half alive. She even struggles as she makes the tiny tracker she places on the back of the Nomu. After this, in the hospital (pre Kamino rescue) she was unconscious for a day and half due to quirk overuse and dehydration.

Third, in the first movie, My Hero Academia: Two Heroes, we once again see Momo’s fatal flaw as she and a group of Class 1-A students race through the security tower on I-island. She uses her quirk to make cannons of course, a Momo signature, to fend off the security bots fairly early on in the battle. As she continues to make ammo and other items needed to win the battle Momo teeters on the brink of passing out from, you guessed it, dehydration and starvation. Jirou ends up catching Momo as she’s nearly passes out from the lack of fat/substance in her body after making the cannon and ammo.

Then we see the same issue in the second movie My Hero Academia: Heroes Rising. Where Momo is used both to create extra supplies on the island. She passes out after that alone and only wakes up later as the class is regrouping after four villains attack simultaneously. Even after rest and food, we see her later again to make two massive cannons as the first line of defense against the incoming villains. From the start of the second battle Momo is worn out and clearly lacking in lipids to participate fully in a fight. Here, she even keels over and says that she’s at her limit and looks like she’s on the brink of death via dehydration and starvation. Which she very much is.

We also so see this in Provisonal Licensing Exam arc when Momo, Tsu, Jirou, and Shoji are trapped together by a group from another school. Here this is important because the leader of that group has super intelligence granted to her by her quirk (and tea lol) has come up with a “fool proof” plan to beat the group. The bottom line of that plan is simple. Wear. Momo. Out. Which half way works too, until Momo figures out what the other group is trying to do and thinks her way out of that situation. Although, she does use up a decent amount of her body’s reserves before she figures out their plan.

^^^ this scene brings up an extremely concerning point. If a villain knows what her quirk is, and has i don’t know, seen her, then they’re going to do the exact same thing Saiko (the girl in the photo above from the licensing exam arc) attempted to do. Exhaust Momo’s resources.

Now, this has been brought up once in the actual show. During the training camp arc, we see each students training method (designed by Aizawa) in order to overwork and strengthen their quirks. For Momo, that looked like binge eating and creating simultaneously.

This also shows us that Aizawa is at least somewhat paying attention to the drawbacks of her quirk. He may not have been there for some of the more concerning times she’s over worked herself, but it’s not a hard thing to work out just by how she looks and how her quirk functions. He also sees how her speed with her quirk hindered her like in her battle against Tokoyami. However, this is the only time we see this. Plus, this is not nearly enough of solution to the problem. Which in all honesty is simple.

For all intensive purposes, Momo should be a Plus Sized woman.

Not just for diversity or validity of readers. Although it would have been a score for the plus size community since it’s always lacking here for us bad bitches but because it would have been more natural to her character. If she had a bulkier physique or even just a chubbier build she would be way more effective in a battle or even just as a hero.

Her quirk burns the fat in her body instantly while in use. Which means she needs to have a healthy reserve of it at all times, especially since I’m willing to bet her metabolism is crazy fast. Relying on the normal/average caloric intake is irrational for her quirks functionality. Her diet should look more like Fatgum’s where we see him constantly eating in order to fuel his quirk. At the very least, Momo needs to always have foods dense in fats on hand in case she’s in a dire situation where she’s running low on reserves. She would be much more effective that way. I cannot tell you the amount of times I’ve watched a scene where she’s wearing herself out and been exasperated by the fact that she didn’t have even a simple granola bar on her for emergencies.

Hear me out,

Plus size people are extremely capable of doing extraordinary things. As well as also being fit while still having a larger/healthier frame. It’s not all that uncommon. In fact, it’s something that fictional storytelling (an ex machina if you will) isn’t needed in order to cover the realistic applications. There are plenty of people in the word who are of a larger build and are also active, fit, and in overall good health standing.

In real life, Ashley Graham is an excellent example. For those who aren’t privy to this goddess, she’s a plus size model, mother, and fitness enthusiast.

Here’s just a taste of this wonderful goddesses workouts can look like:

(Credit Instagram : @ashleygharam)

Which brings me to my next point

The need for Momo to be sexy is detrimental to her effectiveness as both a hero and as a character.

I know, I know, half of Momo’s whole thing is being sexy, rich, and oblivious. I’m well aware.

But here’s a fun tidbit. Plus size women can be sexy too! Shocker I know! Sarcasm aside, having Momo be a plus size woman wouldn’t hinder her sex appeal if done correctly. In fact, I think it would only make her more appealing, marketable, and effective narratively.

Not that she really needs to be sexy at all, but we will swing back to that.

Remember Ashley Graham? The model I mentioned like a paragraph ago? Well, she’s an example that plus size women can be just as sexy/attractive as anyone else. Which only proves that Momo could still have been an attractive character even as a plus size woman. In fact, it would have been uplifting to see a plus size character who’s whole gag isn’t revolved around them losing weight to fit a societal goal, but instead a character who is plus sized, healthy, and proud. Who utilizes her body in a positive manner. I mean imagine the marketablility to younger audiences! If you still don’t believe me that a plus size woman can still be attractive and show skin like Momo would ultimately have to do in order to use her quirk, check out Ashley motherfuckin Graham doing just that

No matter how they would have gone on to design her as a plus size character, she could have still been stunning. Even if they kept her in the same costume design! Which is garbage but that’s a tangent for another time

But beyond equality and all that good stuff:

Momo being a plus size woman would mean she would have more ability for long term endurance in a battle. As it stands now, Momo taps out of a battle fairly fast. She’s tends to make one larger item and then she’s tapped. Which is highly inefficient in a battle. If anything it seems to be on par with how Midoriya’s quirk affected him in the beginning of the series. He had to sacrifice a part of his body in order to land an effective attack. Sound familiar? Well yeah. Because Momo does the same thing with Creation and she’s had it for years.

Each time Momo over uses her quirk, she’s left on the brink of passing out, if she hadn’t already, leaving her vulnerable and useless in the field alone. Each time she’s pushed herself past her limit she’s had her classmates to catch her when she falls. That’s not practical. Aizawa said it himself in the quirk apprehension test way back in chapter 6 of the manga.

So why is Momo considered differently? Why doesn’t Aizawa say something? Simple. He’s typically not around for these occurrences.

Momo doesn’t have to over use her quirk in simulations. She only does that when there’s real stakes and people on the line. The issue with that is that once she leaves UA, the stakes will always be real, all the time. Isn’t now the best time to nip this issue in the bud? I think so. But also I understand how Aizawa either hasn’t fully caught on, or hasn’t dealt with it. I mean, between villain attacks and our main character constantly almost killing himself recklessly in battle, he’s got a lot on his plate.

The other issue with her “sexy” design is that it negates from her overall character. In all official art we see for BNHA we see Momo typically left out, or hypersexualized. This detracts from her substance of being intelligent and creative. She’s often the butt of the joke when it comes to Mineta’s perverted jokes/schemes as well. Between the cheerleader outfits incident and the locker room scene Momo is constantly written off. Whereas Midnight, a pro hero and teacher at UA, who is known for her sexiness and uses it as her brand, uses her sexuality effectively without diminishing her actual worth as a hero or teacher. But then again Midnight is an adult, who is branded as the 18+ hero. Momo is a student and minor. But y’all still aren’t ready for that conversation yet.

Which brings me to the final point of this long winded rant. (Thanks if you’ve stuck around this long! We’re almost done! Follow me if you don’t already. I write stuff, paint stuff, and theorize/analyze stuff for bnha)

The way Momo is now, Discounts/Negates her supposed intellect

As I’ve mentioned already in this rant, how Momo operates now isn’t working out so well on her favor.

But that doesn’t really make sense considering she’s so fucking intelligent. I mean she’s literally top of the class academically. There is no reason for her to be so brilliant and also so bullheaded in her own quirk use. She shows us time and time again that she has brain power. Her quirk requires she be extremely intelligent in order to comprehend and apply molecular compounds in order to even sort of correctly use her quirk.

So it makes no sense that such simple solutions evade her constantly. Like I find it extremely hard to believe that Momo has never thought, “hmm I’m on the brink of death, maybe I should have eaten more” or “the last few battles left me weak, maybe I should find a solution or ask a teacher,” or even “man, my endurance isn’t all that great. I should work on that,” like anything along those lines would lead her intelligent brain to the conclusion that since whatever caloric intake she’s doing now is far to easy to burn through and perhaps the simple solution is to gain more fatty mass.

It honestly discounts Momo as a character if she’s constantly breaking down when such a simple solution is available to her. Plus on a more lighthearted note, it would be kind of great for Momo to be old money rich and plus sized. I mean it would be kind of ironically hilarious in my opinion.

Okay Bea, so what’s the point?

The point my friends is that female characters can be so much more. Especially Momo. There is always an opportunity for characters like Momo and Ochako (who’ll I’ll be breaking down next/soon) to have more substanse and impact to them than just being the second line of defense sexy characters.

Even in the actual universe that is BNHA, Momo as a hero student has far more potential than she is currently operating at.

Now, don’t get me wrong I understand that Horikoshi has a plateful of characters to deal with and Momo is probably on the bottom of the list, but it doesn’t mean we can’t imagine more for her. Because honestly it doesn’t even really matter if she changes for the better or not in canon, it’s the idea that there’s a character out there who all people can relate to whether it be average watchers/readers, plus size hopefuls, people with insecurities, readers/viewers who just like her quirk/design, or someone like me who saw a character and gravitated to the mostly relatable way she was written.

I love Momo as a character truly, she’s one of my favorites and I heavily associate with her. (Shocker I know, I mean she’s literally my icon that I painted myself) I am in no way tearing the character, franchise, or Horikoshi down. I am just observing what could have been (or could be but probably not) and pointing it out. So that maybe, just maybe, in the future there will be more characters who others can relate too. Other characters who are used at their full inspirational potential. But also, to point out some things that not only round out perspective on a character, but maybe even highlight how worth it it can be to look deeper into a characters through analysis. Hopefully I’ve done at least one of those things through this long post.

_____

Finally, thank you if you read this far into my gigantic breakdown.

Follow me if you don’t already and want too. If you do already follow me, please reblog so that others can read it if they want too.

I plan on doing more character breakdowns for BNHA, I’ve got a few already in the drafts and a cc if you have suggestions or questions. I also write fics for BNHA, so check out my AO3 link on my blog page for that. Also, you can bet your ass I’ll be writing a plus size Momo fic sometime soon. I’m really inspired on the topic (if you couldn’t tell already).

[ckret2]

meta about Vox & abuse with a side of Angel

Posting about Vox today reminded me of the thoughts I had a few days ago when the Insta accounts first posted those pics of Val smashing Vox’s face for getting his drink order wrong. So here’s a post mainly about Vox but a little about Angel.

So we've got confirmation that Val has shattered Vox's screen multiple times at this point. But there's been no evidence of violence from Vox toward Val, has there? I think it's all been one-sided. Think mention was made that Vox broke Val’s TV at one point, but as far as I can recall that was a one off—whereas Val has threatened to beat Vox’s face in more than once and done so more than once.

Cut for length but also for mentions of abuse—mainly just about how that abuse could affect the narrative/character arcs rather than discussing it in detail.

We might find out later that Vox, Val, and Vel’s dynamic is intended to be read as three goofy roughhousing villains who beat on each other as slapstick comedy and don’t really suffer any long-term physical/mental consequences—Vox & Val’s shark attack on Vel sure suggests that possibility—but the fact that Val’s violence toward Vox appears to be much more frequent and significant, plus the fact that Val is already being characterized as a very scary very real abuser, definitely leaves open the possibility that we’re supposed to take the actions between VV&V more seriously, too.

And it’s definitely easy to take it seriously. Like, looking at this post:

Look past the “haha TV face man got his TV broke, like a TV” visual gag, and this is a some guy taking a selfie of the black eye/broken nose his boyfriend gave him.

But it would be easy to see even these posts as "cartoony jokey violence" unless you stop and remember oh yeah this cartoon plays closer to real world rules rather than bugs bunny rules. There IS still a chance they could play it off as looney toons violence where we're supposed to go "lol look how awful VV&V are toward each other”—but I'm hoping that they do play it as an actual abusive relationship.

Maybe have them treat it like cartoony funny violence. Maybe have them telling themselves that this is all funny, it’s all games, if you’re tough enough then a little thing like a broken screen doesn’t REALLY hurt—and you ARE tough, right, aren’t you Vox?? Aren’t you some big bad overlord?? You’re not some fuckin loser who gets butthurt over a broken screen, are you?? It’d be really easy for the three of them to tell themselves/each other that how they treat each other—especially how Val treats Vox—is fine... and then for the show to peel off the surface layer of their clowning around and point out the damage that’s really being done.

As far as what this means for Vox’s character, I’m interested in the possibility. Vox is currently slated to be an endgame villain for the series. I'm liking the implication that Vox can be this big powerful nigh-unstoppable villain... but is also still just as vulnerable as anyone else to being suckered by an abuser. That's an unexpected but intriguing avenue for character depth.

And if they're willing to give Angel an in depth character arc over being abuse at Val’s hands, then it would feel really weird if they don’t give Vox the same treatment. Not necessarily an arc that ends in character growth, not necessarily one that that concludes with him getting free and/or getting on the road to redemption—particularly if he’s gonna be an endgame villain—but at least one that takes it seriously and explores how that abuse affects his character. It could even make him a good foil for Angel, showing how the two of them handle it/are affected by it differently. (And if canon doesn’t give us that arc, I’ve got two hands and a keyboard and an AO3 account, and that is a threat.)

Saw a theory that this is recent treatment, that Val’s moved on to a fresh target now that Angel is out of reach—but I don’t think he is out of reach. Val is still demanding money from Angel at the start of the pilot episode; and it’s hard to tell from the “Addict” video what’s present day and what’s flashback, but between the insta posts around its release and the video itself, it seems like the dance is definitely present day and the abuse/assault is probably present day. So Angel isn’t out of reach, so Val didn’t “move on” to another target. Which probably means this is just how he always treats Vox.

tbh I’m, like, immediately ten times more invested in Vox/Val than I was before these posts solely out of a desire to get Vox out of that relationship lmao. And/or the desire for Vox to pull his big square head out of his ass, look at Angel, and go "oh wait I've been looking down on him but I should probably be, like... empathizing with him."

I mean you've gotta figure. They move in close enough circles that they've GOT to have seen the results of Val's treatment on each other.

But they apparently haven't ended up allies because—what reason? Maybe Vox looking at Angel and going "Well it doesn't matter what happens to HIM, he's just Val's pet stripper. Our relationship is different, Val and me are equals. We just roughhouse. That's all it is." Maybe Angel looking at Vox and going "Well he's on the same power level as Val, he could obviously just leave if it was bothering him. But he doesn't act like he's bothered, so he must not be," coupled with maybe not even consciously recognizing shattered screens as, y'know, an injury.

Or maybe they’re jealous of each other because they don’t see the full extent of how Val treats them. “What’s Angel complaining about, at least Val doesn’t beat his face in.” “What’s Vox complaining about, it’s not like he’s gotta dance for Val to pay rent.” Either because Val keeps them from getting to know each other too well, or because they’re both currently too emotionally immature to work out how to empathize with each other.

Or maybe Angel does recognize Vox’s situation but doesn't feel like he's got room to reach out when it's VOX, who oozes power out of every port and who gives off the impression that he would be violently offended rather than grateful if someone suggested he's any sort of victim.

Maybe part of Angel’s redemption arc is going to involve recognizing how bad Vox has got it, deciding that even a douchebag like Vox deserves the same chance at salvation that a douchebag like Angel got, and trying to invite him into the hotel to get away from Val.

And maybe part of Vox’s trajectory toward becoming the final villain will be rejecting Angel’s compassion, because he’s clinging so hard to this idea that he’s only “safe” as long as he’s the most goddamn powerful sinner in hell that he can’t bring himself to let go of the lie he tells himself about his own supposed invincibility, even when somebody’s reaching out and offering to help him.

(... All that said, I’m still waiting on standby with my keyboard and my AO3 account, fully prepared to write that “Vox goes to the hotel and now the healing can begin” fic.)

[quacki2]

something i think is really interesting about the different dsmp writers is how their relationship to minecraft seems to alter the way they write stories. which is actually to be expected, but i hadn’t really thought about it until like, last night? as i was thinking of ways the finale could’ve been improved lol

like, take wilbur for example. wilbur isn’t a professional mc player or anything - sure, he plays in mcc and everything, but everyone knows he’s no s tier. he plays it to have fun, to tell his stories. in fact, he’s been telling stories using mc as the medium way before dsmp was even a thing! his skyblock series is a great example of that. it’s not as complex or intriguing as dsmp, for sure, but it’s still a tale. wilbur focuses on mc as a medium much more than a game by itself.

now take a look at dream and techno. the two of them have been playing minecraft for much longer than wilbur has, and they’re damn good at it. contrary to him, their main focus always seems to be the game - they’re interested in netherite armor, how many stacks of gapples and wither skeletons they have, how well prepared they can to be for battle. it affects the way they write stories for the smp for sure. whereas wilbur’s focus is in the tale itself, techno and dream look at it through a different angle - how can they make this interesting through high-level minecraft gameplay?

which isn’t to say the two of them can’t write excellent stories, because wow they can. other than the underwhelming end, this arc of the smp was so good. tommy’s exile arc was fantastic, techno being dragged out of his peaceful retirement by the very people he hurt was wonderfully thought out. but the key difference to wilbur here is that they’re not looking to make the finale as good as it can possibly be, story-wise. they want it to be flashy, they want to make it as visually interesting as they can with minecraft mechanics, because that’s what they think is appealing- the game in and of itself, not just as a medium for storytelling.

i wouldn’t say that’s necessarily bad, i had a lot of fun watching techno absolutely wreck everything in his stream. but even though it was entertaining at the time, it just didn’t give me that blown-away feeling i had back when l’manberg was destroyed for the first time. it just felt like beating a dead horse this time around, tbh. which is a real shame, because there were so many interesting subplots going on during this “season” that i would’ve loved seeing incorporated in the story and the finale somehow, and that could’ve saved it. (haha el rapids *loud wink*)

i really don’t know how keen dream and techno (and everyone else that helped them write this arc) would be in receiving fan criticism, but who knows, maybe they are seeing it. i know the dsmp has the potential to tell great stories and now that l’manberg is (at least i hope so) finally out of the picture, i think that they’ll have the opportunity to explore as many different plots as they’d like :)

[magpiefngrl]

Do you think people taking issue with the noncon/consent exploration in mdzs are people who mainly read fanfiction? I'm wondering because I've recently read both atonement and the world according to garp and I found both interesting and good reads even when I morally disagreed with the main characters actions or opinions, whereas in fanfiction I often look for 'canon fix its'. All my favorite mdzs fics are about people making amends. Maybe for some reason people want mdzs to be an explicitly queer fanfic version of the untamed? Idk, I think what I really want is to read a full-blown thesis on fandoms

Hi anon and apologies for my late reply.

The short answer: I don't know. I have to say, first, that I'm mainly on the periphery of the mdzs/cql fandoms (who congregate on twitter), I haven't made many new fandom pals, and I keep seeing posts about drama that has happened somewhere somewhen but never the actual drama. I keep missing all the wank lol (seriously, tho: fandom wank can be very illuminating as to the attitudes of the fanbase)

In short, I'm not very knowledgeable as to the prevalent fandom mentality and why people might complain about the consent issues, but if I were to make some assumptions, this is what they'd be:

Firstly, the topic itself. Consent is a sensitive topic, it's a huge trigger for many, and it's understandable that some people don't want to read wangxian's con noncon kink or a dub con kiss or anything similar. Which is perfectly fine, they should stop reading a narrative that explores consent throughout in order to keep themselves safe.

But my gut tells me that you're right, though, in that many of the people kicking up a fuss about the consent issues of mdzs are mostly people who came from cql; in other words, people who have watched the subtle version of wangxian romance, and are used to fanfic or published romance novels like Carry On etc, and expect something similar. They expect romance. Porn. The kind of sex you read in fanfic or in the romance novel section of KU, which is meant to arouse and titillate. When I began reading MXTX's novels, I also initially assumed they'd be like fanfics: a story with a canonically queer pairing posted on internet? It was also my own assumption, come to think of it.

From what I've seen, the romance is the key re: consent (the dub con kiss, the incense burner extra etc) because few, if any, have made similar complaints about the non-consensual golden core transfer, which is the only massively and unarguably noncon instance in the whole series. I've seen excellent meta about it, but not the vehement reactions and hate that the sex scenes have gathered.

The number of fans who began reading danmei recently (and I'm including myself here) must have quadrupled since the success of cql. It's a niche, very niche genre that became almost mainstream, and of course there'd be friction. The success of cql plus other adaptations brought a lot of people that prob wouldn't read danmei or enjoy it. Which is fine to not want to read it, it's fine to dislike the genre, as it's fine to explore new genres and discover new things but many fans, imo, came with the expectations mentioned above. That it's cql but with hot sex. Fans of the novel mdzs are (I'm speculating) people who are comfortable with a highly nuanced book about many weighty themes incl. consent, and prob read similar books which all seem to feature hugely messed up characters and grey morality and be angsty af, so I'd be surprised if the original danmei fans were the ones complaining about a rape fantasy in an extra.

As for wanting to see different things in fanfic, well, that's what fic does, isn't it? It's pure wish fulfillment. You write about the ship you think should be together, or happy endings for the ship that didn't get one, or the yunmeng siblings reconciliation that we all wished we'd see, or Wen Qing being alive etc. It's what we didn't get. I love reading this in fics but I also loved the actual canon story. If I read books that remind me of fanfic (in that everything is neat and orderly and people are being their Best Selves and make few, understandable mistakes for which they immediately apologise), I don't actually enjoy them. I relish the Atonement angst (read this ages ago; should give it a reread), but if I were to read Atonement fanfic, I'd like a happy ending, you know? I get different things from fic than I do from novels, but a lot of people read only fanfic and perhaps they think that's how stories are.

I've rambled on and on. As I've said, I am just a lurker in this fandom. I assume others might have a better understanding of why people have whined so much about the noncon elements of a novel nobody forced them to read. (i'm being salty bc most of the times people complained about this they were also incredibly dismissive towards the author and the genre to the point of coming across as culturally insensitive and racist. Lots of bad faith takes, basically.)

I'm also fascinated by fandom ecosystems---I'd love to read a good thesis on the mdzs/cql fandom too.

[firelxdykatara]

so i saw a kata*ng post saying the fact that there are barely any male zutara fans proves the shippers are just thirsty for zuko and project themselves onto katara which is funny cuz nobody argues male katan*ng fans are projecting onto Aang. Although I suppose their point was that both men and women ship kataa*g but zutara is mostly shipped by women, which might have some truth to it. personally i think the reason for that is cuz men usually tend to stick to canon material regardless of the

(continued) quality of canon's content, including ships whereas women are more likely to be into fanon transformative work that changes canon if it doesnt satisfy them or they find it lacking. Theres a reason most fanfiction writers are women for example. what do you think?

First of all, ‘men don’t like the relationship where the girl actually has agency in how it develops and where her feelings are considered relevant, but prefer the relationship where the girl has no agency and is handed like a trophy to the hero for saving the world, despite the fact that the only thing she ever actually said about her potential feelings for him were that she was ‘confused’‘ really isn’t the ‘gotcha’ those people seem to think it is.

Like, no shit, straight men (including bryke, incidentally, and I’m sure that the fact that adult Aang was literally modeled after Michael Dante DiMartino is totally a coincidence) seem more inclined to like the relationship where the boy had clear feelings for the girl, who gave no sign of returning them, and all he had to do was wait for her to See The Light and realize she wanted him, the Nice Guy, and not the Bad Boy over there with the wicked cool scar on his face--and before anyone accuses me of pulling this out of my ass, why don’t y’all go and check out the Book 4: Air video that was released at SDCC and see what they thought of Zutara and also how they treated their own fanbase. That is literally one of the oldest Straight Romance tropes in the book--boy likes girl, girl is oblivious, boy finally Wins Girls Affections by saving the day or whatever at the end and she’s suddenly all over him despite having shown next to no interest in him over the course of the series.

So yeah, no wonder men like that relationship, and women tend not to.

Of course, the other side of that coin is the misogyny inherent in insisting that women are so ruled by their attraction to men, specifically, (nevermind that many of us are queer and not all of us are even attracted to men--interestingly, I know more than one lesbian who is a zutara shipper!) that it’s completely impossible that they watched a show where two characters had a series-long relationship arc from enemies to friends and believed there was potential for it to progress even further, from friends to lovers--no, they must only think zuko is hot and want to project onto Katara so they could be with him. (Nevermind the fact that this makes no sense--there’s a character who, in canon, actually gets to kiss Zuko. If projecting ourselves into relationships with Zuko was the point, why aren’t we all Maiko shippers instead?)

And on the... third hand??? What does it even matter? Even if Zutara shippers were mostly women because we all just wanna make out with Zuko (rather than most zutara shippers being women because zuko and katara lends itself best out of any of the available ships to transformative works, particularly because of how much legwork the show did with their relationship that it didn’t even do with their canon romances, and that dovetailing nicely with the fact that most transformative works are written by women, who have always dominated in transformative fandom spaces in particular), who cares? That still doesn’t change the fact that Zuko and Katara had a series long relationship arc. It doesn’t change the fact that they went from enemies to friends and it took more work for Zuko to gain Katara’s trust than anyone else, and he was willing to put in that work because he cared what she thought of him. It doesn’t change the fact that he took a bullet lightning bolt for her in the most romantically coded, storyboarded, and written scene in the show (and yes, that’s including the scene where sokka was literally preparing to have sex with suki). It doesn’t change the fact that the story of Oma and Shu parallels Zuko and Katara, right down to the two original earthbenders being red and blue coded. and finally managing to save each other and be together

At any rate, circling back to the point you were actually making--you’re absolutely right, as I mentioned, that women make up the majority of fandom, in particular transformative fandom, for a reason. And so no, I don’t think it’s any coincidence that the relationship that best lends itself to fanon development--because canon came so close but didn’t actually follow through, leaving us with an incredible foundation which can be taken in so many different ways--is also the one that has a primarily female fanbase.

And I think writing that off as ‘lol they’re all just horny for zuko’ is incredibly misogynistic, but given the way the atla fandom has been showing its ass lately, I’m not remotely surprised.

[oversimplify-it]

Story Process Tag by @herpixels​

I was tagged by @dynastiasimss​ - Thank you so much for tagging me!! 😊💖💗 This will most definitely get a bit wordy because I’m terrible at explaining things concisely! 😂 Also, I’ll mostly be talking about my process for 2.B.A Grandmaster but I’ll touch on my process for Erin in San Myshuno too!

I’m also going to get tags out of the way up here so that no one has to scroll all the way through this ... absolute novel that is under the cut LMAO so I tag: @cyansimblr  @x-simss @matchacake and any other simblrs who wanna do this!! and feel free to skip if you want!

1. Your writing process My writing process is very, very chaotic, and changes with the wind... Erin in San Myshuno doesn’t really have a process, I just play the game and then put in some dialogue based on the events. None of it is guided by my hand at all though! 2.B.A Grandmaster on the other hand is written in part based on what happens in game and in part by my own creative vision. Most of the time, I let stuff happen, and then fill in the blanks in between events. I go in game, play Sims as I normally would (skill build, take care of needs, go out to venues, etc.) and then watch what weird and interesting things happen. For example, Augusta’s meeting with Xavier in the beginning was completely the game’s doing! He was the only one to show up for the Welcome Wagon event, so I rolled with that. Scenes like Kaitlin’s meeting with Maverick and those sort of things are planned by me, as they’re necessary to create a more full narrative! It’s like collaborative storytelling, but my “partner” is a game that is weird and random and crazy. 😂 After stuff happens in game and I get screenshots, I then actually write for it. I chose to write novel style for the series because - as some of my long-term followers may remember - I had another story that was just screenshots with dialogue on them? And it was very hard, LOL, it didn’t suit my workflow very well and I ended up dropping it after a month or so. I wanted 2.B.A Grandmaster to be something I could post consistently, and so I opted for a style that I was more familiar and experienced with!

2. Scene building For the most part, I just work with what sims gives me, but as I mentioned above, some scenes I actually go to the trouble of setting up. For those, I still use the sims animations mostly (I’ve used poses about 3 times in 2.B.A Grandmaster so far) but I do usher my sims around the "set” as I see fit. I build a lot of my own lots and locations for 2.B.A GM because I tend to get a vision in my mind of what I want and refuse to settle for less. 😂 One such case is the scene where Maverick meets up with Octavia--

I made the alleyway we see here - it’s two entirely empty buildings sandwiched side by side on an otherwise empty lot in Oasis Springs. The only part I bothered to decorate was the alley itself because I knew I wasn’t going to use the rest of the area, but maybe we’ll revisit it sometime and I’ll finish the two buildings! I actually loved making this set and like how it turned out, LOL~

Then I just have whatever sims are involved in a scene interact with each other for ages until I feel like I have enough screenshots to make a scene. I usually have a vague idea of what’s going to be said in any given scene - especially the ones I actually planned out beforehand - but I get some excess screenshots to be safe. I try lots of different interactions and pause like every few frames to get interesting expressions and stuff, LOL. Lots of “Complain about Cold Weather” and “Give fake bad news” ...

3. CC/Pose making I don’t actually make my own CC for 2.B.A GM specifically (I’ve made a couple eyeshadows but I don’t use them super frequently) but there is a scene coming up in the future that I plan to make poses for. I have a very clear image in my mind that includes a lot of subtle expressions and very specific things that I doubt I could find poses for, so I’m gonna have to brave the terrifying landscape of blender in order to make it a reality. 😧

4. Getting in the zone I don’t have any sort of “ok, show time” ritual like some people do but I wish I did, because my motivation waxes and wanes so unpredictably. Some days I just don’t feel like doing anything, and other days I edit and write for 5 posts in a row! I am always listening to something though, usually music, every once in a blue moon a video with lots of talking. 5. Screenshot folder

UGH... 

6. Captions I don’t do captions on 2.B.A GM posts, but for my city living gameplay I do! I keep them simple, because I don’t want to make it too much work for myself. Erin in San Myshuno’s style of editing is 100% based around ease, because I wanted something to post often that didn’t put too much of a strain on me. Verdana in white, typically 35-40 px, with a gradient border. Each sim we encounter has a different gradient color, usually based on their outfit or just the ~vibe~ I get from them. Erin’s gradient is Hot pink to ... gee, what would you call it. Sonic the Hedgehog Blue LMAO-- I chose that gradient because that’s the color of the overlay, which I’ll talk more about in the next section!

7. Editing My two ‘series’ - and I use that term loosely LMAO - have different editing processes, so I’ll try to summarize them both. Basically, for 2.B.A Grandmaster, I touch up the saturation and brightness depending on the scene. If it’s evening in the shots, I usually won’t touch brightness, and if it’s night, I might even lower it a bit for more accurate lighting! Once that’s done, I blur everything but relevant elements of a scene, usually the character we’re following or who is speaking. I have to select the character from the background manually which takes a bit, but other than that it’s very minimal.

My shots aren’t super glamorous, but I prefer simple screenshots and actually being able to keep up with a story schedule as opposed to what happened with my last story. 😬 As for Erin in San Myshuno, barring captions which I only do when I feel it’s necessary, it’s literally just an overlay on otherwise untouched screenshots. 😭 I would do more, but again, it’s supposed to be an easy downtime sort of series for me so~

This goes over top all screenshots on the “Add” setting at 20% opacity. It brightens things up and softens them, as well as making the colors slightly more harmonious! If anyone wants me to go more in depth on editing, or maybe captions, please let me know! I’m happy to talk about it if it’ll help anyone, and I know that a lot of tutorials cover how to do stuff in Photoshop, whereas I use FireAlpaca (which is 100% free btw! It’s more of an art program, but not bad for editing) 8. Throwback!

Oh boy, so this is one of my first posts on simblr. For starters, I didn’t know about camera mode at the time, so that’s the first thing I would change obviously LOL. 😬 The framing I did at the time was ... cute, but it makes the pictures feel kind of cramped and small in my opinion, so I did away with that for all of my later stories. Also, Amy and Gemma aren’t very well centered in this picture! Other than that, this isn’t actually terrible I don’t think, so aside from maybe blurring the background as I do on 2.B.A GM now, I wouldn’t change too much! Thankfully, I had observed other people’s stories before making my own on here for a little bit, so I wasn’t starting with absolutely no idea what to do, but I still think I’ve improved since I made these. 😊

This was a ton of fun!! If anyone has questions or wants more info on anything I covered in here, absolutely feel free to ask, and thank you so much if you actually read through all of this - I know I rambled for quite a while!! 🙏

[reeeyachi]

HIIIII i am popping up in ur askbox because i really really really wanna hear what you wanted to say about knuckle/shoot !! ♥

HELLO OMG thank you for this ask i’ve been meaning to post a separate one but this is BETTER thank you <3

this is just a simple super subjective meta (?) that i thought of while i was reading the manga before and remembered when you mentioned them as catalysts to gon’s feelings in your previous post.

ok knuckle and shoot. it’s amazing how togashi managed to insert meaningful characters in hxh and i think knuckle and shoot are two of the most important ones in chimera ant arc, relative to the characterization of gon and killua, as we can see how they both PARALLEL and CONTRAST each other in a way. i believe togashi deliberately wrote their characters as such because:

he wants to showcase varying types of love; bcos

he wants readers to read through his contexts

at face value, knuckle and shoot are much like gon and killua, right? nen ability aside, it’s too obvious how their personalities kind of match. knuckle is much like gon, whereas shoot is much like killua.

BUT WHAT’S INTERESTING about them is how they CONTRAST gon and killua and how this contrast plays a role in chimera ant arc’s storytelling, and in togashi’s excellent ply in exposing romantic gay undertones throughout the arc. chimera ant arc, after all, is a romance and an epic in itself. togashi had to meticulously throw in characters that would represent something somehow, and not just there because he thought they looked cool.

and knuckle and shoot; well, for me, they represent what dudebros on redditors think of gon and killua and hunter x hunter in general, (i hate to say it but--) NO HOMO.

i think togashi placed their characters, that somehow parallel gon and killua personality-wise, specifically in this arc because he wanted to present a kind of love between two male friends. and by friends, i literally mean just close friends. and that he wanted to show us that this type of love that they have is very much different from the type of love gon/killua (who are also two male friends) has --> which, on the other hand, parallels more, in so many levels, with meruem/komugi’s (romantic love).

i really really hate to admit the “no homo” take but i feel this strongly as intentional for knuckle and shoot. although, of course, we never know they might turn out as lovers in the end. but at that point of the story, they are bros in battle. they are fighting to protect everyone and plan on surviving after that. none of them considered the possibility of leaving everything behind and of dying *ahem-killua-ahem* together because of sheer love for their bro. did they? if so, i don’t remember ever reading it in the manga.

also, aside from the one you initially pointed out, of shoot saying that his job is to act calm and stop knuckle (again, a parallel), i find that specific scenario play interesting because it’s shoot basically breaking down in front of knuckle (knuckle shedding his share of tears) and telling him to go and kick youpi’s ass for him. THIS is a contrast -- because what happened to gon and killua during that war was the complete opposite. and looking back i find that contrast funny because this is basically telling me that this is what would happen if there are no romantic feelings involved between the smol bois. would gon still push killua away? if so, would killua take it personally? if anything, killua might even smack gon in the head to bring him back to his senses and call him an idiot. but nooo, he didn’t because of an internal conflict caused by many things in his heart including his feelings for gon.

for me, while meruem and komugi represent romantic unconditional love, knuckle and shoot represent platonic love in this arc -- and somehow the story suggests that, at their young age and with everything that has happened, gon and killua are swimming in between those at that point.

--

oh welp this became a killugon meta but that’s my take on knuckle and shoot lol this was longer but my internet shut down and deleted everything i typed in earlierkajrdfjkdsfjkdjkdsf ok i hope i made my point. just a little disclaimer that this opinion can change in the future just saying haha

thank you for this ask i enjoy writing my thoughts on hxh and my take on this series’ characters specifically <333333

[the-golden-ghost]

i know almost nothing about lupin iii but it looks really fun from the stuff i've seen about it! it's a movie right? series of movies maybe?? what's it about?

It is fun! At least, so far as I’ve seen. I’ve barely seen much of it and will probably never see all the content out there that exists for it, but it’s been a good time!

It’s a long running franchise that basically started with a manga in the 60s (I think?) and has since gotten 5 different anime series and so many dang movies that I can’t even count them all. And a few miniseries spinoffs focusing on side characters (I know Zenigata has one at least, and I think Fujiko has one too?)

The nice thing about it though is that you don’t really need to know much about the series to break in, since it’s pretty much formulaic and doesn’t have an overarching plot where the Status Quo changes drastically. The movies (with maybe like two or three exceptions) are standalone, too. So you can pretty much just Pick A Thing And Go With It.

The plot is about a master thief (the titular Lupin) going about doing Crimes and stealing shit. And sometimes other stuff. He occasionally saves women or stops bad guys from doing Bad Guy Shit (the fact that he himself is technically a bad guy notwithstanding lol) but mostly it’s just him and his friends Causing Trouble For Funsies. In other words, it’s about what happens when you throw a thief, a samurai, a gunman, a femme fatale, and a beleaguered cop together and watch them Commit Hijinks

Personally I’d recommend if you’ve got Netflix watching The Castle of Cagliostro because it’s just easy to find and it’s a solid entry point, it gives you a good intro to the characters and is a very pleasant movie overall. 

Or you can just watch the series on Crunchyroll. It doesn’t have any of the movies, but it has all 5 series. They’re titled Part 1, Part 2, etc. but they’re standalone and the “parts” are just the order they were made in. Evidently the “classic” series is actually Part 2. They do have some tonal shifts I know, I haven’t seen them all yet but Part 2 is very cartoonish (kinda reminiscent of Scooby-Doo or other shows from that era but for adults) whereas Parts 4 and 5 are more serious and darker in tone (I haven’t seen those ones yet though, and as for Parts 1 and 3 I have no idea what they’re like)

As for the movies... I’ve heard the CGI movie Lupin III: The First is amazing (the animation speaks for itself) but I haven’t seen it yet. It can be rented in the US though so it’s definitely viewable! 

But otherwise here is a very good list covering every movie, its general premise, some content warnings/stuff to watch out for, and how generally dark and weird it is (they do range pretty drastically from what I understand). You’re on your own finding them though lol

Hopefully some of that helps! I hope I didn’t scare you off by pointing out the multiple series or movies - it’s really not that bad, and the nice thing is, you can pick and choose what you want to see so there’s anything that you don’t Vibe with, you can simply skip over it!