#yes that parallel with take me to church is there for a reason

[forestmossling]

just imagine rockstar! eddie releasing a new album, where one of the songs is called “a voice from above”. in it, he sings about a heavenly voice coming to him in the hardest, darkest hour of his life, when he was ready to give up and stopped seeing a future for himself, and calling him towards the light, coaxing the best out of him and pulling him up from the pit of despair eddie was slowly drowning in.

and it’s a rock ballad, so it differs quite a bit from cc’s usual style, is more “palatable” to the general public with it’s slower tempo, gentler melody and hauntingly beautiful vocals, with addition of a choir in the climax. and because of that, christians start claiming it (basically what happened with “take me to church”), newspapers and magazines wonder at eddie munson, the man a large part of whose aesthetic was so often referred to as “satanic” by the general public, with seemingly no denial from cc, who seemingly has finally found his way to religion.

and when cc comes to their next interview, the question of whether the great non-conformist eddie munson, who on multiple occasions dragged the christian church through the mud with accusations of hypocrisy and fostering bigotry in its midst in his songs and public speeches, has finally found god, inevitably comes up. the moment cc hear it they burst out laughing. after a while, eddie finally responds.

“this song is full of religious motifs, but not nearly for the same reasons you guys seem to think it is. it’s just that the experience the song is dedicated to was the closest i think i ever came to understanding what makes people come to real, genuine faith, the one that fills you with clarity, love and acceptance for the world around you, makes you feel like a part of something so much larger and greater than a mortal human being can possibly comprehend or reach on their own. that experience being the voice of the man that i came to love reaching me while i was in coma and reminding me of all the reasons life was worth fighting for, and then keeping inspiring me to be the best version of myself throughout my whole life.

and that, folks, is how being incredibly gay can save your life! i also don’t mind christians blasting “a voice from above” on their little church parties: my husband, after all, is definitely an angel on earth and absolutely deserves to be worshipped. but don’t you worry, i’m handling that pretty well on my own” and he winks at the camera.

and that’s how the world finds out that eddie munson is married.

[mysteryanimator]

I love your animations, but I'm still struggling to view them without thinking about their last canon interaction. Can you tell me what you envision their makeup would be like?

(Lol I’m so sorry to all the ppl who work on Nocturne reading this 💀 and just generally everyone)

Thank you so much that means a lot! But now, you’ve unveiled my trap card and given me an excuse to write my thoughts on Mizrak and Olrox, so this will get pretty long. Also, this may end up being very subjective/personal taste in some parts so I hope everyone doesn’t mind (and hope you don't mind the funky grammar!) This is an open discussion too, I’d like to hear everyone’s thoughts! 

Now with that out of the way here we go!

(This is old unfinished storyboards for a previous iteration of their makeup scene I did back in jan, never finished them due to uni/another project, I'd like to someday tho because guh the themes.)

Now first of all, I’d like to think that a proper makeup/conversation wouldn’t happen for a bit and would be drawn out because they’re both still hurt, angry, sad, and confused at not only each other but themselves. They’re not the type to get into loud verbal arguments for this, definitely some verbal jabs at each other though. Mean petty comments, oh absolutely. I’d like to personally believe they’d still yearn for each other, perhaps even more so after Olrox indirectly confessed and Mizrak practically turned it down. 

Now, there are soooo many different ways that they’d even see each other again, many different ways it could come to that initial point where they’ve made up. Though I’ll go with one of my personal idea (which people keep egging me on to animate WHICH… I dunno I don’t have free time rn so I’m just blurting it out into written format while I can 😭 I want to though, maybe later in the year for fun if season 2 doesn’t beat me to it). 

Have to establish my vision, but I’d think that Richter, Maria, Annette, Alucard and Mizrak are hopping from abandoned town to abandoned town due to the inability to return to Macheoul for the time being. While Olrox has been on his own (doing what, I’m not even sure my personal headcanon for this.) I think Alucard and Mizrak have a conversation about Alucard’s past in a group setting and it strikes a chord with the monk- since after all, Alucard’s dad is THE Dracula, and his mother (bless her, I miss her) is human. You know how that whole backstory goes, and it parallels Olrox a lot. Also Mizrak and Annette will absolutely have a deep conversation too. Just solely from the comment that was made: 

“We’re all descended from gods, we just have to learn how to draw their power.” Nocturne s1 ep 2

Annette clearly having powers from Haitian gods, absolutely challenging how Mizrak was only certain of one God. Yes, Mizrak is extremely stubborn and it will take him a bit, but he’s different from the Abott in the sense that he will not let religion blind his path to good. He ‘uses his head’ as said before, not god, not the church- his head. Mizrak’s idea of the church and his faith is now a mess and it’s up to him on how he interprets it and rewrites it knowing what he knows now (this is important I swear when it comes to the makeup scene).

Now we’re at the actual scene at hand: Olrox and Mizrak making up.

Side note: oh god I’m practically writing this whole thing as if its going to be played out for an episode, but that’s how it works in my brain LOL but you asked so you shall receive. I am so sorry HAHA

There’s been a lot of build up from this point where they have been meeting up here and there by themselves, but you can clearly tell whenever they do they both hurt and yearn- which would lead to their proper makeup scene. I’m just inserting this for fun, but I’d imagine this would take place in an abandoned church in the town they’re camping in for the night. For a lot of symbolic reasons; devotion, sacrifice, forgiveness, gathering. This along with the simple fact, Mizrak’s relationship to the church has changed completely from here. I’d like to think that even when he’s trying to rekindle that connection with God, it leaves that icky overcoat on his skin. 

“Faith is a company in the hardest of times, when the world abandons you.” Nocturne ep 3

The church indeed had saved him from whatever terrible horrific thing happened to him in the past, however whatever saved him can still be horrible and terrible too. It is infallible.  It is cruel in an attempt to gather community and peace. So, yes- faith can be company when the world abandoned him, but his faith is no longer with the church. He’s taking it back and finding some place else to rest it. (Olrox, it’s Olrox, probably ooc but I’m making it Olrox). 

In this church, the conversation between them will initially start as a discussion about religion, faith and that whole sort of deal. It’ll open up about Mizrak exact struggles from his mouth and how he particularly feels about it, then we get more insight onto Olrox’s thoughts, his perception of the church and perhaps even a deep dive into Aztec history again. Maybe even talk about Olrox’s Quetzalcoatl form, though really this is self indulgent. It’s an aspect I’d absolutely love to be explored and I think it being discussed in revere in a Catholic Church,  with Mizrak actually being open to it due to his new perspective? Oh my god, sign me up. Regardless, it would hold similar energy to episode 6: Gulity Men to be Judged. There’s a weight to it. 

Then it gets heavier when the conversation pivots.  

Mizrak’s attachment in the church was due to him caring about people and, hypothetically, to save him from whatever detriment came for him in the past. The last canon interaction, their falling out they had in season 1 was because he cared about others. To a fault. Now, here he is, standing in front of someone he cares about. It’s going to open a conversation between what’s happening between them and finally properly discuss what happened from their last canon interaction in nocturne season 1. 

A lot of finger and hand brushing from Olrox, which at first I’d think gets no reaction as an attempt for restraint before Mizrak warms up to it and even reciprocates by doing the same thing. All of this is very gentle in my opinion. It’s slow, tender, and most importantly vulnerable. It has the physical contact reminiscent of their first fast rough and tug in the courtyard and piggybacks off the vulnerability they both have when they both stand next to the window in episode 6. They probably also just physically get closer to each other at the moment. Just gradually though. The distance gets closer and closer until their foreheads are practically touching without them realizing it. They’re comfortable though, they don’t want to leave. 

They absolutely get to a point where they both admit to saying “I love you” without straight up saying “I love you” because that’s just a very them thing. Or maybe they do straight up state because Olrox does admit he was in love (with his partner) and doesn’t shy from that fact. It’s a nice conversion of the trope and great to hear from a mlm couple to say I love you… but man do I do love when characters get all poetic-y when their profess their devotion to each other by literally talking in prose, so maybe with good writing both can be done and still be quite powerful but still be gentle. 

In my interpretation YEAH I’LL MAKE THEM KISS AFTER THIS, this is my vision after all. Also, yeah they’re gonna fuck. In the church? Perhaps. Is it a tad OOC, maybe. HOWEVER, consider imagery and symbolism. I just think the image of it would be great, even if it was censored to hell and back, it can be so artistically done. Just imagine the implication alone with me for a second. I think the whole concept of doing it in a church is an interesting build upon the quotes from the show;

“God is not here. This church is an empty box.” From the first Castlevania series.

“House of God? This place is just a heap of bricks and stone.” From Nocturne said by Maria. 

The church is a husk, especially having it abandoned- it’s rather what you do with that box that makes all the difference. The people inside are the driving force, so I think it’s both poetic and funny to have Mizrak and Olrox fucking in an abandoned church. Surface level: fuck you god I’m fucking my hot vampire boyfriend in your house. Deeper level: I could write a whole thing on this but I’ll refrain. You can get the gist of breaking free of restraint, and devotion and letting himself be human, rather than a soldier (which he already slowly does). 

Though also this sex scene isn’t necessary, I just like exploring explicit content in artistic ways, especially if I can throw in religious symbols and heighten that hunger/devotion to a person- but the “I love you” in the church is pretty powerful already.  

Then after all of this they take it at their own pace. However, they only live life once and continue together like that- they both know this concept very well because of the very nature of who they are, so they spend it in each other’s company. 

Now you also get the squad’s reactions, well namely because I do not think this would be an easily hidden thing. Like absolutely could get away with it in season 1, but everyone will know something is up for sure in my iteration. The 'hypothetical' Mystery Animator season 2 iteration. As subtle as their longing stares and quiet hand touches may be reserved for just them- those little interactions are loud.

Richter would absolutely be in shambles over Olrox, the killer of his mother, and Mizrak being a thing. Both in a “this is the most horrible thing that’s happened in my life” and also a he’s going to be an absolute shithead to Mizrak and make fun of him, lightheartedly of course. Alucard would absolutely have an interesting perspective because again, his parents. Maria already has disdain for the church plus the “vampires are evil… and evil has to be fought.” However, in the presence of Alucard, I think a lot will change because he’s half-vampire. Annette, I’m unsure of what her reaction would be, because I’m very sure she’d be receptive to Alucard being a vampire and then would appreciate Olrox’s mindset and values. However, gonna keep hammering, Olrox killed Julia Belmont which I feel will be comedically hammered in if Olrox decides to hang around the squad occasionally. 

And with that, we’re done! (I think)

Thank you for reading 🫶 this probably will not happen in cv s2 but it’s fun blurting out my hc. I’m really excited to see what they do, and even perhaps even go in the opposite direction due to episode limitations… maybe a season 3 👀 who knows.

[roseworth]

okay but i NEED to talk about how jason in green arrow #72 is literally peak Dramatic Theatre Kid energy

like yeah we all talk about the “i wore the mask under the helmet for dramatic effect then it turned into a habit” line from a few issues before this but. this last issue is where he gets insane

first of all. he has mia tied up right at the start. he could have just as easily given his monologue while she was tied up but INSTEAD he wants to talk while they fight so he UNTIES HER and GIVES HER A WEAPON. so fucking funny

THEN he brings her to her school because he has a lesson to teach her. this is the same motherfucker that brought bruce to a broken down church to symbolize how he lost faith in him.

but i think the scoreboard in this is what gets me every time. he went through the effort to change the scoreboard to say “red hood 1, speedy 0” literally for no reason other than the Drama

SO fucking funny that bruce knows exactly what jason is doing. he raised a drama queen and he knows it

honestly i have nothing to add here. i just love this part a lot. but also i just know he practiced this line in the mirror the night before

now first of all. “snazzy, right?” babygirl i love u. he is literally so funny. “goodness gracious i’ve been bamboozled” motherfucker. second of all, i LOVE the implication that he thought “hm… the killing people thing isn’t enough on its own. i need to become an expert with bruce's least favorite weapon just to add spice to bruce’s anger.”

continuing the school metaphors <3 but most importantly this bitch takes off his helmet in the middle of a fight just for—you guessed it—dramatic effect

using the things bruce taught him just to fuck with him? amazing. outstanding. he set out codes and puzzles for bruce and ollie to find while he fights mia just to be a bitch to bruce :) ignore them honey i thot it was funny 💘

once again i have nothing to say about this part but this exchange makes me insane hhgmfhfhsmsgs YES draw parallels between them!!!! it’s what you’re supposed to do!

i LOVE that he timed this out. this boy was waiting with a trigger to make SURE that the building would blow up as soon as they got there. jason exploits his own trauma just to be a bitch to bruce and make him think about his death. i love him

and ofc. letting her go because he didnt want to kill her. he just wanted to fuck with bruce by fucking with her. what as asshole. i love him

:( but also lmfaoooo i still love the acknowledgement that everyone knows jason is just being a dick and making it everyones problem. good for him.

anyway read Green Arrow #69-72

[beebopboom]

Refined by Fire

annndddd we are back folks with the Death of one Agnes Nutter

Awhile ago @justhereforthemeta made this post about Agnes having some parallels to Jesus which is what really got the wheels turning in my brain in the first place and well now here we are

but just to recap-

Check out part 1 for a list of all her prophecies that we know of and all the artwork I could find referenced in her book

In part 2 we started to dive into where she was getting her prophecies from through some clues left in her book and on her work bench

but now we are going to look into the events surrounding her death

There is something poetic about the last true witch in England and all her prophetic work going up in flames. Even moreso that Agnes Nutter knew her fate and yet she still went out on her own explosive terms

But let's just start with the basics

Fire

Biblically speaking fire is seen as a symbol of God's presence and a tool for their judgement - to either purify or destroy

But generally speaking it is a symbol of transformation, purification, and rebirth

Pentacle

Now something interesting Agnes wears to her death - other than roofing nails and gunpowder - is a pentacle. From my understanding the main difference between a pentacle and pentagram is just the circle on the outside

At their core pentacles - no matter the symbol on the inside - are objects of evocation. Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa summarized there use as,

“fore-know all future, and command whole nature, have power over devils, and Angels, and do miracles”

Going back a bit to the actual symbol on the inside - the pentagram was actually an early symbol for the five wounds of Jesus represented by the five points. This was a symbol of the church and could be used as a symbol of protection against demons and witches

Now it wasn't really until the 1800’s that this symbol started to be associated with the more modern interputation with witchcraft and even then it was only associated with “evil” when inverted.

There is a long history with this symbol with tons of different meanings - from the body of man to the elements with a common theme of mind over matter - but at the time of Agnes’s death, 1656, it had not yet been associated as a symbol of witchcraft as far as I am aware but I’m willing to accept that maybe it was just an oversight or that I’m reading too far into it as it really is just a small detail.

Offering

A burnt one to be exact - now just hear me out I know we are going off the rails a bit

Yes burnt offerings are laid out to only be certain animals but there are instances of human ones as well - Jephthah’s daughter for example and well, Jesus.

Not that the show skips out on the animal burnt offering just look to the Job minisode plenty of examples there - the goats supposedly destroyed in the explosions only for them to be transformed and the whole ass ox upon the altar - but anyway

Jesus’s sacrifice on the Cross is seen as like the Ultimate Burnt Offering apparently. Burnt offerings were typically used as a way to atone for wrongdoings, to show appreciation and a way to appease God - the act of completing giving oneself over to God.

But because Jesus died on the Cross people no longer had to atone. With the burnt offering Jesus accomplishes the Will of God - completely consumed and ascended to God - he restores humanity relationship with God.

So upon the altar that they willingly went to, they were tied. For they knew the reason of their death and called out,

Father, please. You have to forgive them. They don’t know what they are doing

And let my death be a message to the world. Come. Come, gather thee close I say, and mark ye well the fate of those who meddle with such as they do not understand.

Those around them are unaware of the consequences of their actions - one begs for their forgiveness, the other cast judgement onto them.

Agnes does not take her fate of going out quietly. If her death is be an offering, of the start of the end - well what better way to go than with a bang

All her neighbors that she helped heal had all turned on her and called for her death - so she gave them their judgement through explosion and roofing nails

Her village got a completely new start with her death - a chance to be better

also fun fact the Hebrew word for "burnt offering" actually means to “ascend” mainly referring to the smoke that would rise and the smell would appease God

(also maybe there is something to be said about how they were early for Job and late for Agnes)

Gold

but Agnes’s story hardly ends with her death - No her work lives on but we aren’t here to talk about her prophecies but rather something she gives in return for keeping them safe

Gold Coins

she leaves a letter each for the two men we see having to keep track of the box containing the further prophecies and when those letters are opened out drops a gold coin

They each have a different reaction to the gold coin - one acknowledges it and then continues on to his letter the other reads letter first and then scrambles to grab the coin and leave.

Now gold in general is a symbol of God’s glory and is associated with a divine presence. It can also represent material and spiritual wealth.

but it’s probably worth mentioning The Parable of the Ten Gold Coins yeah?

In this Jesus tells of a nobleman that gives one coin each to ten servants and tells them to use it while he is gone and when he gets back the first one had turned his one coin into ten, the second had turned his into five, and the third hid his in fear of losing it. The first two are praised and rewarded while the third is punished.

The message from this is that of how people are to use the gifts given to them in order to produce results for the Kingdom of God whenever it comes around. People are to use their gifts wisely, responsibility, and productively.

Now remember those two men from earlier - one using the coin and predictions to build a successful law firm and the other almost seems like a punishment? Where is our first/middle man? The Device family? I would say so

*kicking at the door with Job parallels* Not now

Originally I thought this was a lesson of greed but this seemed to fit slightly more. Also way to hammer in that you are a divine presence Agnes with the gold

Agnes has rigged her Wheel of Fate and I hope she is raising some hell up in Heaven - she certainly succeeded on Earth

————————————————————————

and that’s a wrap on her death. Join in next time for the finale where we will dive into the legacy left behind - family, masonry, ……and what’s up with Maggie?

[emily-mooon]

Tell me ur Jancy thoughts. It can be anything you want I will take on the burden of brainrotting with you 🩷

Yes Dearie! We brainrot together!

Like last time, list of random jancy headcanons and thoughts that are brainrot induced.

- Nancy Wheeler pining after Jonathan post s1 lives in my head. I cannot describe it in full because it is hard to word for my tired brain. All you need to know is that she screams in a pillow too, but instead at three am and very quietly because she lives and breathes denial for obvious reasons.

- I don’t know why i love the idea of a Jancy son but it’s in a far more chaotic way. Guy is just Jonathan in high school turned up to 11 since it’s like the mid to late 2010s when he’s a teen and pretentious is far different in the 2010s than it was in the 80s. Also he has a little sister and she gets along very well with her uncles and they play Mario and Pong together.

-Jancy eloping is real and true. They show up at Christmas and announce that they got married like a week ago and Karen drops a mug out of shock.

-they are both equally madly in love with each other. That’s it that’s the sentence.

- Nancy still has the blue striped sweater. She never gave it back to Jonathan. It became hers in November of 1983 and she still wears it to this day.

-Drunk Nancy and drunk or high Jonathan cling onto each other. If one of them goes missing, the other one is close behind.

- they cuddle in every type of weather. Doesn’t matter if it’s 35℃ outside, they are holding each other close the whole night through and living that Wouldn’t It Be Nice by The Beach Boys lifestyle

- I will die on this hill but Jonathan gets Nancy into a few of the songs from bands he likes.

- ok I saw this with Jargyle but this also applies to Jancy in my mind: Jonathan is the type of person to comment on old 80s alt rock music videos and tells a backstory. Like for example, he tells the story of how Just Like Honey by The Jesus and Mary Chain was the song he and his now wife once made out too or how Under The Milky Way by The Church reminds him of the time he went stargazing with at the time just a friend and now wife. He also has one of the most emotional and sweet story about how he fell in love with his wife under the Wouldn’t It Be Nice music video. I don’t remember who made that headcanon for Jargyle but they were a genius for that because it’s true and real and applies to many Jonathan parings.

-bandage wrapping scene my beloved come back to me in a parallel next season where Jonathan wraps a wound up for Nancy after she did that for him. Why have just one matching scar when you can have two?

- ok your headcanon about college era Jonathan getting really into baking while Nancy is studying abroad gave me the idea of him baking two batches of cookies in one week and sharing them with the wnyu members is one that I enjoy because they question if he’s ok cause that is a lot of cookies to make in one week.

Ok this got long so I’m going to end it here.

Thank you for the ask Dearie and I hope you have a good night!

[myrxellabaratheon]

The Lannisters are the ASOIAF Borgias

Yes, I just realized it now!

HI everyone, it's your Italian girl obsessed with Italian Renaissance and History here!

This probably ig going to be messy and all the things are going to be quoted by heart because I'm lazy BUT I just had this epiphany so you will all bear with me.

Considering the title of this post it might be went unsaid but TW: incest applies to the entirety of this little things. So... Let's start.

Tywin is Rodrigo. I mean, it goes kind of unsaid, he's the head of the family, gets to the position he's in because of his meriths and his ability to use people. Overly ambitious, would do everything for the name of his family to the point where he fucks up his children completely. (There are also similities in their deaths -- more like what happens sort after but I'm not going to discuss it here, google what happens to Rodrigo Borgia's body shortly after his death if you are curious).

Jaime is Cesare. Both are their fathers' pride, the designed heirs to the family and both decide (while Cesare's wasn't technically 100% his decision) to take vows that will bring themselves to give up to their birthrights (again, "technically" if we speak about Cesare but honestly THAT part of history is more complex than ASOIAF lore). Eventually they both end up being commanders of their fathers' armies and end up in a siege which has them using more their wits than their soldiers' forces. And yes, there's the being in love with their sisters and the "maybe her kid isn't her husband's but her brother's" thing.

Cersei is Lucrezia. Their hands are basically sold to the better option on the table for political alliances all while their fathers don't really give a shit because they are women and so are only useful when they can marry them off. Actually try to love their husbands (I'm talking about Giovanni Sforza here for Lucrezia as I'm considering her first marriage) but NOOOPE out after their first night together. End up having tons of lovers because a girl has needs, ok?! Both can and will kill a man given the opportunity. End up having a lot of problems with the Church (or what passes for the Church) after their fathers die. Fall in love with their brothers at a very young age and did everything to keep them closer. (Works better for Cersei, but still)

Tyrion is Juan. End up being the heirs even if their fathers didn't want it. Have the fame of spending more time in a brothel than everywhere else. At some point are just "I'm done with this family and its utter bullshit so I'll just go away, it's been a pleasure" except that Juan does it keeping the title and the family name and continuing the dynasty while managing to die in Italy for some reasons cause he eventually comes back. (Honestly I know Tyrion is Juan is really a short paragraph and they didn't have many similarities but the rest of the parallelism worked too well and Rodrigo had more children than Cesare and Lucrezia and I wanted to let you know)

Also I watched Borgia: Faith and Fear and not The Borgias when historical TV series were still GOOD and in that series there are both Sam's and Jorah's actors so I wanted to inform you all about it. ++ Juan's actor would make an AMAZING young Robert and please chec that series out cause it's good and not too far-fatched when it comes to historic accuracy.

[beevean]

top 5 fav NFCV moments and top 5 most hated NFCV moments and top 5 fav NFCV characters and top 5 most hated NFCV characters (I WARNED YOU.)

Isaac forcing Hector to watch Rosaly die was less evil.

Okay. I'll try :)

Top 5 NFCV moments:

5) Carmilla and Hector avoiding the blessed waters moved around by Dracula's castle. Not only it was a dynamic sequence, I admit that Carmilla saying "what the fuck was that" was the only time I legit laughed out loud. The timing was just perfect lmao.

4) Lenore's death. Not only because FUCK YEAH THE BITCH DIED LET'S FUCKING GOOOOOOOO, but it's beautiful, with a gorgeous track, and I like to imagine Lenore killed herself out of fear of becoming like Carmilla, she who wanted to be as human as possible, and not because "wah i don't wanna live like hector". Lenore could have been a good character too if she wasn't used for fetish fuel and rape apologism :)

3) Blue Fangs. By far the rawest, most interesting "CHURCH BAD" scene in the series.

2) Trevor vs. Death. A visual spectacle, and finally, finally the protagonist of the story does something cool and plot-relevant! I also agree that Trevor saying "I love you" to Sypha was just adorable <3

"I'm killing my boy". Lore breaking? Yes. Made Dracula into too much of a woobie? Maybe. Heartwrenching in the context of the show? Absolutely. I am a sucker for McTavish's voice acting, and it is the culmination of Dracula's biggest inner conflict: his virulent hatred for the mankind who took his love from her against the love for his son, and indirectly for Lisa. If only this scene took place in the proper SoTN adaptation...

Top 5 worst moments (how do I choose):

5) The explanation as to why vampires fear crosses. It's Twilight pseudo-science and I can't believe people can take it seriously. It's also emblematic, for me, of how much the series disrespects the religious symbols of the game (that, and ofc the infamous water blessing zombie lol)

4) Everytime Isaac is a dick to Hector. I just hate that guy. He's unpleasantly mean and condescending and we're meant to agree with him when he calls Hector "a simple creature". Go fuck yourself, you Walmart Hector.

3) Dracula and Lisa being brought back and deciding to travel together without telling Alucard anything. bruh. why are we rewarding the dude who slaughtered humans way before lisa even entered the scene. why is lisa okay with what her husband did. why are you breaking the lore like this. why.

2) The Alucard threesome + him pissing on the Japanese not-twins' corpses, for the reasons you said. Pointless, out of nowhere trauma whose resolution was a cheating joke from Greta. bruh

... can I cheat and mention every Lenector scene? Lenore beating Hector up was again torture porn, gratuituously humiliating (dat dick), and only serves to show how cool and stronk Lenore is. Her leashing him up is simply uncomfortable, because it's portrayed as horny and hot instead of being yet another form of torture - Hector seems visibly aroused at points. The sex scene is of course the sex scene. Her humiliating him in front of her sisters is simply gross. The dick jokes are immature and fail at being funny banter. "Oh shush you were having fun" makes me want to stab someone with a plastic spoon, ditto the "parallel" between Hector being lied to by Dracula and Lenore being lied to by Carmilla because oh gosh look how kyoot they are together 🥺 Him protecting her from Isaac is just the last slap in the face towards this character who really deserved better than being torture fetish fuel.

(honorable mention to the "Is this the definition of insanity?" scene, because people keep praising N!Isaac as the character of all time but I only see a brat throwing a tantrum)

Top 5 NFCV characters:

5) Godbrand. The closest thing to a canon Isaac we got, and the only one with a braincell in the joint.

4) Striga. Buff woman who references Berserk <3

3) Trevor. A far cry from his game self, and yes the cliché of the drunkard cynical anti-hero is old, but he never once irritated me. He had a nice arc in S1, a believable tragic backstory, and overall I just felt bad for him when Alucard was a jerk to him.

2) Hector. I love the idea of the character, and he isn't rude or annoying. I was genuinely fascinated by his alien view of the world, and he had potential as an anti-villain without empathy for his fellow humans but still principled, mellow but ruthless when necessary (he did kill his parents after all). The narrative just pisses on him for no good reason.

Sypha. I have nearly nothing bad to say about her lmao. I'm annoyed by her "peeing in a bucket" quote, her moving the Castle on top of the hold was stupid, and she's too OP for my tastes, but she's a genuinely nice girl and her design is so cute and her relationship with Trevor is so adorable <3 best girl. Unironically.

Top 5 most hated NFCV characters:

5) Alucard. ughhhhhhh he's such an arrogant crass jerk! Why does he even have fans! He's ugly to boot!

4) The Japanese not-twins. A complete waste of time, their only narrative purpose was a random threesome, and in their haste to not make the scene incestuous now they're accidentally racist because they look identical despite not being related lol.

3) Isaac. He's flat, rude, contemptuous, full of himself, with a rushed character "arc", never actually regrets his crimes, hypocritical, Islamophobic, with a shoehorned cliché "past slave" backstory, and the narrative won't stop sucking his dick. Hyped to high heavens at the expense of the real Isaac for reasons I do not and never will understand.

2) Carmilla. She's the most shallow, cliché #girlboss you could have written, nothing more than a cartoon villain who wants to conquer the world, and also a stereotypical radfem for no reason. She was irritating in S2, then she peaced out of the story until her death, but not before humiliating canon villain Dracula because I love when OCs get to shittalk about canon characters. I can't believe she unironically said "I'm a queen", fuck off.

Lenore. Do I even need to explain why I despise this manipulative, slimy, smug rapist who gives BDSM a bad name and is shipped with his victim in what is meant to be seen as a cute yet tragic enemies-to-lovers, kindred souls relationship? No words in the English language can convey the sheer resentment I feel for her.

[aprillikesthings]

lol I spent a portion of last night/today reading someone else's live-blogs of season 5 and I'm kinda glad just bc I'd forgotten that in the LAST SCENE of the LAST EPISODE they were like "yay let's go to space and bring magic back to other planets :D FRIENDS ROAD TRIP"

(also I reread an old interview with ND Stevenson where he was like "wooo I bet they visit a bunch of planets")

Anyway it's forced me to re-imagine the first chapter and change of my fic but it's fine, better now than later

okay lets get another episode down while laundry is in the dryer

s1 ep4!

On the one hand I get why they have Angella be like this

On the other hand I'm like, do people here not know what "child soldier" means? Yes, Adora's old enough to make decisions for herself, but that's. Why she left.

I feel like this is loosely inspired by really big pretty churches, but in a fairly neutral kind of way

Or maybe it's just that everything reminds me of Her

(The cathedral in Leòn, Spain; aka one of my fave places on earth, I'm always surprised this pic turned out as well as it did because when I took it I was crying, anyway)

*squints* I forget if they ever explain which defeat they're referencing here, I'm positive they do but I'm blanking

Is that Castaspella on the mural

Catra's little "prrp!" here was almost definitely involuntary, and I love that they had her do a "surprised kitty" sound

Okay so Shadow Weaver is like NO I KNOW YOU NO MORE ABOUT ADORA AND YOU'RE NOT TELLING ME and is visibly threatening Catra, but then her crystal thing starts to hurt her, and as she backs away Catra reaches for her before Shadow Weaver slaps her hand away, have I mentioned how well they portray child abuse survivors

:(

BAHAHAH that's gay

the village hoes just be throwing themselves at her amiright

(I don't mean the baby obviously)

Note to self for later, writing reasons: the Princesses all have literal physical objects that are the source of their powers

Man I can never get over the degree to which Perfuma reminds me of a friend I had in the late '00's, a tall thin blond sorta-hippie with long hair who REALLY tries to think positive and loves trees and flowers

Hordak: why are u still so obsessed with blondie Shadow Weaver: i'm not Hordak: you are so full of shit. give it up or no more magic for u

Poor Adora had NO idea she had to fill shoes this big or old

Bow will make such a great dad at some future point

Wait I gotta include that in my fic *runs off to write notes*

accidentally took the worst screenshot lol plz enjoy

This Ken lives in Plumeria!

Perfuma: we believe karma will come for the Horde someday :) Glimmer: or you could just fight them yourself Perfuma: mmmmmno

You're gonna have to tell her this like fifty more times

where did you get those

Boy it took like nothing for Perfuma to convince her people "actually let's go murder those sumbitches, call me KARMA AHAHAH"

Adora's actual magical ability: hiding that huge-ass sword no matter what she's wearing

All the green growing things taking over reminds me of scenes in Princess Mononoke, which was almost definitely on purpose

Perfuma has tasted blood and she's not going back

The parallels with "she's not really gay, it's a phase, she's confused, I'll get her to come to church" like I'm sorry but there's no way they didn't use that phrasing on purpose

Glimmer: if you were perfect you'd be HELLA ANNOYING

(she's not wrong)

ANYWAY my laundry was done like fifteen minutes ago but I wanted to finish the episode out :D

4/52

[mr-crawleigh]

since you seem to know a lot about Greek mythology, do you think there's some sort of connection between Pandora and Eve?

I’ve considered this one for a while, as it’s a very weighty question. Certainly there’s historical connections between the way that we think of Pandora in the Western world, and the way we think of Eve. Given the association of the Renaissance with the unearthing of Greek and Roman mythos and the rather misogynistic view of both the Greeks and the Catholic Church over the years, I would say that it’s folly to believe that there’s no connection. Eve and Pandora are both said to be the downfall of mankind, and specifically of mankind, because of their tendency towards curiosity.

And yet, do these myths stem from the same place?

Abrahamic mythology varies between religions, and even different interpretations of the same religion. Greek mythology varies vastly by historical period, and different poets have different understandings of what may have happened in different myths depending on the ideas that are prevalent in Greek culture at the time.

Eve, or Chaya, means “life” in Hebrew. Pandora means “all of the gifts.” But Eve was created to be a counterpart and helpmeet to Adam, the first man, whereas Pandora was created to be a punishment.

What, then, came before them?

The Midrash of Lilith is well-known, I should hope–Lilith, the first woman, was created as a full being alongside Adam, and thus refused to be placed lower than him on the social chain. Being incompatible, G-d then either punished or rewarded her by turning her into the Mother of Demons, who would take Adam’s seed and make herself demons from it. Eve was created to fill that gap in the world–Adam needed a mate. It may be argued that Eve’s nature was a punishment for Adam’s cruelty, but the fact is that her primary sin was not really curiosity, or else the serpent would be blameless; it was, rather, the tendency to listen to unwise council. Eve was in fact too obedient and did not use her own intelligence.

Pandora is likewise well-known as a punishment for accepting fire from the gods, a stark contrast to Adam, who was given the ability to name things and use words (there is little about the discovery of fire in the Abrahamic scriptures, but the discovery of various tools and technologies are often attributed to gifts from G-d or the angels).

What came before Pandora, though? Was it an age of Men Only, a boy’s club of immortals? Surely not, or we would not have goddesses. No, the old myth suggests that humans were created with two sides, one male and one female, who could reproduce with each other. This to me suggests a kind of hermaphroditic quality to the creature that we would consider Humanity and which the Greeks would consider Man-anity (because of the idea that women were merely inferior versions of men, rather than their own perfectly reasonable gender).

Adam, then, was created as merely a man, rather than a Man. And Eve was created to be his counterpart in reproduction, rather than a punishment. She was made to be too obedient rather than not obedient enough, incurious rather than too thoughtful. Some might say this was a mistake on the part of the Creator, but some others might say that free will can only come from a decision made freely.

Yes, the Renaissance drew parallels between Eve and Pandora, but I believe that the original Eve was not a punishment, but rather an ill-designed gift, a kind of apology for having created two creatures who were not suited to mate with each other. Pandora, on the other hand, served to separate Man from Woman, which created discord between the sexes that serves to separate us from the gods themselves.

The difference being, of course, that the Greeks viewed the gods as being forever petty and dictated by the natures of what they represented, and the Jews saw G-d as being something with the goal of creating a positive relationship between Nature and Humanity, something that could in fact learn and change.

(Arguably, no gods are exempt from learning and changing. But some choose to learn and change and grow, and some do not, and it is not always dependent on pantheon.)

[iredreamer]

Yes I agree it seems like it was written with a season 3 in mind , hopefully it happens. The ending was alright but felt incomplete and a lot was not resolved/addressed. It focused too much on what literally happened in the diaries so some parts felt inconsistent (thinking about M randomly after your wife dumped you but not being clear about why/viewers who read the diaries would expect it but for the rest it felt out of place). The speech around children at the church was nice, finally Anne shows vulnerability. But when she said smth like ‘child I could never have’ i was confused. Since when did she want kids/express wanting them? It seems like pushing heteronormativity, women have to somehow like or want children etc. I also want Ann to have a big confrontation about Anne’s behaviour , Anne hasn’t really grown or changed this season and I want to see that. Marriage too unbalanced, not enough slow moments with them , like the honeymoon being so short, I thought it would take up an episode at least. I wanted to see both the hardships and nice parts but we got so much more hardships, and Anne being completely unappealing. I think the season was too busy and it was hard to keep track and get invested in everything, their marriage almost felt like a side plot.

I think this season was way more complex than the first one and so more tricky to handle.

First season was very straightforward, simple plot and clear goal – everyone knew it had to end with the Ann(e)s marrying. The first season is also a perfect stand-alone piece of tv. It really didn't need a second season.

This second season takes some things that were pretty much established in season one and turns them on their head completly, and by the end we're left with a lot of open plots – that to me feels like an attempt to plant some seeds for a third season.

Some examples:

in season one we see how Anne Lister starts the whole courting of Ann Walker because Ann is a pretty lady with money and by the end it's clear that AL ends up falling in love with Ann Walker – this season starts with everyone questioning whether Anne is in love with Ann, even Anne says she is not in love with her and again the whole thing goes back to the money argument. By the end the whole thing is still very complex and unresolved – is Anne in love? what even is love? Open questions.

in season one we have a whole episode dedicated to Mariana where we get to see her relationship and dynamic with Anne Lister. We see what's the history between them and why they don't work together. We see there is – there was – a love there but time has passed and too much happened. We see Anne Lister thinking about Ann Walker, constantly. By the end of the episode it looks like there's really no hope for Anne and Mariana, and Anne – hurt once again by M – seems to decide to move on. Season two starts with a very very very strong presence of M – it starts with Anne thinking about M constantly and even ignoring her wife because of it. It's as if Sally wanted to open the possible plot of a love triangle when in season one Mariana never really felt like a threat to the Ann(e)s relationship. And by the end the whole thing is still open. We see Anne thinking about M literally the first night Ann Walker is not in her bed. Is she thinking about her because she’s still in love with her? or there are other reasons? Open questions.

the Sowden sub-plot worked perfectly well in season one. It really served as a parallel with what was happening with the Ann(e)s. It showed us how “easy” it was for a straight couple to get married, and more importatly it showed us how even someone who committed a parricide had the right to get married. The Ann(e)s didn’t have that right. And what sin had they committed? That’s a strong, subtle, very cleverly weved parallel. This season the whole Sowden thing was handled very very poorly and didn’t make sense at all. He’s a serial killer now, I guess.

Anyway, these are some examples of what was really strong and solid in season one, what in season one had a proper start, middle and end in the way it was narrated vs. how Sally took some of those things again and remixed them to have drama material to play with both in this season and hopefully the next.

There was proper closure at the end of season one, this time there isn’t, but I believe this was the intent.

About this thing you wrote:

It focused too much on what literally happened in the diaries so some parts felt inconsistent (thinking about M randomly after your wife dumped you but not being clear about why/viewers who read the diaries would expect it but for the rest it felt out of place).

I absolutely agree with you and I think the "it happened in the diaries" shouldn’t be used as an explenation or justification for things that happen in the series.

The show is a show and when we analyse it and try to find the hidden meanings of it all, the answers have to lie in the show itself and not its source material. People that are watching shouldn’t have to read the diaries to actually grasp what is the meaning behind what they’re watching.

That scene you pointed out reads completely different to someone who has read the diaries vs. someone who hasn’t. Someone who’s read the diaries knows what a cross is and that Anne masturbated to the thought of M, but also knows that in those moments she thought of her only as a mistress. Someone who’s read the diaries also knows that she masturbated to the thought of Ann, before and after their marriage. Someone who hasn’t read the diaries is just hit with a scene of Anne fantasizing/dreaming about having hot sex with her ex after her wife left her. There’s quite a difference I’d say.

Anyway these are some of my considerations. I liked this season, can’t say I didn’t, there are beautiful scenes and I appreciated how hard it was to understand or sympathize with Anne. Not an easy watch but a necessery one.

The thing I loved most, and that is really the overarching theme of this season, is that we got to see how Anne Lister manifests her love to Ann Walker – she’s giving her the chance and freedom to truly be the person she wants to be. That, I think, is the most beautiful thing.

[monstress]

industry s2 finale thoughts under the cut

eric how could you!! after everything harper has done for you this season when you've been dead weight and on the last leg of your career??? the disrespect!!

(and i know he probably did it to protect the new team from being mired with any insider's trading rumors if harper stayed on and he probably has a roundabout reason how it helps harper and not just bc he's covering his own ass - which, for this show, both are very plausible - but what a snake move!)

gus starting this season unemployed, in pajamas, and "writing a book" to jetsetting to nyc in a crisp white shirt and suit as a billionaire's assistant AND he's fucking his son. amazing showstopping etc

when DVD started crying in the bathroom stall...not the intentional season 1 parallel....

yasmin being disowned kinda a serve. now she can build real character!

on a more sincere note, i was surprised by how central she was this season and how her journey is abt navigating a system where she was privileged in every which way but her gender. the shiv roy turmoil

the scene of her confronting her father was genuinely so upsetting im so sorry for her

also im so so glad she made up with harper during the wedding their convo in the church is everythinggg. while im sad when female friendships turn bad, it’s always makes me happy that what they’re doing with their relationship is layered and makes them individually more complex

when harper and rishi were doing coke in the stall, i was like '.....wait why is this kinda hot'

but then when they actually started fucking!!! after harper got the call that rishi and dvd were out of the company because of her doing???? and on his wedding day????? girl.........

also when harper arrives at their work desk the next morning and rishi is still there and has this knowing look with ALLLLL that encompasses. fuck. insanely hot scene imo

sorta related and i'm v sorry to be that girl but i find the billionaire a little hot 😔 i blame the gorgeous streak of white at the temples it drove me slightly wild like we love a mr sheffield moment

im so worried for DVD by the finale like what is he going to do now?? i mean i dislike him the entire season (personal bias - know way too many guys like him) but i was genuinely surprised at his naivety and sincerity in taking the harassment case so seriously and im like ok dang :/ maybe he’s alright :/

also everything going on with robbie...yikes.

so in conclusion i cannot WAIT to see how harper will bounce back from this and kills her mentor because one thing abt her is that she's a relentless sociopath yes sirree ☝️😌

[fantasyinvader]

I keep thinking about Shahid, and what he means for Claude’s development in Hopes.

In Houses, getting Claude’s supports was important for understanding his character growth. Those supports helped challenge his beliefs, made him see the issues with his own country, help him see that Rhea was not only a good guy but also a lot like Claude himself. It helps illustrate how Claude goes from “the Church keeps Fodlan isolated” to “I don’t think the Church actually preaches that crap” that we see in the gameplay.

During Part 1, while Claude is willing to commit war crimes (false surrender) in order to protect his country, the game does show him unsure of himself. If we dive into his support with Shez, it’s Shez who suggests that he disband the roundtable and take full control of the Alliance. This is referenced in Claude’s B support as one of the reasons why he did it, showing the influence Shez had on him becoming an absolute monarch. Combine this with his Hilda support, where she spends the early parts telling Claude that he can do it.

Their last support is meant to illustrate how different Claude is from his VW counterpart.

So, I can easily read Claude during Part 1 in a position where he was struggling to figure out what to do. Then Shahid attacks once again, resulting in Claude doing somehthing he never wanted to do. Kill his brother, which would paint the whole “the king would seek retribution if we killed the prince” line a lie on Claude’s part not to do so at the time. But here, we have Claude doing it, with Shahid throwing his Fodlani heritage in his face while rejecting the offer to surrender.

A lot of Claude’s issues come from being an outsider, a child of two different countries and now because of it Claude has crossed a line he didn’t want to. In essence, with that moment Shahid destroys Claude as he was instead leaving behind Edelclaude. Someone who will achieve his ambitions no matter what in the belief it will make the world a better place. Edelclaude (or Solo Wing Claude, because he really does remind me of Pixy from Ace Combat Zero) is who we see in Part 2. The Claude who will align with someone who attacked him and attack those who never harmed him in order because it works towards his goal of making it so that no one will be an outsider and suffer like he did.

Judith’s dead does not deter him, no matter how much he blames himself for it. Conversely, in the path where he does not suffer this setback in the Shadow Realm his doppelganger, a reflection of his very soul, calls him out on playing the good guy and wants him to drop the act (tying into how his route is meant to have a sense of nobility, meaning it’s meant to feel noble but not necessarily be noble itself). Claude knows he’s the villain, and going by his conversation with Dimitri does not want to hear about the serious consequences his actions will have. He still wants to believe he’s doing these awful things for the greater good (...did anyone hear an echo?). And of course, this ultimately leads to him killing Rhea in an inverse of him fighting Nemesis at the end of Wind.

Even his route’s colors have changed from green (ally) to the more ambiguous yellow.

I know that this is all done in an attempt to get players to better understand Edelgard through parallels, turning him from a foil into a mirror, but I still kinda dig the story here. It’s not “Claude is just like Edelgard without Byleth,” it’s more “without proper guidance and support, Claude could have become like Edelgard.” Would I have preferred Claude had a route that wasn’t borrowed from the Black Eagles? Hell the fuck yes. But what Hopes delivers, I feel only serves to illustrate his growth in the main game. It doesn’t undermine Wind, if anything Wind serves to undermind Wildfire.

[estrogenfiend]

Baptised -

I was eleven years old when I became overwhelmed with the awareness that I needed to be baptized. I was alone in my bedroom and I felt like my world was falling apart. I was a broken person who desperately needed divine intervention.

My parents were down the hall in their bedroom. I told them that I wanted to get baptized and they were so excited. My dad quizzed me so that he could be sure I was making this choice for the right reasons.

“What does it mean to get baptized?” he asked

I began to recite the script that I had been taught since birth. The same answers that I had heard every Sunday for 11 years (approximately 572 times.)

“It means to die to yourself and start living your life for Jesus.”

“Do you believe that Jesus is the son of the true and living God?”

“Yes.”

“Are you prepared to make every choice in your life for the glory of God?”

“Yes.”

And so he was satisfied. We made an appointment at our mega-church to meet with the pastor and perform the ceremony.

I was baptized on a Wednesday. This seemed like the perfect time. For the rest of my life I could take a moment to pause in the middle of the week and reflect on the choice that I had made at eleven years old and re-orient my life towards Christ.

My family of five arrived at the church a little before six in the evening. I was excited and nervous. Inside there were a few others who were also there to be baptized. One was a girl around my same age. One was a man in his early twenties. I had never met either before this moment, but here we were together, making a choice that would forever alter our lives.

My dad and I went behind the baptism pool to a small locker room and changed out of our clothes into the robes that we would wear into the pool. The water was comfortable. My family sat in the audience and watched. In the pool was a man whom I had only ever seen on the stage of our church. He greeted me and my dad and began to ask me the same questions my dad had asked me earlier in the week.

“Do you believe that Jesus Christ is the son of God?”

“Yes.”

“Do you believe that Jesus died for your sins and was resurrected so that you could go to heaven?”

“Yes.”

“Do you commit to living your life for Christ, always trying to be more like him”?

“Yes.”

And so I was baptized, in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. This man whom I had only seen from the divine comfort of a church pew told me to hold my breath as my dad dunked me under water. As I was lifted up, I heard my mom and my sisters (aged 7 and 5) clapping and cheering along with the families of the other strangers who were to be baptized the same day. I wiped the water from my face and hugged my dad, feeling the exact same as I had 10 seconds ago, albeit more wet.

-------------------------------------------------------------------

Baptism didn’t change me as a person. For a few weeks after the ceremony I did feel a little more responsibility to be a good Christian, a good role model for my siblings, but that feeling quickly wore off. I quickly returned to feeling the same as I did before.

It has been several years since I left the church. (I guess some life-long commitments don’t end up being very long.)

-------------------------------------------------------------------

A few years ago a familiar feeling crept into my mind. The feeling that I was broken and needed intervention. Through years of introspection, therapy, and seeking a supportive community I came to accept that I am a transgender woman.

Having been raised in the American Evangelical Church I can’t help but see the parallels between my transition from an unsaved sinner to a Good Christian and my transition from living as man to living as a woman.

I also can’t help but recognize that the second transition feels so much more genuine.

I told my dad and my pastor that I was willing to die to myself, but did that actually happen?

Certainly not when I was eleven.

It did happen when I was twenty-four and chose a new name for myself, leaving the old one behind.

When I was eleven was I prepared to commit to being more like Jesus every day?

Maybe.

Am I currently committed to living more like the version of myself that makes me feel whole?

Yes.

(If I wanted to get heavy-handed I could even draw a parallel between the way that Jesus was pierced while hanging on the cross and the way that I pierce myself every Tuesday afternoon, subcutaneously injecting .2mL of Estradiol. But that feels like overkill.)

The changes I made after being baptized were so temporary.

The changes that I am making now, in every aspect of my life, delve deeper than I thought possible. My brain chemistry is changing. My body is becoming a place I can learn to live comfortably. The way I see myself in relationship with others finally makes sense.

Twice in my life I have decided to die to myself. Twice in my life I have promised to change the way I live my life for the better. Twice in my life I have overcome the feeling of being lost and broken.

The first time I made that decision feels so insignificant now. It is easy to forget that there was ever a version of myself that believed the way I did.

Now I have made the same decision in earnest. For myself rather than for others.

mgc

[sylkhi]

Wait wait wait:

The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo but Evelyn Hugo is Sylvain Gautier

(Stay with me I promise you I have good reasons)

Gonna preface these by saying that some stuff won’t be paralleled directly e.g. Evelyn’s fear for the power her father held over her fate. Also this is a bunch of head canon and loose-ish interpretation of canon I.e. don’t agree if you don’t feel inclined to. Okay:

- Sylvain wields sex as power just like Evelyn. Unlike Evelyn, though, he also wields it as power against himself.

- Evelyn creates Evelyn Hugo to take the stardom and fame she wants. Sylvain creates an alternate persona to eventually take his father’s place as margrave and maybe earn his approval (plot twist: margrave Gautier does NOT give Sylvain his approval. Ever.)

- Sylvain is bisexual and is around the one he [romantically] loves most passionately for a while. It takes hearing someone else saying “Felix is gay” to make him realise that oh yeahhhh I’m attracted to him (same as how Evelyn figures out how she feels about Celia)

- Sylvain goes to great lengths to hide his relationship with Felix cause of what his father did to Miklan; Evelyn hides her relationship with Celia because of what they’d face if ever they were found out.

- Sylvain’s best friend is Ingrid, who is, I want to say, demisexual? There’s a lot of whispers about her being ‘unlike other women’(derogatory) because she shows no interest in marrying a well-off man, etc etc. She marries Glenn to beat the allegations, Glennjamin dies, she’s back at square one, etc etc. What I’m saying is that Ingrid is our Harry.

- Felix loves Sylvain and is willing to lose his place as heir to his father’s seat if it means being able to be together with him publicly. He’s also be really mean about the things Sylvain does to keep up appearances. Celia vibes basically.

- Sylvain eventually marries Ingrid and they get… a child? Children, maybe. Felix marries Dorothea (greatest songstress of Adrestia. Now that I’ve reached here I realise SHE could be Evelyn Hugo. Welp. On we move.) Same set up as John, Celia, Evelyn, and Harry.

- Sylvain has the tits and Felix has the ass. This point exists purely because of what Evelyn says about her and Celia in that one photo (Evelyn is all tits, Celia is all ass)

- Dimitri is present as a friend to both Sylvain is Felix. He isn’t too sure what’s going on with them half the time, but he’s got spirit.

- Rodrigue is against Felix’s proclivities until he realises that he’s on the fast track to pushing away Felix, thus losing his second son. Also he realises nothing makes Felix happier than Sylvain. Also it helps him come to terms with his maybe romantic feelings for Lambert (honestly Lambert and Rodrigue, Loog and Kyphon… it just feels like David and Jonathan from the bible. I will not expound.)

- Together, Dimitri and Rodrigue manage to make the push needed to make the church of Seiros less and less involved in decisions of the state (the church made the law that goes something like “Only those who can bring heirs forth may hold seats of power”. You know.)

- Everyone dies before Sylvain. Irony is that every one of them says, in one way or another, that he’s taking his life fast.

- Instead of getting someone to write his biography, Sylvain writes it on his own. The catalyst is an extremely hurtful letter his father left Sylvain, one to be opened ONLY after his [Sylvain’s father’s] death.

- Sylvain’s father lives the longest of anyone around Sylvain. A vile character through and through imo.

I have a bunch of other stuff in my brain but I’m tired so uhhhh. Yes, I’m aware that there’s no Monique. I’m sure there’s someone who can fall into that role, though I feel like a Monique would be unnecessary. I also haven’t mentioned how many spouses Sylvain has, but I’d like to think that Ingrid is his last spouse ever.

I wish I could write this but ummm… Maybe I will one day. If this scratches your writer brain just right, you’re more than welcome to write something with it :D

[themattress]

Unpopular Opinion Re:Fire Emblem

Azure Moon is the weakest route in Fire Emblem: Three Houses, not the best.

First of all, some context. There are four routes in this game, and also four sets of dualities in how a pair or routes parallel each other.

Silver Snow <---> Crimson Flower Silver Snow <---> Verdant Wind Azure Moon <---> Crimson Flower Azure Moon <---> Verdant Wind

Silver Snow is the route where Byleth leans into embracing their divinity, whereas Crimson Flower and Verdant Wind are all about them embracing their humanity...the difference lies in whether they embrace humanity while remaining with the Church (Verdant Wind) or not (Crimson Flower). Likewise, Azure Moon is where Byleth embraces the traditional structure of power in Fodlan with any changes being mostly in response to what the other factions do, while in Crimson Flower and Verdant Wind they become a revolutionary who wants to completely upend the way things are done in Fodlan, whether that be through a primarily diplomatic approach (Verdant Wind) or a primarily aggressive one (Crimson Flower).

All of these routes are valid and I don't think any of them are completely perfect nor completely bad. They all have their pros and cons. However, many players (especially hardcore FE fans) seem to hold a preference for Azure Moon, and I honestly feel it's the least enjoyable of the routes due to five huge problems.

1. I don't take issue with Dimitri in general and on paper I really love his character arc in this route. The problem all lies in the execution. When you actually get down to it, Dimitri feels like two completely different characters rather than a cohesive whole. Yes, there are hints at a repressed darker side to him during the first half, but that should have started coming out gradually until it consumed him. Instead, the instant he discovers the Flame Emperor is Edelgard, his character does a complete turn into Crazy Town Murder Pants. It's like a switch was flipped and he's suddenly thrown away everything that made him who he was before. If it was only in the second half, after the time skip, that he behaved like this, that would be reasonable given the shit that happens to him. But no, it just happens out of nowhere in the penultimate chapter of the first half. He just loses all his compassion for his allies, positive feelings for Edelgard, and general sanity in one fell swoop.

And if that wasn't bad enough, the transition back is just as unconvincing. After behaving like a self-centered monster for several chapters on end, which the presence of Byleth, Gilbert, Rodrigue, or even Dedue should he make a miraculous return from the dead, did not have any deterring effect on, he is suddenly flipped back to his original characterization overnight following the death of Rodrigue and a pep talk from Byleth. And I get that Rodrigue dying for him, taking the blow from someone as crazed with revenge as Dimitri himself, would shake Dimitri up, but in the talk with Byleth afterward he is still stubbornly trying to stick to his broken, nihilistic worldview. And nothing Byleth says nor any reaction from Dimitri indicates he'll change his mind anytime soon, yet that's exactly what happens.

Ultimately, I wish there was more cohesiveness and subtlety in how Dimitri was written. The writers needed to resist the temptation to dial him up and down so quickly. Let him more gradually become the monster, and then let him more gradually cast the monster off and become the Savior King. His arc would be more realistic and satisfying that way. As it stands, his fate in every other route of pursuing revenge to his death comes off as the far more logical outcome for him.

2. Gilbert is a major character in this route, becoming Dimitri's retainer in place of Dedue (which makes it awkward if you enabled Dedue's return later on). I don't think there is a character in this game that I give less of a shit about than Gilbert. His personality is boring, his voice puts me to sleep, and the game asks too much of me when it asks me to sympathize with him abandoning his family out of self-pity and keeping his distance even when his daughter is right fucking there at Garreg Mach. There's just no investment in him, and so I begrudge his significant amount of screentime here.

3. OK, am I the only one that feels there's this weird pattern of sexism that's specific to this route? While there's thankfully a lot more depth to Ingrid, Annette and Mercedes than what's on the surface, those surfaces can be off-putting: Ingrid seems the typical tomboy who aspires to knighthood but is expected to be a proper lady and marry even if it's someone she doesn't love, Annette the cute, peppy, klutzy girl you see everywhere, and Mercedes all traditional female gender role qualities put in a blender. Again, these are all good characters once you start peeling away the layers, but it's weird their layers are so stereotypical when it comes to female characters.

Meanwhile, we also have the aforementioned expectation of sympathizing with a dude who abandoned his wife and daughter, the resident skirt-chasing character being a closet misogynist who actually wants to break women's' hearts, the complete lack of any onscreen resolution for Lady Rhea despite her still being built up in the first half, and TWO cases of female characters - Fleche and Edelgard - being paralleled to Dimitri and being unable to have the turnaround and redemption that he gets, simply being killed instead. While that's understandable in the case of Edelgard, it's baffling with Fleche, for more than one reason as I'll get to later. Why does a young girl with a body count of two (random Faerghus soldier and Rodrigue) need to die when seeking revenge when a war criminal like Dimitri is allowed to turn his life around? It hardly seems fair, and just adds on to the nagging feeling that female characters are getting the short end of the stick on this route.

I will, however, give points for the major role played by Cornelia. After the disappointment that was Kronya in the first half, it's great to have a competent and deliciously wicked villainess in the vein of The Blazing Blade's Sonia around.

4. The final boss is Hegemon Edelgard, and at first this seems really cool, but the luster wears off pretty quickly. For one thing, there is absolutely no explanation behind what the fuck even happened to turn Edelgard into this. It's clearly something akin to demonic beast transformation, but also not quite that. Was Flayn's blood involved? The stolen crest stones? Or was it just Aymr that did it? And why is it only this route where this happens?

It doesn't help that the boss itself is ridiculously easy. Making it through all of her soldiers to reach her is the true challenge - once you're actually fighting her, it's a cakewalk.

Lastly, it just doesn't feel right. This whole game starts out with a scene depicting the battle between Seiros and Nemesis. In all other routes, the final boss with be either Seiros or Nemesis. Edelgard being the final boss may fit with Dimitri's story, but this should also be the story of Byleth and of the larger destiny and mythos of Fodlan, and in that context Edelgard feels like as big of an anti-climax as a final foe as Daenerys was in Game of Thrones.

5. Last but not least, THAT scene with THAT plot hole. Everyone knows the one: at the end of Chapter 17 where Fleche attacks Dimitri, Rodrigue takes the killing blow, and Byleth kills Fleche. Not only does this make Rodrigue look incompetent for not being able to deflect Fleche's blow without having to take it himself and Byleth look cold-blooded for just fatally cutting Fleche down instead of incapacitating her another way, but this all happens because the game just up and ignored that Byleth has time-rewinding powers. It remembered when Jeralt was killed and gave a reason why that power wouldn't save him, but not here - Byleth just straight-up doesn't use it. Dimitri's sudden transition back to sanity and moral purity was jarring enough, but the fact that this boneheaded event is what causes it makes it worse.

So yeah, don't expect me to be replaying Azure Moon anytime soon. (Hey, it rhymes!)

[algernoninwonderland]

Hello, I was wondering how you feel about the "Cat Blanc" ML episode? It thought it strange for reasons I can't really articulate so I was hoping to read your thoughts. I am not that good at analysis but I love your episode reviews. They are very insightful and usual help me understand why I liked/didn't like a certain episode.

A belated review/analysis of Chat Blanc! Here we go!

So, Chat Blanc… It wasn't all that great, now, was it?

The good:

Gabriel's motives are made crystal clear once more, which makes his pushing them to their very limits all the more shocking. The Agreste family vault looks impressive, almost church-like, it's some pretty strong imagery. Not outstandingly original but pretty good stuff nevertheless.

Angry Rose is funny.

Marinette's “Know what I won't take for an answer?” and a smash cut to Nathalie's “No.” That's good comedy.

Ladybug goofing around in the Burrow. It's harmless, she's a kid, these different points in time look interesting.

Chat Blanc's future looks eery and white and blue and it really works, we rarely see post-apocalyptic landscapes like this one, usually it's all muddy and dark and this isn't the case here. I appreciate that. The first wide shot in which the camera spins around Montparnasse tower is great.

Chat Blanc's animation is really creepy and for the most part, it's intentional.

if you’re a sucker for mid 2000s evil sadboys aesthetics, you’ll love this.

Have a montage of Adrienette being sickeningly cute.

I’m watching this in French and let me tell you, Benjamin Bollen might have to work with terrible lines but he’s doing a damn fine job with them

That shot in which the debris and Ladybug break the water’s surface, the bubbles and all… It looks great. I don’t know who is in charge of this but it looked genuinely great.

Chat Noir’s akumatisation and his trying to control his power and not hurt anybody is pretty great, as a concept.

The final scene is a nice parallel to the one earlier in the episode. Repetition with variation is an easy way to make me like things and it works nicely.

The bad:

The Girl Squad bullying Marinette is… Eh.

Stalkerish obsessed Marinette is a joke that overstayed its welcome by that point. Had this been an early season 2 joke, it would have worked. It's a late season 3 joke, it's honestly a bit creepy at this point.

That reveal is fanfic-worthy. It feels really light, and not as big a deal as would have been the case if that episode had any consequences. You can already tell this'll be retconned by the end of the episode.

Bunnyx's burrow. It's unimpressive. It's neither bizarre enough nor flashy enough to really work for me. And that TARDIS joke made me roll my eyes.

If you hate mid 2000s evil sadboys aesthetics, you’ll hate this.

They re-use the same two cars for Ladybug to jump on and it’s pretty obvious. There are smart ways of recycling assets. This isn’t one of them.

Wow, that’s a terrible first kiss, the shot is… Pretty bad.

Gabriel being an asshole and breaking Adrienette up for the stupidest, most selfish reasons feels unfair and that’s the point… But also that scene at the bakery is pretty lame, it doesn’t flow very well, the characters are oddly static and not expressive enough for it to be striking, the lighting doesn’t work with the mood of the scene at all. It feels abrupt, yes, but also cheap.

“It was our love that did this to the world milady.” What a stupid, edgy line.

Bad low-res textures being stretched are clearly visible in quite an awful lot of shots.

Wow. Destroyed Paris is the exact same city as usual, just as empty, only this time they replaced the sky with a “water surface” animation loop. It’s… Underwhelming. You had a great concept and this is what you do with it?

Can you believe they made destruction on a cosmic scale look so bland? How do you mess up that bad?

That confrontation between Hawk Moth and our heroes. This should be season finale material. It’s considerably cheapened.

The ugly:

With the few exceptions listed above, the rendering is not good at all, the lighting is flat and inexpressive which could give everything a kind of otherworldly feel if only used in some sequences (and that would be clever!)… Only it's off, all of the time. Chat Blanc is the only character that looks okay in his timeline.

The animation is off when it shouldn't be, outside of the exception listed earlier. Everything is much too stiff, characters' expressions are off, the timing is off. It's a shame, really. The action sequences are decently boarded but look pretty bad.

“Just because I know her secret identity doesn't mean she has to know about mine.” That's a terrible line. And we're supposed to be rooting for that kid. That's not how healthy relationships work, the episode never addresses that because Adrien is perfect, he's just sad and understandably troubled by these revelations.

Do you remember when Gabriel was shown to care for his son, the complex character drama that could have arisen from that? Well it sure as hell ain’t there.

That Guy boarded that episode. He has a weird, err, fixation on a 14yo girl’s butt and makes sure to include a shot in which it is shoved at the viewers’ faces. Seriously? What is wrong with you? If you so badly want to sexualise characters, it’s not like there aren’t any adults in Miraculous.

Perfectly good ideas are skimmed over in a matter of seconds because this episode is only 22 minutes long. The audience is bombarded with pretty major turning points in a matter of seconds and can barely process any of them.

If the point of your episode is, “it’s better if it doesn’t exist” then you obviously shouldn’t be making this episode… Right? Seems pretty obvious to me, but apparently it isn’t since Chat Blanc exists.

That end card has Hawk Moth look like he’s rolling his eyes and so was I by the end of this episode. The overwhelming feeling of all of this for nothing but the reassertion that these two are “made for each other” which, yawn.

Perfectly good ideas wasted on an episode with mediocre writing and bad animation and rendering.

It's a pretty forgettable episode, funnily enough, I had to rewatch it to be able to write this review.

Hope this helped, Anon! Thanks for the compliment!