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aspoonofsugar · 1 month

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Charlie's Angels

Don't you love Hazbin Hotel's angels? I do! Especially two of them:

So, here is a meta about my two favourite angels and two of my favourite characters in general!

FALLEN ANGELS

Vaggie and Lucifer are considered weird by other angels:

Lute: Sinful filth like you has NO place in heaven.

Charlie: Lucifer was one of these angels. He was a dreamer with fantastical ideas for all of creation. But he was seen as a troublemaker by the elders of Heaven. For they felt his way of thinking was dangerous to the order of their world.

Vaggie is "weak" because she shows pity, whereas Lucifer is "dangerous " because he thinks in original ways. These differences eventually lead them to be discarded by Heaven:

They become fallen angels and end up in Hell, where they find love and family:

Still, their heavenly upbringing sticks with them. In particular, both Vaggie and Lucifer are traumatized by their respective authority figures.

Vaggie has been indoctrinated by Adam to the point she feels she has no value if she fails:

Vaggie: If I can't help you, what's the point of me?

Lucifer was crushed by the Elders of Heaven and still fears them:

Lucifer: I just don't want you to be crushed by them like- Like I was.

As a result, they:

hide parts of themselves from Charlie: Vaggie conceals her past out of fear. Lucifer instead masks his vulnerability out of shame.

project their unsolved issues on Charlie: Vaggie thinks Charlie's love for her is conditional and lies to her. Lucifer wants to protect Charlie from Heaven to the point he infantilizes her.

So, their impact on the story is double:

Charlie must become able to see Vaggie and Lucifer's hidden parts, if she wants to grow

Vaggie and Lucifer need to change and solve their issues for Charlie's sake

Both these developments tie with the Jungian symbolism of light and shadow.

LIGHT AND SHADOW

Light and shadow are two Jungian Archetypes aka two complementary parts of the human mind:

Light is associated to the persona or mask. It is what a person shows while interacting with the world.

The shadow is what is hidden in the darkness. It is what a person represses and refuses to reveal to the world.

When it comes to Vaggie and Lucifer's role in season 1:

Charlie must accept both Vaggie and Lucifer's shadows and lights. Only in this way she can learn nuance.

Vaggie and Lucifer must face their darkest parts, their shadows and integrate with them. Only in this way they can mature.

Let's explore these parallels journeys.

CHARLIE: BLACK AND WHITE

Vaggie and Lucifer are similar people, but Charlie sees of them opposite things:

She sees Vaggie trying to save the sinners in the present, but ignores she was once an exorcist who murdered thousands of hell people

She sees Lucifer permitting the exterminations in the present, but she ignores that in the past he tried to help sinners like Charlie is doing now

In other words, Charlie sees Vaggie and Lucifer in black and white. In particular, she sees only the white in Vaggie and the black in Lucifer.

White Vaggie

Vaggie and Charlie have been together for three years, but Charlie still knows nothing about her girlfriend's past. Not only that, but it is obvious something is off about Vaggie. She is deeply insecure, overperforming and she basically says she learnt how to trust while fighting in the trenches:

Vaggie: I just need to teach them, the way I was taught… The scene changes to the group standing on a rooftop with half-destroyed buildings all around them. Everyone was shocked that the exercise has taken them to a live turf war battlefield with guns blazing in the background, demons screaming, and explosions booming. Charlie: THIS IS HOW YOU LEARNED TO TRUST PEOPLE?!

And yet, Charlie ignores all these red flags and never tries to go deeper in her understanding of Vaggie. She idealizes her.

Black Lucifer

Lucifer and Lilith have both been absent and have neglected Charlie. However, she only calls out Lucifer, while she justifies Lilith:

Charlie: After he and mom split, he never really wanted to see me. He calls… sometimes, but only if he's bored or like, needs me to do something.

Vaggie: Oof… how long has it been now? Charlie: Not that long, only…seven….years, off doing something important, I'm sure!

Similarly, she acts as if she is upholding only Lilith's legacy:

Charlie: But Lilith's hope remained. And her dream was passed down to their precious daughter, the Princess of Hell.

But the story makes clear the Hazbin Hotel is really an evolution of Lucifer's original dream, as well:

Charlie: So in the end, it's the view I had of you That showed me dreams can be worth fighting for

In short, Lucifer and Lilith have very similar flaws and qualities, but Charlie tends to compartimentalize them, so that Lucifer is cast in a less favourable light, while Lilith is put on a pedestal.

Microchosm and macrochosm

Charlie isn't wrong in her assessment of Vaggie and Lucifer. She is right about Vaggie's good qualities and she has all reasons to call Lucifer out. The point is that there is more to both and Charlie must become able to see it. Just like she must learn to see the shades of gray present in both Heaven and Hell:

Vaggie: Those angels' minds are hard to change.

Lucifer: Charlie! You don't understand. Heaven never listens. They didn't listen to me. They won't listen to you!

Symbolically, Vaggie and Lucifer both try to warn the Princess about Heaven's complexity, but Charlie is initially stuck in a simplistic white and black mentality. Thanks to the two fallen angels and to her trip to Heaven, though, she starts grappling with complexity on both a personal level (microchosm) and on a wider political scale (macrochosm).

Personal level

Lucifer hides his weakness and shortcomings behind a powerful and cold mask:

Lucifer: Alright, I mean, look… I love that you want to see the best in people, but these sinners… You know, they're just the worst. I, I don't know how much you can realistically expect from them in Heaven.

Still, once he opens up and brings to light his real self, Charlie sees how similar she is to him and is able to reforge their relationship:

Both: All that I'm hopin', now that my eyes are open Is that we can start again- not be pulled apart again 'Cause in the end, you are part of who I am

As a result, Charlie feels empowered and has a renewed enthusiasm and optimism towards her dream:

Lucifer: I'll support your dream, whatever lies in store Charlie: And who could ask for more?

Lucifer's hidden shadow turns out to be a bright and warm light.

Vaggie shows Charlie unconditional support and has complete faith in her and her dream:

Charlie: I just hope what I'm trying to do here will work. Vaggie: It will. I have faith in you.

However, she doesn't tell Charlie that she used to be among the very people who brought carnage into Hell:

So, once Charlie discovers it, she is hurt, enraged and temporally loses her inner balance, giving in to negativity and hopelessness:

Vaggie's shadow is darker than Charlie imagined.

Political level

Charlie sees Heaven as the perfect realm and is initially enchanted by it:

Charlie: Okay, I love Heaven! Vaggie, did you see the ice cream shop? They had sprinkles made of rainbows!

However, throughout her journey there, she realizes Heaven too has cracks, contradictions and shadows:

Charlie: Wait… none of you know what gets someone into Heaven?

Which leads her to sing this:

Charlie and Emily: The rules are shades of gray when you don't do as you say When you make the wretched suffer just to kill them again

In answer to this:

Adam: 'Cause the rules are black and white There's no use in tryin' to fight it They're burnin' for their lives Until we kill 'em again!

The world isn't black and white, but shades of gray. The moment Charlie understands it, she can finally make sense of Vaggie and Lucifer's warning:

Charlie: I was told not to trust in angels

CHARLIE'S CONCLUSION: BRIDGES

Vaggie and Lucifer kickstart Charlie's arc. It is through them that the princess starts facing nuance in three ways:

Personal relationships: Charlie thinks she knows Vaggie and Lucifer the best, but both are able ot surprise her and to show her hidden sides of themselves, both bad and good.

Politics: Vaggie and Lucifer symbolically lead the Princess of Hell into Heaven and help her make sense of this contradictive realm. Specifically, Lucifer organizes Charlie's meeting with Sera and Vaggie goes to the questioning with Charlie.

Identity: thanks to her conflicts with Lucifer and Vaggie, Charlie faces her own lights and shadows. She discovers an inner strength when she inspires Lucifer to trust her. Meanwhile she touches her inner darkness when Vaggie hurts her. Both this power and this vulnerability are parts of who Charlie is and it is only by integrating them that she can bloom into the Princess of Hell.

In other words, Vaggie and Lucifer are Charlie's bridges towards:

Heaven and her role as Princess of Hell (macrochosm)

Who she is deep down as a person (microchosm)

They are Charlie's bridges towards light and shadow.

VAGGIE AND LUCIFER: GUARDIAN ANGELS

Vaggie and Lucifer are meant to be Charlie's personal guardian angels, as both want to protect her. Still, they can't succeed if they do not grow. So, they go through parallel arcs that can be seen as journeys of integration with the shadow:

They are forced to take off their masks (persona)

They are overwhelmed by their most hidden and shameful parts (shadow)

They conquer their shortcomings and grow (integration with the shadow)

Let's explore these three steps.

Blinding light: Sera

Sera embodies the persona, as she tries to mask everything wrong or disturbing behind a facade of perfection:

In Emily's imagination, Sera is a generous angel, who shares her light with others.

She blinds everyone with her virtue, wisdom and goodness, all while hiding exterminations and her involvement in them:

Lute: SHHH. Sir, what was the Seraphim's one rule? Adam: Uuughhh, "No one but the exorcists can know about the exterminations".

At the same time, she is an important foil to both Vaggie and Lucifer.

Sera and Vaggie try to hide their crimes from respectively Emily and Charlie. They love the two princesses and are worried for their well-being. At the same time, they are scared the two girls might resent them if they discovered they took part in the exterminations. Despite their efforts, though, Adam eventually reveals both of their secrets:

Adam: Gotta say, I can't wait to Sera: Adam… Adam: Come down and exterminate you!

Vaggie: Don't, Adam, please! Adam: What's the fuss? Why hide the fact that you're an angel Just like us

Emily and Charlie are horrified by the truth. Still, Sera and Vaggie's reactions are opposites.

On the one hand Sera immediately forces Emily to repress everything she is feeling. In this way, the status quo is quickly re-established and superficially their relationship goes back to how it was. By the end, Sera and Emily are shown working together, as per usual:

However, it is obvious they aren't facing their problems, which will only grow deeper.

On the other hand Vaggie gives Charlie time to process her feelings and express her anger. She doesn't try to force the Princess of Hell to get over it and waits until Charlie is ready to forgive her. All while working hard to fulfill Charlie's dream. By the end Charlie and Vaggie are back together, but their relationship is now deeper and stronger:

They start facing their issues and their bond develops because of it.

Sera and Lucifer are respectively Emily and Charlie's authority figures. They both care deeply about the young girls and want to protect them from Heaven. Still, the two older angels are also condescending towards them. Not only that, but they hide important parts of their personality from the two kids. In other words, they both wear masks. Still, Sera's mask is effective and she and Emily are very close. Lucifer's mask is ineffective, as he unwillingly pushes Charlie away. In the end, both masks come off and what emerges is opposite:

Emily discovers a negative side of Sera, meanwhile Charlie sees a positive side of Lucifer. Moreover, Sera and Lucifer eventually deal with the girls in different ways. Sera decides that Emily must conform to avoid any possible danger. Lucifer instead decides to support Charlie's dream, even if it might lead her to suffer. Sera chooses to protect Emily by enforcing repression. Lucifer chooses to enable Charlie's self-expression. Sera keeps treating Emily as a childish extension of herself. Lucifer starts accepting Charlie as her own adult person.

Sera: I couldn't bear to see you suffer that fate, so please, let me worry about this, ok?

Lucifer: Okay, I can get you the meeting, but once you're in Heaven, I won't be able to go with you. Will you be ok? Charlie: I'll be fine. Lucifer: That's my girl. Good luck kiddo.

Sera, Vaggie and Lucifer all hide parts of themselves from their loved ones and have their real selves exposed. However, Sera refuses to admit her crimes and does not accept neither Emily's anger nor her wishes. Vaggie and Lucifer instead admit their mistakes and accept both Charlie's negativity (Vaggie) and her dreams (Lucifer). Sera fails to take off the mask and is stuck in blinding light. Vaggie and Lucifer instead put the mask away and step into the shadow.

The darkest shadow: Alastor

Alastor embodies the shadow, as he preys on people's fears and insecurities:

Alastor materializes and controls beings made of shadows.

He does the same with the Princess of Hell, as well. He waits until Charlie hits rock bottom and manipulates her into making a deal:

Charlie: How? I'll do anything. Alastor: Anything? Then… let's make a deal.

What's interesting is that Alastor succeeds because both Vaggie and Lucifer fail Charlie.

First of all, Vaggie and Lucifer are framed as the two main obstacles to Alastor's plan, either directly (Vaggie) or indirectly (Lucifer):

Vaggie: Charlie, whatever you do, do not make a deal with him! Charlie: Don't worry, I picked up one thing from my dad! "You don't take shit from other demons!"

For example, in the pilot Vaggie strongly advises Charlie against trusting Alastor and Charlie answers that Lucifer taught her how to handle these kinds of situations. So, Vaggie's presence and Lucifer's teachings are Charlie's main defense against the Radio Demon. Still, Alastor quickly seizes upon Vaggie and Lucifer's weaknesses:

Alastor: Not for your soul, just a simple deal. I do this for you, and you never ask me to engage with this frivolous television technology ever again. Or…Charlie can come back to absolutely nothing. Your choice.

Alastor: Sadly, there are times a birth parent is a dud They say the family you choose is better

He makes use of Vaggie's insecurities over her usefulness to Charlie and taunts Lucifer's absence from his daughter's life. He doesn't really need to do anything else because the two angels' flaws do the rest.

Vaggie's lie hurts Charlie so much, that the princess pushes her girlfriend away in a moment where she needs all the support avaiable:

Vaggie: She's upstairs. Coming up with something, I'm sure, in our room. Alone.

And in this very moment Lucifer is nowhere to be seen, despite the fact he knows of his daughter's trip to Heaven. He either ignores how the meeting went and doesn't bother to ask. Or he knows it went badly and isn't there to offer a helping hand. Either way, he is absent.

In this context, it is telling the only ones there for Charlie are Razzle and Dazzle:

The two demons are Lucifer's gift to Charlie and have the mission to protect the princess. So, they are an extension of Lucifer himself and a perfect example of his parenting style:

Lucifer: Who needs a busboy now that you've got the chef? (Woh-oh-oh!) Michelin tasting menu, free à la carte I'll rig the game for you because I'm the ref! Champagne fountains Caviar mountains That's just to start!

"I don't need to be there and struggle psychologically if I give my daughter fancy toys, like two dragon body-guards!". Except, Razzle and Dazzle aren't Lucifer and it shows:

Symbolically, Charlie pushes Razzle and Dazzle away before taking Alastor's hand. Immediately after this, Vaggie breaks into the room:

Vaggie: No. No! Alastor: Right on cue! Vaggie: What did you do? Let her go!

The framing is rather clear. Vaggie's lie and Lucifer's absence leave Charlie vulnerable to Alastor. In a sense, the Radio Demon skillfully steps in to temporally play both Vaggie and Lucifer's roles:

He is there to help Charlie save the Hotel, as the Hotel Manager Vaggie usually does

He is there to mentor Charlie, as her actual father Lucifer fails to do

So, Vaggie and Lucifer screw up and their loved one takes a dangerous bet as a result. This ties with the shadow symbolism, as both angels fail to face their darkest parts in time. Vaggie has plenty of chances to tell Charlie the truth, but doesn't. Lucifer has just promised to support Charlie's dream, but once again he isn't there for her. Vaggie and Lucifer truly love Charlie and want to change for her, but they both struggle to do so. Luckily, they are soon given a second chance.

Conquering the shadow: Lute and Adam

Lute and Adam are Charlie's two major enemies in season 1 and they are negative foils of respectively Vaggie and Lucifer:

Just like Vaggie, Lute is an exorcist, who puts all her self-worth into her ability to kill:

Adam: Lute, how many demons did you kill this year? Lute: Got a good 275 this year, sir. Adam: 275? Woah! Badass! Awesome job, danger tits! Pound it.

She deals with problems by using violence and is fiercely loyal to Adam, like Vaggie is to Charlie.

Just like Lucifer, Adam struggles with Lilith leaving and wears a mask of arrogance to hide his vulnerability and low self-esteem. Not only that, but both Lucifer and Adam are authority figures who fail the people below them:

Lucifer: Our "people", Charlie, are awful! They got gifted free will and look what they did with it! Everything's terrible!

Adam: I started everything on Earth! All of mankind came from these fucking nuts! You all should be worshipping me, you ungrateful, disgusting, fucking losers-!

So, Lute and Adam embody Vaggie and Lucifer's repressed dark side. They are who the two fallen angel might become, but choose not to be. They are Vaggie and Lucifer's shadows. This is why, the Hotel Manager and the King od Hell are asked to fight the two exorcists in the finale, in order to protect Charlie.

On the one hand Vaggie fights Lute by refusing her mentality:

She juxtaposes a defensive fighting style to the exorcist's overly aggressive one. Moreover, Vaggie refuses Lute's rethoric about violence and revenge and shows her opponent mercy.

On the other hand Lucifer fights Adam to save his people, while Adam threathens his own descendants. Lucifer fights to protect, whereas Adam attacks to kill. As a result, Lucifer protects his daughter and is helped by her:

Adam instead is killed by a symbolic child (Niffty) and leaves his metaphorical daughter (Lute) behind:

In the end, both Vaggie and Lucifer win, but they do not kill Lute and Adam:

Vaggie: Seriously, you're pathetic, you know that? Ready to die rather than accepting mercy? No, live. Live knowing that you only do because I let you, the failure.

Vaggie spares Lute and rushes to Charlie's side to help her.

Charlie: Whoa, whoa, Dad. He's had enough. Lucifer: Alright. How's mercy taste, you little bitch?

Lucifer listens to Charlie's plead and shows mercy to Adam.

This happens because both Lute and Adam represent repressed parts of Vaggie and Lucifer. They are symbolically those sides our fallen angels refuse to face. They are their flaws, their past, their fears, their worse selves. So, Vaggie and Lucifer can't really kill them because it would mean to kill themselves. In fact, you can't kill your shadow, but you have to face it, without letting it take over. That is what both Vaggie and Lucifer do for Charlie's sake.

VAGGIE AND LUCIFER'S CONCLUSION: MORE THAN ANYTHING

Lucifer: More than anything (Charlie: More than anything) More than anything (Charlie: More than anything) Both: I'm grateful you're (Lucifer: my daughter/Charlie: my father) more than anything More than anything

Charlie and Vaggie: There's something that I've been dying to say More than anything, more than anything Need you to know I love you more than anything More than anything

Vaggie and Lucifer share different versions of the song More Than Anything with Charlie. Why is that so?

The song celebrates different kinds of love, like Lucifer and Charlie's familial bond and Vaggie and Charlie's romantic relationship.

The song highlights Vaggie and Lucifer's importance to Charlie

This importance is shown in the finale, where Vaggie and Lucifer not only defeat Charlie's enemies, but are also by the Princess's side:

Vaggie sings to Charlie before the battle, when the princess fears her loved ones might die

Lucifer sings to Charlie after the battle, when the princess is grieving her losses

Both support Charlie, when she is at her most vulnerable and they reassure her she did good:

Vaggie: You've already done so much So many lives you've changed So many souls you've touched And in the end, if it's only me you've saved

Lucifer: You can do this, now I know it! For your story has just begun You can't quit now. Hell, you owe it! There's still damage to be undone You've changed my mind, you've touched their hearts Found the good in souls gone bad

Both tell Charlie she has touched their souls and saved them.

So, Vaggie and Lucifer fail Charlie the moment she goes to face Heaven, but they are there for her when she fights to protect Hell. They screw up, learn and do better. As a result, they stand by Charlie's side, as the season comes to a close:

Vaggie is there because she has accepted Charlie's anger and her forgiveness. By doing so, she has accepted her violent past and has realized she can forgive herself.

Lucifer is there because he has accepted Charlie's ambitions and dreams. In this way, he was reminded of his past idealistic self and has found a new faith and new hopes.

THE FUTURE - ANGELIC SIBLINGS

In season 1, Vaggie, Lucifer and Charlie all struggle with their shadows, but their integration with their most repressed parts is far from over. What new challenges await them?

Among (many) others, I think all three characters are set-up to have "angelic siblings", who may step in as shadow archetypes. So, these angelic counterparts might embody parts of themselves the demons do not want to aknowledge.

Vaggie and Lute

Lute already plays the role of Vaggie's shadow in season 1. Vaggie's flashback makes the symbolism pretty clear:

Vaggie sees her shadow as she is about to kill a helpless child and stops herself. Only for another darker shadow to appear over her. That is Lute, who proceeds to rip her eye and wings off.

The meaning is obvious: Lute is the violent part of herself that Vaggie wants to escape. And yet, she will need to face Lute again and again. Even more importantly, she will need to aknowledge their shared upbringing and trauma, which is at the root of their issues.

Lucifer and Sera

Sera mentions Lucifer twice in Welcome to Heaven.

The first time, in relation to Charlie:

Sera: Well, you failed to control the demons' unrest, and now Lucifer is involved, setting up an audience for his misguided daughter.

The second time, in relation to Emily:

Sera: Please.... if you start to question... you could end up like Lucifer: Fallen.

I think the implication is that Sera and Lucifer used to be close (probably sibling-like), but Lucifer's fall changed things.

Sera right now seems to see different sides of Lucifer in Charlie and Emily:

In her first mention of Lucifer, Sera rolls her eyes and says Charlie is misguided. Except that she doesn't really know Charlie by this point. So, she is clearly seeing her as an extension of Lucifer. Specifically, she sees Charlie's attempt to change the system as similar to Lucifer's past ambitions: dangerous.

In her second mention of Lucifer, Sera warns Emily not to end up like him. She is clearly scared for the young Seraphim. Except that Emily is an angel version of Charlie, who is a younger version of Lucifer. In other words, Sera probably sees Emily as the embodyment of everything she loves about Lucifer. So, she wants to avoid history from repeating.

In other words, Sera projects on the two girls what she dislikes (Charlie) and what she misses (Emily) of Lucifer. Except that she can't have one without the other. More importantly, Sera and Lucifer will have to eventually meet to solve their past.

As a matter of fact it is possible Sera and Lucifer share the same authority figures: the Elders of Heaven. These parental figures probably traumatized them both on some level. So, we may have a scapegoat/golden child dynamic similar to the one Vaggie and Lute have:

Lucifer and Vaggie refuse their authority figures' teachings and end up in Hell as a consequence.

Sera and Lute accept these teachings and reach a position of authority. Sera is the High Seraphim of Heaven, while Lute is Adam's liutenant.

Sera and Lute are the ones who physically banish Lucifer and Vaggie and the ones who get in the way of the fallen angels (Sera politically and Lute physically).

Given this set-up and these similarities with Vaggie and Lute, it would be interesting to see how a future interaction between Lucifer and Sera will go. Sera might have the potential to challenge Lucifer when it comes to his past, his role as a parent and who he wants to be in the future.

Charlie and Emily

Emily is who Charlie would be if she were born in Heaven instead of Hell. She shares the Princess of Hell's kindness, but also her naivety and her innocent condescension:

Emily: Gosh, I'm so pleased to show some outsiders around After you see our realm, you'll never wanna go back down St. Peter and Emily: 'Cause every single day in Heaven is a happy day Welcome to Heaven

You'll be complete! It'll be so neat! Our service can't be beat! You'll be on easy street! (Yes!) Life will be sweet at the Happy Hotel~!

These traits are actually stronger in Emily, as Heaven presents itself as peaceful and perfect.

In Welcome to Heaven, both Charlie and Emily have their vision of the world crushed:

Emily: What are you saying? Let me get this straight You go down there and kill those poor souls?

Adam: Don't you act all high and mighty Did you ever think your little girlfriend might be a liar?

However, Charlie is given the chance to work on her internal flaws, while Emily is forced to push everything under the rug:

Sera: They were uprising, Emily! It is my position as the head Seraphim to protect our people at all costs. And it's your position to keep them happy and joyful. Emily: How can I bring joy when I now know we are bringing misery to thousands of innocent people? Sera: Heaven needs us, Emily. Everyone looks to us… and we can't doubt ourselves or worry about the fates of demons when we have our own souls to protect.

So, it would be interesting to see what kind of bond Charlie develops with this other self and how they can help each other grow.

Obviously, these are all just theories, but it would be cool to have all these angel characters explored more in later seasons!

#hazbin hotel #hazbin hotel meta #hh meta #hazbin lucifer #lucifer morningstar #hazbin vaggie #hazbin charlie #charlie morningstar #hazbin sera #hazbin emily #my meta #hazbin lute #hazbin adam

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ominous-feychild · 2 months

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✦ OC Moodboard #5 ✦

This is a tag game I'm obsessed with! For anyone wishing to join:

Rules: make a collection of 5+ images that represent or symbolize one of your ocs! It can be in any way, for any reason! Just have fun with it!

I'm obsessed with Caron right now, I'm not going to lie, haha. Basically all of these images were already in his pinterest board (where I grabbed these images from), so it was VERY easy to make this!

KIERAN CARON

Few know this (in-universe), but Kieran Caron used to be a gladiator slave in Cirrane before escaping to Kihroin and founding a martial arts school. That was the origin of the knights' college--Caron using his experience in the arenas to help other people learn to defend themselves (and, y'know, to get a job and income). It slowly turned into the knight college after he attracted attention from Kihroin's crown, taught the current king and his protector, and expanded as many others started garnering for his attention.

Since then, Caron has shifted into a backseat role in the college. He no longer teaches classes, but is known to personally mentor certain students who catch his attention. Instead, Caron manages the college: carefully selecting teachers with masteries in various magic or combat fields, overseeing classes every so often, managing the affairs of struggling students, and dealing with the endless amount of paperwork associated with his role.

Kieran Caron's name is famous even outside of his college. Thanks to how he grew--through a connection to the Kihroin crown--he's known to have a hand in the country's politics. He swayed the current king's mind toward policies favoring the general populace rather than the nobles underneath him. Because of this, he's well-liked amongst commoners and disliked by Kihroin's nobility.

However, there are conspiracy theories surrounding Caron--after all, he's risen from absolutely nothing into an incredibly powerful position. Not only does he have the current king's ear--and influence over the crown prince and his protector!!!--but he's also gotten his own people spread out across the world in their own positions of power! It'd take a fool not to see just how capable Caron is of taking over the world!

Except he won't dare try. He knows the gods are very willing and able to stop him.

Oh! And he's known to have two children: his biological son, Varik Caron, and the adopted son, Kieva Caron!

(Kieva is one of the main characters of RFtA! Varik not so much, but he's still important, haha!)

Sun and Shadow: Freya Ula | Crow the Cursed | Daleira Fenastra (wip)

Rising From the Ashes: Sammy | Kieran Caron | Roman Leveque

Also, what do you guys think of everyone's colors? I've decided to bold names/the coloured parts to make it easier to see for the slightly-harder ones--hopefully that helps! 😊

Tagging (gently!!!): @the-golden-comet @honeybewrites @yourpenpaldee @darkandstormydolls @the-letterbox-archives

@illarian-rambling @wyked-ao3 @ath3alin @mysticstarlightduck @fantasy-things-and-such + open tags!!!

Gorgeous divider by @saradika!

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iridescentscarecrow · 9 months

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by you talking about makima being an abusive mother i assume you're referring to eli's excellent post about CSM's association with motherhood. please do check it out if you haven't, it's been rotting away in my brain for a while and the Chainsaw Man as a birthing device is something i'll bring up in this response.

this is a really intriguing line of inquiry, and an interesting way to think of kishibe; so i'll attempt to assimilate my thoughts on how he's positioned in this answer. this will be quite long so do bear with me:

i've talked about how Family as a concept bleeds into part two from part one. in p1, makima forms for denji a Family, and in p2, denji is handed this motherhood over nayuta.

makima as the Mother is kept and collared by the state. and thinking of chainsaw man in terms of its reproductive power can be extended to its literal reproduction of the narrative. myth and memory form themselves through regurgitation, and the CSM cuts away this chain of reproduction when it eats entire concepts. when it makes people forget. there's an already apparent connection to the Womb (makima // nayuta // denji) but the selectivity in narrative-reproduction is why its central to makima and kishibe's conflict. the war against the mother who exerts control over the child.

because kishibe is the Masculine: he teaches makima and in turn makima entrusts denji and power to him,,, he narratively affirms denji's wondering if he's still able to feel, whether he shouldn't feel sadder at himeno's death by telling us, the audience, that the best devil hunters are those who "have a few screws loose." we're painted this image of denji as a feral incomprehensible Crazy thing, but this isn't true even at this phase of the story. he mourns pochita, he empathises with power's grief at losing meowy. [there's an intriguing line of thought where you compare denji with aki along this vein too, if you think about it].

and that's why the movie date with makima is actually the effective closing of this arc -- her telling denji that he does have a heart subverts kishibe's rhetoric, and what the story tells us denji is. this is makima in her role as mama, the mother, the love that she feels and recieves and creates. incidentally, the chaotic agent that kishibe envisions coincides with makima's idealisation of the chainsaw man, apart from the part where she's expressedly affectionate towards it. and who has she been raised by except these (masculine) institutions? who taught her how and what to want?

aside but "that's a lie." // he sees makima and recognises her machinations at one level but he's never really understood her or her need for love. she tells him that she wants to save people (and this may or may not be true) but he can't really parse that, can he? and kishibe also structures and contextualises so much of the story for us, just like what makima does: what i already said about denji's chaotic self, him narrating reze's past, etc. he's an independent source of information.

because yeah: kishibe is ruthless. and people often bring up kishibe's relationship with quanxi but i don't often see them balance her "ignorance is bliss" vs. kishibe's need to have a few screws loose. we know as the audience about how quanxi actively shuts herself off, but kishibe keeps talking about leaning into this devil hunter nature. and what i think is decipherable from this dynamic is that quanxi, or at least what kishibe sees her as, is kishibe's ideal. tbh she's actually a Symbol for various different ideals, her habitation and display of her sexuality alongside her Ignorance is denji's ultimate form! and kishibe trains denji... [aside but this is why cosmo being her gf is so interesting to me. something something woman who thinks ignorance is bliss x devil who embodies the Horrors of Knowing]

kishibe blindfolding himself after her death is him transposing that ignorance onto himself. he doesn't want to see a thing -- and that's where you see that dissonance. it's not that he's beyond caring, it's how blind he is in how he does this caring.

and kishibe strains against this, he wants to cut away his relationships as contrasted with makima (and even denji) wanting to form them. and this is why makima cutting off kishibe's last tie to quanxi is so interesting because you remember: quanxi didn't accept his deal.

you have kishibe pining after quanxi and yet she's not sexually available to him, so he further isolates himself. and the forming and breaking of relationships comes back here so vividly --

aki's and power's deaths form the CSM out of denji. it's crazy and unpredictable but it doesn't challenge makima, does it? // "attacks don't work against her."

and when all is said and done, denji tells him it's love. loove. denji's the one who explains makima to kishibe. they're sitting at the bench and denji's petting the dogs while nyako, the willingly domesticated animal, twirls itself around kishibe... and kishibe handles the cat with such affection. denji tells him it's love so what does he do except hand nayuta to him??

thank you for the ask, anon!

#kishibe as fatherhood... kishibe as the expected masculine... father figures for denji are dead behind a closed door ->#ignorance is bliss and kishibe is his mentor...#crow.asks #csm #umm. also a fic rec but nerve ape by hassoutoby on ao3 does kishibe's character very well. please read it #csm meta #kishibe #chainsaw man #csm kishibe #makima #denji #quanxi #crow.txt

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phoenixyfriend · 1 year

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Thought- in the terracotta warriors thing, you mentioned that the Jedi archeologists brought in a specialist in mando iconography to try and work out what’s going on with the 501sts symbols- what if that outside specialist is jaster mereel? Could be pre becoming the mand’alor, could be just his side job, but either way he spends a few years studying it all and getting used to being the only mando in a base camp full of Jedi, makes friends, has academic discussions and disagreements, steals someone’s holopad to try and use the link to the Jedi archives to read all the things on tarre visla, gets into an actual argument, reconciles with agreeing to help with a historical reenactment of a Jedi mandolorian war, gets Madame nu’s comm number, introduces his new son to his comm bff who argues historical nitpicks with him, brings jango to the next summer at the site, clones react to jango somehow and/or there’s a few tubies in there who look distractingly like jango and/or someone has their helmet off and jango has a breakdown over it looking like a family member? And so on and so on

Context: Sleeping Soldiers AU

See, I don't really subscribe to the "halfway to archaeologist!Jaster" fanon. I'm especially reticent to engage with the Jocasta ship, honestly.

But... okay, here's the thing. It does feel pretty incongruous with how I've written Jaster thus far. I can believe him having like. A 'classical' education. Not actually tutored like a noble, but that he sought out the same subjects as an adult to make sure he understood how to rule once he started having a proper political angle. He's a history nerd in the way that a particularly political/philosophical aristocrat of the 18th century would have been.

Military history, philosophical history, political and even some arts... but not actually in an archaeological sense.

(Also, it raises my hackles because it's one of those things that feels like it's heavily associated with the whole "True Mandos Were Best Mandos" crowd.)

It also really depends on the era! Tarre makes more sense than Jaster, just because of the timescale! The soldiers are millennia buried by the time Jaster is born! That said, even Tarre is a few millennia late but... makes more sense than Jaster.

Most likely, there are historians and archaeologists coming by every few centuries, as new generations encounter the issue, and older analyses are lost in the depths of the archives. Frequency tapers off after a few millennia, but... by the time Jaster is around?

It's 100% a New Mandalorian with an art history doctorate. (With a military symbolism specialty, in this case.)

It's probably not a New Mando if it's an Early On moment, but it probably is a New Mando if the Jedi start getting Weird Vibes and investigating the soldiers in the decades leading up to the Prequels.

Would the New Mandalorians know more than the traditionalists? Not necessarily. Would they know less? Actually, no.

I firmly believe that the New Mandalorians are taught about their histories in a "German kids learn about WWII atrocities, going on field trips to historic sites of said horrors, so their teachers can stress that they don't repeat the mistakes of the past" kind of way. I imagine the New Mandos would have plenty of research and records in regards to actual history, with plenty of museums and such. Part of maintaining pacifism is ensuring that the coming generations understand what led them to pacifism in the first place.

Is this thousands of years in the past, and thus difficult to research? Yes, but the traditionalists would have that same problem.

More of them, even. If the New Mandos have been around for seven hundred years, like Legends claims, then the traditionalists have probably have lost a lot of history through various battles and bombings, while the New Mandalorians, while not entirely escaping large scale destruction and such attacks, are much more likely to have protected and maintained their sites, simply by not courting war as a matter of culture. The traditionalists, meanwhile, would have had a much stronger emotional and cultural attachment to legends and themes, though I'll admit those are probably prone to revisionism, much like real-world folklore and mythology.

As @atagotiak put it:

Ehhhh. The traditionalists do care about legends and history and stuff. Often in an idealized way, sure. But you could argue that they’d have more reason than new mandos to be into these stories. Which, to be clear, isn’t like, saying that Jaster is definitely a part-time historian or anything like that. It’s just I don’t think one side would have an advantage over another. (edited)

So the New Mandos and Trad Mandos are probably on an even playing ground, insofar as skill and resources and knowledge go.

But by Jaster's time, the Jedi would have more reason to think the New Mandos would cooperate. No real downside to asking them when it comes to knowledge/skill, and an upside in terms of 'not getting shot when asking.'

As Tia said:

And even if we assume Jaster is a big history nerd and would be receptive to the Jedi (and tbh there’s even less indication of the latter) there’s no reason to think the Jedi would know that.

So yeah, when the soldiers start having Vibes And The Force Becomes Suspiciously Active on that level... New Mando archaeologist, definitely.

#star wars #the clone wars #time travel #jaster mereel #mandalore #new mandalore #traditional mandalorians #new mandalorians #phoenix answers asks #trad mandos #new mandos #true mandalorians

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disillusioneddanny · 7 months

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Red Hood Tim Ask

@thegayonthemoon

hello! i'm so sorry, tumblr ate your ask :((( I saw it in my email but didn't se it in my ask box.

To answer your question, it's turning into a very long fic lol. I also got two different asks about my red hood tim fic so I'm going to share the backstory details in this one and in the other one I'll share some of my favorite parts I have planned :3

Basically it's a reverse Robin's au where Damian is the eldest and he becomes Shadow. but Tim? Tim becomes Robin.

TW for torture, Joker Jr. and Tim's inevitable death.

This fic is also all @castrian-amore's fault because he has an amazing Red Hood Tim cosplay and I got inspired. i may have sent them the tim drake art first but still shhhh

At twelve years old he's running the streets taking pictures of his favorite duo, Batman and Shadow when he gets snatched up by Joker who in a bid to get Harley Quinn to take him back, tortures him for two months in an attempt to turn him into Joker Junior.

He kidnaps Harley and shows him his newest creation and she's horrified. But she has no clue how she can save this poor kid from the maniac. So she plots a way to save Tim and agrees to stay with Joker.

While they're together, Harley tries to help Tim as much as she can and she tells him stories to distract him from everything that's happening. She tells him about the little bird, Robin and how it's associated with life changing experiences and that it teaches you that even in the harshest of winters, the light of spring will appear.

Finally, Harley gets Tim out of the Joker's clutches and to Batman who takes on look at Tim and is like adoption bait. He learns that the Drakes didn't even know that their son was missing for two months and gets custody of Tim. But the problem is that it's not the only reason Bruce wants Tim. Bruce wants him because Tim managed to endure two months of torture with Joker and knows Bruce's secret identity and never once gave it away, not only that but he's concerned that Tim still might turn into Joker Jr and it's better if he just keeps Tim with him so he can keep an eye on him.

He encourages Tim to become a vigilante in an effort to make sure that the kid doesn't become a villain. Not that Tim really plans to? He's getting to live with his hero and be a vigilante and that's all that matters to him. So he takes on the name Robin as a symbol of his own rebirth after everything that has happened to him. And Batman raises him to be a soldier because that's the only way Bruce can convince himself that Tim won't become Joker Junior.

Anyway, years go by and it's miserable for Tim because he's taught to be a soldier and Bruce continually treats him like he's a threat. And he makes friends with this little kid in Crime Alley named Jason who thinks Robin is a hero.

Then the fight with Darkseid happens and Bruce is thrown into the timestream and Tim is desperate to save him. Because Bruce is all Tim knows and he doesn't know what to do without getting orders because that's all he's used to and Damian treats him like total shit.

So Tim goes on his Brucequest and dies against the Widower. Ra's sends back the information that Tim found about Bruce along with his Robin suit and tells Damian that he's dead. Only, Ra's has brought Tim back to life and has decided to make the kid his own personal soldier.

This is all the backstory for the story.

The fic itself takes place with Jason as Robin and wanting to know more about the Robin who used to come visit him in Crime Alley and bought him chili dogs. Especially because the plaque hanging in front of Tim's Robin suit doesn't say "a good soldier." no you see, it says "a precious son" something that Tim never saw himself as because Bruce never treated him that way.

Jason eventually meets the new Gotham crime lord named Red Hood who is a little too angry at Batman and Nightwing (Damian)

#dis asks #reverse robins #red hood tim drake #dis dreams #dis answers #dis writes

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sneezypeasy · 2 years

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ATLA Original Scripts: Extra Goodies

As I’m sure you may have guessed, the very first script I chose to open at the WGF was The Southern Raiders (I mean, can you blame me? 🤣). But shippy lore and zutara fandom history aside, I did unearth quite a few unrelated tidbits, author’s notes and script changes that I found interesting or funny enough to note down. As promised, here is a compilation of some of these tidbits, with little connecting theme or pattern other than “I thought the fandom might find these snippets interesting” 😁

1. Elizabeth and Aaron Ehasz are genuinely hilarious.

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Credit for finding #1 and #3 goes to my husband, who was with me on Day 2 of Original Script Investigations :3

I don’t mean to say that the other ATLA writers are necessarily boring or unfunny – as I said I didn’t get a chance to read every script and there may have been other genuinely amusing snippets from other writers that I honestly just missed. All I know is, the most entertaining action/non-dialogue lines that I did find were written by these two chuckleheads. I fuckin’ love them, lmao 🤣

2. In Day of Black Sun, Zuko was originally meant to redirect lightning using his dual swords.

I can see why this detail was changed during the storyboarding/animating process (as he just uses his bare hands in the show, the way Iroh taught him), but at the same time the sword-lightning-redirection thing really intrigues me. Dual swords are strongly associated with Zuko’s Blue Spirit vigilante persona, and there’s several episodes where Zuko uses them as part of obscuring his Fire Nation identity, whether that’s to help him keep his cover or even to help him get away with what the Fire Nation could reasonably consider as acts of treason.

So the idea that Zuko would use his swords to redirect Ozai’s lightning comes across as powerfully symbolic to me: Zuko standing in defiance to his abusive father, channeling some Blue Spirit energy to defend but not to kill; Zuko facing down a terrifying display of Fire Nation aggression and wrath, absorbing it into himself and then directing it back to its source, using a non-bending instrument, one he’d previously used in service of vigilantist or even sabotage/treasonous acts… yeah, I think that’s pretty damn cool, ngl.

From a Doylist standpoint, I like it. Very nice.

From a Watsonian standpoint, I can (grudgingly) understand why they likely chose not to portray this scene the way it was scripted.

Ah well.

3. In Lake Laogai, Katara’s healing water was meant to “turn black” as a visual indication that Jet’s injuries were too severe for her to heal.

This scene kind of plays out in the show, but not in the way that the script implies it should:

youtube

You can see that in the show version, the water turns black right as Katara appears to pause her work and look up to say “This isn’t good”. Maybe it’s just me, but the show doesn’t seem to imply that the water “turned black” despite Katara’s best healing efforts; I instead get the impression that the water stopped glowing because Katara (momentarily?) suspended her healing efforts upon registering how bad Jet’s injuries were.

The script seems to suggest that the scene should have played out like – Katara tries to heal Jet, the water turns black while she’s still moving her hands and working, Katara might then visibly react with shock or alarm, before finally looking up to remark, “this isn’t good”.

And honestly, I’m actually really bummed that they didn’t animate this sequence out! It would only have taken maybe a couple more seconds, but can you imagine if the writers had been able to employ the dramatic effect of “[Character] is so heavily injured, the healing water turns black” to its maximum potential?

Imagine Katara trying to heal Aang’s lightning wound in The Awakening, but it turns black and then he has that chi-shock attack. Imagine her explaining beforehand that she’d tried healing his wound multiple times over the two weeks he’d been unconscious, and it had always turned black, but she hoped that with him being awake maybe it wouldn’t fail this time - except that it does 😭

Imagine Katara trying to heal Zuko after the lightning scene in Sozin’s Comet, and the water turns black, and Katara grits her teeth “Oh no don’t you dare” and visibly puts all her effort into making that water glow again and finally he wakes -

Argh, it’s one tiny visual clue and yet there’s so much potential for drama and angst (yum!) - I’m so frustrated it wasn’t kept! Huge missed opportunity imo. Ah well, for all you fan-artists and fanfic writers, consider it free real estate. Make it canon, let’s gooo 🤣

4. In The Runaway, after being accused of being “too motherly”, Katara actually slaps Aang when he doesn’t respond fast enough 🤣

I don’t really have much to say about this one other than that I just found the mental image pretty funny. I do find it interesting that as much as the writing did a better job of developing Kataang in the original script, there also isn’t any serious effort to tone down Katara’s motherly tendencies towards Aang either (in fact, I think one could easily argue that slapping Aang’s hand away makes the whole mom thing come off stronger, but idk). Either way, this was pretty entertaining to read. 😂

5. In Tales of Ba Sing Se, Zuko and Jin are both a lot more expressive in the script, and it’s way more fun:

In the script, Zuko looks “totally overwhelmed” when Jin asks him out. In the show, he just looks… blank? Expressionless? Idk. I did get the sense that this was unfamiliar territory for him, but to me the show doesn’t animate him to be nearly as flustered as the script suggests he ought to be. He doesn’t scowl at Iroh immediately either, and even when he does he looks more irritated than ��furious”, imo. 🤷‍♀️

I did figure that Zuko telling Jin she has a large appetite was his attempt at making polite conversation, but the script makes him come off more sympathetic with that too:

In the show, the waiter doesn’t roll his eyes at anyone, he just walks away, the shot does pan out to the other diners staring but they move on very quickly, and notably Jin appears completely unperturbed by the whole thing. She doesn’t look sad or “hurt” as the script suggests, and Zuko’s attempt at a compliment isn’t framed as him regretting his outburst and awkwardly trying to make up for upsetting her (as she doesn’t seem to be upset at all).

I’m honestly a little sad that so much of this was cut; it really softens Zuko’s character a fair bit. I mean we already know that underneath his hot temper Zuko always had a deep sense of compassion and empathy for others, but these little details really help bring that side of him to the surface and I’m just sort of bummed that they shaved them off here :/ not sure why they felt the need to do that.

Anyway, we all love awkward turtleduck Zuko, so here, have some more:

I like that Zuko is explicitly written as being more at ease once he and Jin have found a quiet area to be alone in. Neurodivergent Zuko confirmed? :P

Also, love the little addition that Jin “peeks” through her fingers right before Zuko starts firebending (they didn’t include that part in the show either). Makes you wonder, did she see? Did she see, and accept Zuko anyway? :P

(Too cute.)

6. In Zuko Alone, Zuko stops Lee from hurting himself with the dual swords:

On the one hand, I don’t mind that the show portrays Lee just having fun with the swords and looking to Zuko for approval (and getting it!). It’s sweet. On the other hand, I think there’s a layer of foreshadowing here that the show missed - without Zuko there to help, Lee’s recklessness and impulsivity will get the better of him (as it ultimately did). I’m sort of torn on this one.

Edit: I’ve been thinking about this a little more and I think I definitely prefer the script version, if only for the fact that Zuko’s “imperceptible smile” is at the end of his and Lee’s encounter. In the show, Zuko smiles at Lee encouragingly after he gives him a swordfighting “lesson” and then lets the kid swing the swords around a bit, which is definitely a heartwarming moment but it has a very different connotation to Zuko smiling with Lee after Lee opens up about Sen Su to him. In the show Zuko is smiling for Lee, to give him encouragement and support. In the script, Zuko smiles during a bonding moment for both of them, in a way that seems to suggest he is grateful/touched that Lee is sharing something so personal with him. It’s a really soft moment for Zuko and upon thinking about it more I’m definitely bummed they cut that little smile. :(

7. In The Chase, after Azula attacks Iroh, Zuko is apparently doing his best to comfort and stabilise him – he is not simply overcome with despair over his fallen uncle:

And in Crossroads of Destiny, Katara isn’t just angrily pacing the “prison cell” back and forth before Zuko is thrown in with her; she’s actively searching for a way out:

I kinda wish both of these were kept in too. Zuko and Katara may be hot-headed at times (they are definitely two of the most passionate characters in the show, if not the most passionate) – but not to such an extent that it overwhelms their ability to work through a crisis; I find it more consistent to their characters that they would still try to do something even when they appear to be in a pretty hopeless situation. That seems to be a trait they both share, in the show.

I also like that Zuko’s efforts to help Iroh humanises him a bit more and puts the emphasis on Zuko caring about Iroh’s recovery, rather than Zuko just being upset that things have turned out so horribly. I was sympathetic to him before, but I’m even more sympathetic now, if that makes sense. 😭

8. In The Painted Lady, Katara’s disguise is blown due to a hair-loopie malfunction, rather than Aang literally blowing her disguise (off).

This is more of a subjective thing but I wish they kept this one in too! I think it’s cute :P

9. The Puppetmaster was originally meant to be titled The Dark Side of the Moon, and includes some differences on how Katara regains control of herself in the battle with Hama:

I understand why the script made Katara “pirouette” and dance under Hama’s bloodbending – it’s a reference to the whole “puppetmaster” thing (which, by the way, I have to say “The Dark Side of the Moon” is a much cooler title, but I can see why they changed that too – it’s way too spoiler-y, sadly). Ultimately though I prefer the show’s version where Katara is forced to her knees and then breaks free – it’s more dramatic, I think, and it reminds me of the earlier scene in The Waterbending Master where Pakku has knocked Katara down, and she takes a breath and steels herself and then gets back up to fight again. I’m not sure if the animators meant to mirror that scene or not, but either way I think Katara standing up after being pushed to the ground is a lot more powerful and compelling, both visually and symbolically, than Katara breaking free of a dance that she’s forced to move to under Hama’s hand. Maybe that’s just me.

I will say though, the ending shot is different to how it is in the script, and I wish they’d kept the script version:

10. Finally, the ending of The Fortuneteller has Katara actually hearing and reacting to Meng’s insult.

Which I thought was mildly amusing. Slightly bummed this was cut, but only a little 🤣

I hope you guys enjoyed reading these as much as I did 😊 I actually have about 6 or 7 more tidbits left that I want to share, but I’ll pause this compilation here as 10 is a good number and I think this post has gotten long enough already 😅

Thanks to @korranguyen for her effort in spotting and transcribing the Zuko/Jin snippets 😊

#atla #atla original scripts #writer's guild foundation #elizabeth and aaron ehasz are absolute legends #bit of fluff for the jinko fans too

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eloise175 · 1 year

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Domestic Headcanon

The multiple languages of love:

Callisto at one point sat down and learned on a whim how to say ‘I love you’ in 20+ languages to express his undying love for Penelope better, because simply put, one language isn’t enough to explain what he feels for her. He’s also aware of the fact that his wife is able to understand what he’s saying most of the times because she speaks a handful of languages, and the adorable blush that dusts her cheeks never fails to make him smile.

Penelope will never get used to Callisto’s incessant love-bombing, and the actual lengths he’d go to express how much he loves her, it tugs at her heart strings in the best way possible. It’s an indescribable sensation, but if she were to word it out, Penelope would say that it’s like a bunch of butterflies swarmed her stomach, alike the feeling when he first kissed her.

Callisto also took it upon himself to learn about flower-language, and what each color and flower represents.

First and foremost, the red roses are never missing, he likes to think that Penelope will always associate their color with his eyes.

This stems from one time when she left him a neatly written note in his office for their anniversary, where at the end there was the mark of her lips in red lipstick, with a rose of the same shade attached to the paper; Callisto kissed the mark left by her lips without hesitation.

Carnations of deep color are also very present, because while it is true that love is the sentiment that burns the brightest of them all, Callisto cannot help but feel a deep sense of admiration every time his wife takes the lead as Empress.

She has the final say in things, and he wouldn’t have it any other way. He couldn’t care less about what other people think of him, but Penelope’s opinion is the one that truly matters. He knows she’ll always tell him the truth, no matter what.

Orchids bring back memories of the earlier stages of their relationship, when Callisto would shower Penelope with an endless pile of expensive gifts after learning that she had a penchant for jewelry and such.

The fine silks of the dresses he’d gift her were imported from different countries and manufactured with the outmost care, befitting the woman of his heart. In the box, on top of the silks, there would be two orchids of a color similar to the one of her hair, their stems tied together by a white ribbon with golden threads sewn in.

Their presence standing for luxury and refinement as well as a beauty unlike any other.

Even after their union as a married couple, when Callisto commissions new garbs for his wife, two orchids that are meant to symbolize the two of them are left on top of the garments as a callback to those days.

Later on, the number of the flowers growing with every addition to their family, increasing by one for each little miracle that blesses their lives, bringing them into parenthood and its joys.

After a while, Penelope taught Callisto how to make flower-crowns, and now every occasion is good to make them for her. Penelope is somewhat jealous because he shouldn’t be allowed to be this good at making flower-crowns, not better than her that’s for sure.

However she cannot stay irked for too long because the way he places the carefully made crown on top of her head with that specific gaze, where it looks like he just fell in love all over again, melts away all the previously built up irritation.

Later on Callisto will start making flower-crowns for their children as well, and Penelope can feel her heart swell the longer she watches them, especially when their kids try to replicate said flower-crowns.

#El’s headcanons #flower language #love language #Callisto and Penelope show their love for one another in many ways #just a compilation of Callisto and Penelope being very much in love and obsessed with each other #callisto regulus #penelope eckhart #penelope eckart #penelope x callisto #penelope eckart x callisto regulus #vadd #villains are destined to die #death is the only ending for a villainess #death is the only ending for the villainess #vadd headcanon

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fantasma-de-la-cueva · 8 months

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Guys, I know I had been posting a lot of IE stuff (bc I’m out of noragami stuff and I’m obsesed with magic soccer), but you know what? I’m still going to say this headcanon bc I started to write a fic:

I love to compare Gouenji (specially the Fifth Sector fase) with snakes. Why? Here are some reasons:

1) When he wants to be sneaky and hide or dissapear he just does and is hard to see him unless he wants to be seen (or caught off guard at certain points).

2) Despite what honosuto introducted (no hate, I will always love honosuto fiery boi) he is calm and collected, making me remind that in the chinese zodiac snakes are associated with calm, cold and calculating people. Also, snakes tend to be associated with cunning personalities and Gouenji, specially during the Go 1, had showed this with his hole plan of destroying Fifth from the inside (not only by starting the revolution, but with the ways he used to fuel it more and more, aka: investigating everything he could in the front row while keeping Daigo away from controlling soccer, confirming that Endo was, “indeed”, the person sent by Fifth to be Raimon’s coach, letting Tsurugi to play free soccer after sending him knowing that he would turn at some point, funding educational programs and managing to move a massive amount money behind Daigo’s back, offering stealthy mentorship to Raimon by allowing them to get stronger, putting the team against Teikoku to allow Endo and Kidou reunite and clean Teikoku from Fifth’s influence, therefore allowing the Revolution to have a safe space and all the mental gymnastics, lies, speeches and deceptions he was pulling over everyone inside the organization and Daigo himself to prevent them from investigating what was really happening).

3) Snakes are often represented as malicious in some cultures and stories, in others they are wise creatures that can act as mentors or helpers. Gouenji enters in the “helper” snake category. As a kid he helped the other players to resolve their problems; as adult he pressed on Raimon to make them stronger and resilent, taught Tsurugi the fire tornado and in anime taught Kurosaki the fire storm, raised multiple programs to teach kids to play soccer and prevent the collapse of Japan’s educational system, assisted Raimon during CS and thanks to him Earth could participate in the Grand Celesta Galaxy tournament.

4) Is said that snakes hold the poison and its antidote, that’s why they are related to medicine. Gouenji, during Fifth’s arc hold the poison that was corrupted soccer and had the antidote that was starting the revolution and prevent the collapse of educational system.

5) Snakes are often depicted as symbols of protection, we know how fierce protective Gouenji is, specially when is about people suffering in front of him, the people that matters to him the most and the sport he deeply loves.

6) Snakes are hated by a lot of people and tend to be reducted as nothing but a “dangerous” creatures and sometimes are seen as “evil” in a lot of stories and tales. During Go 1 Gouenji/Ishido is depicted as an intimidating, cruel man that feels pleasure in inflicting pain and terror on everyone and enjoys playing with the victims of his schemes, but the truth is that he is pretty tame compared to his coworkers, subordinates and boss (but we don’t forget how awful it was Tsurugi arrival to Raimon or ordering getting Tenma injuried). He uses the cold and ruthless mask because he has to in order to survive and make his plans work (and is shown that is painful for him to do so), but overall he isn’t as cruel as other characters tend to see him as he doesn’t want to destroy schools that dare to stand against Fifth Sector, he doesn’t like when people gets hurt because of soccer, he doesn’t show any resentment towards the idea of getting dethrowned, he enjoys to watch Raimon struggling in matches because he knows that those moments are what make the team stronge and he made his best to allow his team enjoy real soccer. The thing that makes him look “evil” is that due to his seriousness and determination to save soccer and keep control over Fifth he had resigned to play the bad guy and allowed the organization and its members to commit any crime they could. We know as viewers that is painful for him to be in that position and the characters close to him had shown concern and worriness about his well being because they know and understand his reasons to be like that, but the characters that don’t know are the ones that often trash-talk about how he is evil and doing everything he does for the sake of ambition and talk so much about how they want to make him pay, with very valid reasons. But while for the kids is normal and resonable that they wouldn’t question the adult characters didn’t cared to question or go deeper, thinking that he truly went evil until Endo appeared and investigated why his friend had, aparently, went nuts.

7) Discretion and the way snakes slither to move are often relationated concepts, so, why not?

#inazuma eleven #inazuma eleven go #gouenji shuuya #and why the chara’s animal spirit is a snake #but is only a HC #written at 3 am xD

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river-in-the-woods · 4 months

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Describe Hekate as a person? From what I can guess she seems like a stern but reliable "parent" that wants you to understand the tools or lessons they give so that you don't second guess yourself. Generally, I love these types of personalities since it makes me want to strive forward either for them or because they make learning worthwhile.

I don't know if I could describe Hekate as a person... Because she isn't one. Quite literally, I mean.

She is a vast, multi-faceted, transcendental power and force of nature, whom we can experience through many different guises. Her most popular guise is indeed that of the stern, cunning yet nonetheless caring witch goddess. But I think that is more to do with the qualities people prefer to call upon when they invoke her, rather than being indicative of Hekate's true nature.

One should never mistake one's perceptions of a being, for the being itself. Whatever visions or knowledge we receive from a deity is more about what they are trying to tell us, and how they have decided to express that teaching.

I think that if you call to Hekate as a compassionate mother, she is more than capable of answering with overwhelming love and gentleness. If you call to her as a wise and benevolent mentor, she'll answer as that. And if you call upon her as a fearsome bringer of destruction, she will not necessarily protect you from your own actions. Of course, there's every chance that she'll decide to respond differently, because as vast as Hekate is, she also has her own will and agency.

(See here for a long list of Hekate's epithets)

One of the things people discover when they do extensive cultivation, de-conditioning and work on the Self, is that the Self is very malleable and endlessly faceted. From this work, the personality begins to loosen up a lot, and the rigid lines we draw between our identity, other people, and our environment, gets very blurry. If you go deep enough with this kind of work, the distinction between Self and Other become meaningless (i.e. enlightenment). If that can be experienced by a human, well... what about gods, when they're much older and not even confined by a physical body like we are?

When I describe my interactions with Hekate, it is interpreted through the witch goddess lens because that's how I invoke her all the time. When I hear her speak, it is in a very straightforward, pragmatic, and sometimes sarcastic way. But the person who taught me all about her is also straightforward, pragmatic and very often sarcastic.

And to be honest, when you describe a torch-bearing nocturnal goddess followed by dogs, ghosts and monsters, whose hair is entwined with serpents and oak leaves... People are inevitably going to imagine her in a certain way, right? But these things are symbolic of Hekate's power; they will draw certain kinds of people to her, but they are not necessarily indicative of her personality. And it does not mean that those things are the only expressions of her power.

The gods and spirits speak to us through our own thoughts. It is very common for them to use our memories, experiences and imaginations in order to communicate with us. That is why, by the way, one of the best things you can do in your practice is to regularly seek novel experiences.

The other thing to know is that Hekate has a host of nocturnal nymphs who act as her representatives in the world. These are the Lampads – torch-bearing infernal nymphs associated with the local land. They provide inspiration and guidance to Hekate's followers and act in her stead, and they will take the voice and form of Hekate when standing in for her. So there is every chance that a message or teaching received from Hekate was delivered through her Lampads.

When trying to understand Hekate – given that she is all about transcending boundaries, and that her most popular depiction is of three goddesses standing together – probably the worst thing you can do is try to define her.

However, if Hekate inspires in you the desire to go beyond, evolve, learn, grow, and transcend your limits over and over. That is Hekate. That is exactly what will help you resonate with her.

Thank you for your question :)

#hekate #inbox #anonymous #hekate deity

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lemonhemlock · 3 months

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Sansa says to Tyrion: “You’re afraid of her.” And Tyrion replies: “Every good ruler needs to inspire a bit of fear.”

Is that true? Should every good ruler do that?

Should Sansa be afraid of her and was her behavior towards Daenerys smart?

I feel like it was, Sansa's stance against kneeling to Daenerys was not just about defiance; it was a strategic move reflecting her commitment to Northern independence and sovereignty. Sansa's refusal to kneel to Daenerys wasn't about provoking her for the sake of it. It was a calculated decision to assert Northern autonomy and ensure that any alliance with Daenerys was on equal terms. Kneeling would have symbolized submission, potentially compromising the North's ability to negotiate from a position of strength. Sansa understood the risks but believed that standing firm was crucial for preserving Northern identity and security.

What an interesting question! Unfortunately, I was taught only one seminar class on Machiavelli during my one History of the Middle Ages course,* so I'll not insist on the discourse on whether he was writing satire, was being deceitful, opportunistic (my teaching assistant at the time certainly thought he was!) or was genuinely writing a <mirror for princes> in the hopes of Italian unification as he may have seen tyrants as an effective political typology who could achieve that goal. Others more well-read than me can comment much more in-depth on this topic.

*I know this is the Renaissance, it was an expansive course, alright. :)

The question should at least begin with a discussion around Machiavelli IMO because he is very obviously the most famous source for the quote and the majority of the population familiar with this quandary have most likely heard it in association with him. But it's very telling that the idea of being feared is the one D&D latched on to, no? This reminds me of that Twitter meme of red flag books you see in men's houses after going on a couple of dates and the list contained titles like The Prince, American Psycho, Atlas Shrugged, How to Win Friends and Influence People etc.

Even so, even if you take the text at face value, that's not exactly what the man says, is it? He is pondering several options. In fact, let me whip out my copy of The Prince I bought way back in the cretaceous period for Year 1.

Even if you believe he is being genuine here and not just sucking up to (or trying to placate) Lorenzo di Medici, he is saying that love & fear > fear > fear and hatred. So, whatever you do, make sure you are not hated. And what is a sure-fire way to getting hated? Taking people's stuff! "Above all, a man must refrain from seizing the property of others, because a man is quicker to forget the death of his father than the loss of his patrimony"! And how does Dany answer Sansa's question of "what do dragons eat"? What does she say? "Whatever they like." Does whatever they like perchance include the assets of the Northerners, like cattle and sheep? Hmmm.....

In any case, Machiavelli was an ardent Republican, so why is he giving advice to princes? There is a contradiction that lies at the heart of this question and in how fandom perceives some elements of ASOIAF as well. Authoritarian rulers and tyrants can be very effective. It doesn't mean we should accept or normalize authoritarian rule. These two things are not in contradiction. Machiavelli doesn't have to believe, in his heart of hearts, that tyrants are preferable; he can simply write about how to make them efficient. And, again, I'm leaving the conversation about his true intentions to others who have genuinely studied the issue, because it is still under debate.

How I'm redirecting this back to ASOIAF is by pointing out that a lot of critiques of Westerosi rulers are hesitant to characterize any kind of imperious or strongman ruler as efficient, even when the text doesn't point to any material issue that might undermine their rule. Tywin Lannister and Walder Frey are examples of this. To my knowledge, there is no real contestation of their rule by their bannermen or smallfolk and they are not exactly the warmest individuals. Yes, they die, because they are the playthings of the author and he is killing them to make a thematic point. Not because they were overthrown by their underlings or in a peasant revolt. Tywin is killed by his own son in an act of personal revenge that has nothing to do with politics. Walder Frey is killed similarly by Arya in the show (in the books he is still alive). But, that doesn't mean that, in the real world, rulers like Stalin don't exist and are not successful and always pay for their crimes.

I would thus advance the proposition that GRRM does think that tyrants might be effective, but not that they should be endorsed and definitely the endgame of the series will not involve another tyrant on the throne, because he has power over these characters and he can eliminate whomever he wants from the narrative if he doesn't believe they fit the profile for the type of ruler he is looking for.

Ping-pong-ing back to the show, the question is ultimately a misunderstanding of the themes by D&D. They conflate being effective with being a "good" ruler. And it is important to define that efficiency in the first place! Machiavelli talks a lot about how to maintain your seat as a prince once you've got it. And the discussion on love vs fear happens in the context of how to prevent oneself from acquiring the ire of the population / one's subalterns and prevent being ousted. But would that truly be the trait GRRM is looking for in his ideal model of a king? A good king being one who efficiently held onto the crown? What about policy? What exactly is Dany's policy for Westeros? She has none in the show. In the books she has none as well, but at least she hasn't reached Westeros there yet, so there may be time for her to formulate something.

Regardless, the population shouldn't be afraid of its rulers, who serve for them. The only reason one should feel fear in relation to one's rulers is because they are judicious applicators of the law and would mete punishment accordingly if one has committed a crime. This is very much an idealistic manifestation of the relationship between the two, but it is not an entirely new concept. Even in the context of the divine right of kings,* there existed paternalistic notions of benevolence (noblesse oblige being one such manifestation), the idea that the upper classes have social responsibilities to care and protect the vulnerable and those less fortunate. So the idea of the elites being indebted in a way (or more like having a duty towards) the populace has always permeated political thinking. Of course, in the case of unjust rulers, philosophers like Thomas Aquinas also condoned tyrannicide (legally permitted in Ancient Greece, too). So, I would so as far as to say that there is basis enough to argue that a "good" ruler is one who cares for their people and doesn't abuse them or incite negative associations such as fear - and that it's probably what GRRM also has in mind when writing these godforsaken books.

*although I suppose I should mention that the idea that God granted monarchs authority to rule predates the coinage of that term, which is essentially absolutist in phrasing, because we are LARP-ing medieval times here and that predates the absolutist monarchy, contrary to what viral posts will have you believe (no, I will never shut up about this).

As for the second part of your question, yes, I would say that in the context of the show, Sansa refusing to kneel to Dany would be consistent with the goal D&D gave her, namely Northern independence. So it wasn't about antagonizing Daenerys the person or playing mind games, it was about achieving her political objective and implementing her own policies, as Sansa was one of the only characters shown to care about the logistics of survival, ensuring the needs of her population and caring for them as best as she could. Had she failed, Daenerys would have kept asking for her armies and money in order to fight in her world domination tour - a loss of resources that Sansa wanted to prevent.

Please bear in mind, though, that a lot of this is coloured by the weird decision to have Cersei be the final villain to defeat, whereas it's much more likely that in the books the battle against the wights is going to be the final, major battle. It's likely that the dynamics in the books will be different - not saying that Dany and Sansa are going to be bffs, but Jon, for instance, could have a much greater political involvement, one would hope, instead of being reduced to moodily repeating 3 lines. Also, Dany's public perception might very well change if she, IDK, murders her alleged nephew Aegon VI or engages in other endearing brouhaha.

#please excuse my unmanicured hands i'm waiting to see if i paint them red for spain or black for germany 😵#luckily for ME my copy of american psycho lives next to the little friend and ottessa moshfegh so it's FINE #unfortunately the prince lives between sun tzu and clausewitz so---------#don't come for me it makes sense!!!!#this post is so rambly it's very late forgive me #sansa stark #ask #anon #anti daenerys targaryen #<- for filtering

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respectthepetty · 1 year

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Reading the (Visual) Rainbow 101

Lesson 1 - Visual Rhetoric

Because I get so many asks about colors, I decided the best way to celebrate Pride is to educate anyone who is interested in how to better Read the (Visual) Rainbow and simultaneously allow myself to appreciate queer media.

So let's begin!

Did you stop when you saw the above image? Why? The post just began, yet you probably paused when you saw the image because it reminded you of a stop sign even though it has no text that tells you to stop.

This is visual rhetoric.

The Basics

Rhetoric is the art of persuasion

Aristotle is considered the father of rhetoric

He created the rhetorical appeals - ethos, logos, pathos

He also taught about rhetorical situations - audience, purpose, tone, argument, medium

All of this simply means that Aristotle believed that to persuade people, the speaker or author had to appeal to his audience by establishing credibility, giving a logic argument presented with evidence, and appealing to the audience's emotions. But most importantly, the speaker had to know his audience well enough to know what evidence to use, what emotions to appeal to, and how he could make himself look credible.

Visual Rhetoric

We live in a visually-dominated society. We see thousands of images every day. But in order to stand out, companies must appeal to its targeted audience using Aristotle's rhetorical theory.

Since television is a collection of moving images (medium), a show is never solely about the dialogue or the acting; it's also about the collection of images and how they support the story. This can be done through:

colors

clothing

symbols

text

layout

environment

Even in this textual post, some words are bigger than others to show a new section is beginning (logic/logos). "A NEW SECTION IS BEGINNING!" doesn't have to be stated because the visual element does that instead. Even though it isn't a colorful moving image, this is visual rhetoric.

Concept Question - How can you distinguish you are in a queer-friendly space without anyone having to explicitly state it? Much like the stop sign at the beginning, the rainbow is associated in most parts of the world with being queer-friendly.

And it can pop up in subtle ways as well to let us know this is a queer space without having to verbalize it.

Activity 2 Review

If you watched Eugene Lee Yang video "I'm Gay" from the orientation [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qpipLfMiaYU], you were tasked with looking at the colors, clothing, space, and references to global events. Trigger warning - the implication of gun violence and the implication of physical violence and blood.

Applying Aristotle's rhetorical theory to the video, we must consider who Yang's targeted audience was, what was his purpose for creating the video, and what was his argument. We also need to examine how he appeals to his audience.

Targeted Audience - fans of The Try Guys and newer fans from other social media platforms

Purpose - to let people know he was gay

Argument - ???

To figure out the argument, we must examine the visuals:

Sound (not a visual, but worth noting to figure out the argument)

The video's song, ODESZA's " A Moment Apart", opens and ends with the sound of breathing and only features one repeated lyric: "I love you most. I love you more now."

Colors

Since Yang's purpose was to tell his audience he is gay, he visually depicted that by tracing his journey through the colors of the rainbow (layout).

The other people in these scenes are wearing black or white while the community members wear colors. The blacks are friendly while the whites are more aggressive, which is the opposite of how these colors are normally represented. White tends to be for innocence, while black is more menacing.

Clothing

Yang also establishes his conflict with gender norms and his desire for fluidity with gender expression through his outfits, yet the scene where he wears the most masculine attire (jeans) right after the club attack, is also the one where he is beat up and shirtless; therefore, he is exposed and vulnerable even when trying to conform, stuck between the white and black.

Environment

Each color is set in a different location: Red - Yang with his family, Orange - Yang at church, Yellow - Yang dancing during spring, Green - Yang dancing at a club, Blue - Yang on a street in front of trash, Indigo - Yang being pushed by the "others"

For time's sake, let's focus on two: Yellow & Blue.

Yellow in the Pride flag is new ideas. Yang's yellow is set in spring. Spring is the season of new life and change. There is also the popular musical Spring Awakening which is a coming-of-age story about sexual awakenings in a repressed society. In Yang's yellow, he dances first with a woman wearing black, only to notice and dance with a man in yellow.

Blue in the Pride flag is serenity, but Yang's blue is anything but calm. He is located on a street in front of trash as he is beaten. The people beating him treat him and associate him with the trash he lays in front of instead of viewing him as human. These people are in white, so as mentioned in the colors section, they are the worst aggressors.

Worldly Events

The concept question asked how we know we are in queer-friendly spaces, and the answer was to look for the rainbow.

Yang's green is set in a gay club, but then a man, dressed in white, enters and lifts his two fingers to indicate a gun.

This is a reference to the 2016 Pulse Club Shooting in Orlando, Florida, but also alludes to the several incidents of queer spaces being assaulted.

Text

The ending credits are the only text featured within the video, but it ends with this dedication - For the LGBTQIA+ community.

Argument

Referring to the above notes on the visuals, we know Yang wanted his fans (audience) to know he was gay (purpose). However, him dedicating this video to the community shows that everything we saw before that moment was his argument.

The link to the video includes a fundraising box for The Trevor Project which advocates for suicide prevention within the community, so there is credibility (ethos) in his argument.

Through the layout of the rainbow scenes, Yang offers the logic (logos) and the appeal to our emotions (pathos). Yang showed through the visuals that those who were thought to be the most innocent and pure (the whites) were the most violent towards the community. He showed that in spaces that he should feel loved and comfortable with his family and at church were the places he had to put on the biggest show. He showed the queer safe space where he was happiest was the most dangerous. He showed that he was seen as trash even when conforming, and when he did emerge as himself, others still wanted him to conform.

But in the end, he sits with his community, and it is powerful.

The sounds also support his argument. The breathing fades out as Yang begins his journey through the rainbow. The lyrics constantly remind him that he is not only loved, but more loved now as he continues through the rainbow. The video ends with the breathing resuming.

If you watched Love, Simon, you know the beautiful line, "You get to exhale now." Yang, after his journey to self-acceptance and coming out, can exhale now.

All of these visuals support the argument that although the world is cruel, there is love and strength within the community. Yang made this video to tell people he was gay, but he is also telling people he is part of a community.

And that community is strong, together.

Activity 1 Review - Next Lesson

The orientation posed a few questions for you to think about. We will cover those in the next lesson.

You should also watch ONE of the following videos to better understand the next lesson. As you watch your chosen video, note which color emerges first and think about why.

Sam Smith & Kim Petras "Unholy" - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uq9gPaIzbe8

Jessie Ware "Free Yourself" - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aD7F6M9fsms

Troye Sivan "My, My, My" - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k5TqNsr6YuQ

See you for lesson 2 on Friday - Color Basics

#Reading the (Visual) Rainbow #lesson one - visual rhetoric #eugene yang “I'm gay”

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tequiilasunriise · 2 years

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A lot of y’all seemed to have REALLY enjoyed my ‘Enid is a lesbian because she says howdy’ shitpost so here’s another round of me performing Olympic god medal level mental gymnastics in order to explain how Wenclair works:

Okay so, as taught by my Bumbleby roots, names can have SIGNIFICANT have power. So to see if that applied here, I looked up the meanings of Wenclair’s names.

Enid: life, spirit

Sinclair: saintly, pure

Wednesday: Originates from the Norse god Woden (Woden’s Day) who was associated with death

Addams: The creator, Charles Addams, clearly inserted his own surname here, but it’s interesting to note that Addams means earth

Wenclair really are polar opposites aren’t they? Sun and Moon Girlfriends™️ not just aesthetically, but even down to their names (giggles in BB giggles in BB giggles in BB-). It’s almost like they were meant to parallel and compliment the other from the moment they were born.

The Sun- warm, pure, full of spirit and energy and a giver of Life.

The Moon- dark, shadowy, a blanket of cover for Death as she calmly overlooks her star-studded realm.

Did y’all know that Life and Death can not exist without the other? They are perfect equal-yet-opposites foils of one other that are in this grand cycle of balance. One is not inherently better than the other, mind you. Furthermore, I love the idea of inverting these tropes. The Sun may be associated with Life, but do not underestimate her- she can just as easily take this life away. Scorching wildfires, droughts, a rage like a sleeping wolf now awakened by her lover’s call. The Moon may be associated with Death, but she is also a symbol for change. The ever-shifting tides she controls, the phases she cycles through, the way Wednesday helps Enid change for the better. Sun & Moon, Life & Death, two halves of a rather lovely whole.

That being said, there’s also something sweet to be said about Addams meaning earth. The Earth is often associated with feelings of welcoming because, well, above all else, Earth means home (see the goddess Gaia for example). Like, yes, being celestial beings on a grand scale of equality and eternal devotion is amazing, but there’s also a charm to Addams meaning earth, of Addams meaning home. Enid is not accepted by her own family, but that’s alright, because she’s made a home in the loving arms of another. I like to imagine that on that on the flipside, there’s the symbolism of ‘earth’ not in the sense of the whole world, but earth like the soil beneath our feet. Wednesday seeing ‘earth’ as the ground we trodden upon and going, “Would you really want to settle for some dirt like I?”. Enid, with no hesitation, replying, “I like this dirt, it’s great for growing beautiful flowers. I wouldn’t want any other home but you, Willa.” Enid Addams does have quite the ring to it, wouldn’t you agree?

#if I made any of yall cry sorry not sorry #i fucken LOVE symbolism analysis and ofc imma bring it here to the wenclair fandom #sun and moon life and death gfs so TRUE #home as not a place but rather a person supremacy #some of yall might think im crazy fer such in depth name analysis but lemme just say #being in the rwby fandom fer several long years will get to you like this #again sorry not sorry #if theres any HINT of more symbolism in the show yall already know imma be on that shit like a mf bloodhound #anything fer yall anything fer yall #wenclair warriors moment #wenclair #wednesday addams #enid sinclair #do i tag bumbleby #yes I do #bumbleby #rwby

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van-skmugen · 1 year

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Before SK8 Instagram Live event starts, I left below cut line this analysis I made of image that they showed for the event, just be aware that it is quite long. Feel free to read and add your own thoughts. I would love to know more points of view. ↓

Disclaimer: English isn't my first language so if something sounds rouge that's why, I'm still learning to improve it.

Ok, now that I've found time I'm going to write a little of what I've seen in SK∞ WEEK EVENT image and what I perceive in it. I come from a fandom where you need to speculate a lot all allegories that author puts in every thing he does so here I'm not going to be less and I'm going to be a little deep analyzing, although then that in reality it may not be so deep, who knows. I warn you that this is going to be long, as is usual for me, since I start with a tiny thought and end up writing a manuscript. Be warned. I will start with something that I find interesting and that during the whole image is repeated and it's concept of first season about Reki and Langa being the beginning (Reki's monologue in episode 1/epilogue) and the end (same monologue of Reki, said by Langa at the end of series).

The beginning: Reki is on left side of image both sitting frontally, as well as his characteristic drawing on mural ( drawing of his skateboard) and with cat showing his face on top of his skateboard. The end: Langa is on right side of the image, also drawn on the mural in the rightmost part (the yeti) and the cat showing his tail on top of his skateboard.

Reki was the one who started teaching Langa skateboarding and the importance of being more fun when you do it among friends (beginning), Langa taught ADAM what he learned from Reki (end), in the first season. It's worth mentioning that the concept of beginning (Reki) and end (Langa) is not finite, that in western and eastern reading image is read differently (west from left to right and top to bottom, east from right to left) so depending on how you read the image, Langa can be perceived as the beginning or the end (just like Reki) [Something out of context: even within the same show Reki and Langa would read the image differently, as Reki has been raised in the East while Langa has been raised in the West and even their religions are different].. Also the human being always ends something and starts something new (it's a cycle that never ends, unless you die) and it's also something interchangeable between people, objects, etc… (Reki and Langa being the beginning and the end even vary within their own arcs, Example: Reki learning from Langa to reevaluate why he started skateboarding in the beginning, is in itself a new cycle that Langa started and Reki finished when he returned to skateboard in chapter 10 after leaving it for believing that if he wasn't good it wasn't worth to continue practicing it since not being at Langa's level he would always be left behind).

Going into the mural, the background of the wall is purple (like the color that represents Shadow). Purple symbolizes jealousy and insecurity. It's also often associated with femininity, glamour and sweetness. Emotional qualities associated with purple include solemnity, grace, mystery, insecurity and tenderness. Purple was recognized as a noble color in both the West and Japan in ancient times. With that in mind to summarize and not make it much longer than it's being we could go back to the first season with the first two symbols (insecurity and jealousy), how Reki felt insecurity for his skateboarding, for his friendship with Langa endangered by seeing how he was improving and moving away from him (regardless of Langa's feelings) and the jealousy he felt towards Langa, for seeing how he improved in a very short time when he needed twice or three times as much skill to do something, without taking into account that Langa had been snowboarding since he was very young and that Reki's ability to teach Langa how to learn skateboarding, adapting the skateboard to his needs helped him to adapt and learn the basics in a short period of time. (And good bases are always important)

The first leftmost drawing is undoubtedly Reki Kyan/REKI, with the drawing inverted, although I guess it was a design decision to integrate it more with the mural, unless you want to symbolize something deeper in verse to Reki. Although we must also take into account that at the top is written the word happiness in white with red background. Going more to speculation we could think that in the future it could be possible that his friend who left the skateboard aside some time ago could come back, the inverted drawing with the word happiness on top could be associated to an opposite change in his usual dynamics.

The S of SK∞ clearly represents Hiromi Higa/Shadow, although it doesn't show the color that officially represents him (purple). On the outside highlighting the S is the color of his hair, orange, and inside it has a dark turquoise green color (like the color that represents Kojiro/JOE in the third I of Infinity on the winged skateboard we'll talk about later), with drawings of what look like white daisy flowers, which in the language of flowers symbolize innocence.*

The K of SK∞ undoubtedly represents Kaoru Sakurayashiki/Cherry blossom, around and inside the pink/purple color representing Carla and inside in black, with the motifs depicted on the Cherry skateboard and cherry blossom (Sakura) petals.

The ∞ of SK∞ undoubtedly represents Ainosuke Shindo/ADAM, on the outside a dark blue (or purple? considering it's the color that is on the second I of Infinity on the skateboard and represents Hiromi/Shadow) the inside black with its heart symbol in red. Ainosuke on the outside, ADAM on the inside. It's interesting that it's the infinity, as it is the symbol that is repeated three times in the whole image, the infinity of SK∞ representing him, the infinity between Reki and Langa (red and blue) and in the text of the skateboard with wings (Infinity) that all together represent him, showing again that he's part of the central axis of story, as all the characters wouldnt have been able to meet and come together having a connection the same way they did in S, without him, who also created it.

Then we have the white snake coming out of skateboard with wings and that is over the S and the K and that seems to be heading towards the word "beef" with white letters surrounded by green color. Obviously representing Tadashi/Snake, could we have more beefs from him in season 2 (maybe with Cherry and Shadow?), or will he just remain oblivious like at the end of season 1? Going by the image, it looks like that won't be the case, but who knows.

At the top is shown an infinity that probably represents Reki and Langa, who are also on each side of the color (Reki's foot is on the red/left side of the infinity and Langa's foot is on the blue/right side of the infinity). Although the red part eats part of the blue part, and they aren't completely balanced, which I find curious.

Then we have over the ∞, a cat that of course represents Miya Chinen/MIYA, being purple and green, Miya's favorite character in role-playing videogame he usually plays in the first season. And who also seems playful, either playing with "Langa's shoe" or trying to interact with the infinity on the mural (which is surely the most likely). It also seems that he's no longer afraid of ADAM as he poses on the infinity without any problem. On the back is written the word "fun" in white surrounded by yellow.

Coming out a little from the ∞ is shown a half sun that clearly represents Kojiro Nanjo/Joe, yellow in color but with little stripes that make you think of a tiger, and the first kanji of his name translates as tiger (虎, tora). It's covered by the infinity representing ADAM and above it has on one side the word "fun" and on the other the word "S" with white letters surrounded by blue.

Biting the infinity, we have a white yeti that undoubtedly represents Langa Hasegawa/Snow, with the colors white, blue, black and purple feet. Surely Langa biting ADAM could be an allegory that he's over him. Although it's funny/curious that right next to it is written the word fan with white letters surrounded by pink.

Finally we have a black skateboard with wings that represents the slogan of the series, that skateboarding is infinite, since the wings symbolize freedom, and to support that they have written the word "infinity" representing the eight main characters, and the wheels with purple and blue colors. I= Reki Yellow N= Langa's blue F= Light green of MIYA I= Shadow/Hiromi's purple (although it also resembles a dark blue, as it is identical to the color surrounding the infinity representing ADAM) N= Pink of Cherry/Kaoru I= Green/ of JOE/Kojiro (which also has a similar shade to the dark turquoise green found in the S representing Shadow) T= Red of ADAM Y= White of Snake/Tadashi, it's curious that this time they haven't used gray, which is the color that symbolizes Tadashi in much of the merchandise and official content (although maybe only in the first season, who knows, it's also true that everyone has an assigned color but that doesn't mean that these colors are immovable and can be interchangeable between some characters or that they cann't change over the years or that they're false symbols AKA the red that symbolizes ADAM but when it's Ainosuke symbolizes more the color blue).

And finally the words: Happy in red (ADAM), beef in green (Joe), fun in yellow (Reki), S in blue (Langa) and fan in pink (Cherry). Being happy and fan in lower case, all the others in upper case.

I'll leave it here for the moment, I love the color symbolisms, but this time I've run out of time. Like last time if anyone has anything to add, wants to add anything or whatever, they're welcome as always. I may edit it or reblog it with added notes if today there is new news regarding the second season or the OVA (although I see it as more likely to hear about the OVA before the second season) and see if they have any connection to this image. See you at Reki's Birthday!

*Sources: https://greensnap.co.jp/columns/daisy_language

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