#your attitude is MY villain origin story

[endlessnightarts]

whole lotta people in fandom need to relearn how to use their imagination?

author using a Tav race/pronouns/backstory/description you don't like in a fic you otherwise enjoy? Shut up and do some mental find-and-replace while you read, don't bitch at them, it's fine, it's fandom, be cool

honestly

guys

[analyticallymindedaa]

"i don't want him to be anybody but himself." "you sure about that?" "yes." "'cause i heard he told you how he felt and you bailed."

[...]

"the only thing that makes him worse...is you." "i know. why do you think i left?"

today on: i'm literally never gonna be not angry about how jemma was treated throughout s2

[primofate]

Genshin Angst Headcanons - Why the two of you broke up

Note: Had an unexpected free day! I haven't written in a while, please excuse the mistakes, if any.

Disclaimer at the end of the post

Warning: Some are pretty predictable. Each of them have their own issues, lore wise, so some are lore heavy. You might not agree with some of them, but its how I see it, so to each their own. Let me know what you think! Some are quite angsty. Some scenes it's you breaking up with him and some are vice versa. Didn't feel like writing Razor, Venti and Xingqiu.

Characters: Aether, Albedo, Alhaitham, Ayato, Baizhu, Bennett, Chongyun, Cyno, Dainsleif, Diluc, Gorou, Heizou, Itto, Kaeya, Kaveh, Kazuha, Lyney, Neuvillette, Scaramouche, Tartaglia, Thoma, Tighnari, Xiao, Zhongli, gn!reader

Personal Favourites in this work: Lyney, Itto, Kazuha

Aether

Sister issues. Enough said.

He realized he didn't have enough time to spare romancing with someone.

Somewhere along the way he felt guilt that he was enjoying his time with you while his sister went through some sort of villain origin story that seemingly turned her bad.

Top off all the adventuring, searching, solving problems for other people that he did...Where did that leave you, exactly?

"...I'm sorry, Y/N... I just... I don't think this is the right time for me to be together with you,"

Albedo

Contrary to popular belief it wouldn't be his lack of time or extreme focus on his alchemical experiments that would break the two of you up. He knows how to manage his time.

It was the RESULTS of experiments and his research that would put him away from you.

The possibility that HE or his world, was way too dangerous for you.

How many "Albedos" did Rhinedottir really create? Was there more than three? Perhaps four, five? And what happens when you come face to face with another Albedo?

"I'm afraid...There are far too many dangers surrounding myself... There are answers that I can't find...and perhaps that's the reason why my answer is to part ways with you,"

Alhaitham

Too much of a nonchalant attitude.

He expressed some kind of interest in you...but it's like... once in a blue moon. 95% of the time you're not sure if he's really into you. It almost seems like he's more into that book he reads all the time.

Simply just not good at expressing himself. Like, at all. Hides behind a "whatever works" and "I don't care about what other people think of me" attitude, unfortunately that seems to include you.

Is so straightforward that sometimes it hurts, but he's really just telling the truth through logical analysis.

will act like the breakup didn't hurt nor affect him at all. In turn it hurts you instead.

"I see. So you've had enough of me... And you only spoke up now? Pointing it out earlier could've diverted us from this path...If that's how you feel already I suggest that we stop seeing each other,"

"That's it? You're not even going to try and work it out with me?"

"What's there to work out? You've made yourself clear. You're not satisfied with the way I treat you, and I'm afraid I'm not going to change the way I act just for your pleasure... It'd be more meaningful for you to find someone who fits your criterias,"

Ayato

entering a relationship with a noble was not as easy as one thought.

It's not just about being together forever and feeling lucky because Ayato is rich and your whole life is set, it's also the not fitting in, the etiquette, the whispers from townfolk that you were too ordinary for him, the work that you needed to do if you were to become his wife.

All that was not really a big problem for you, but Ayato seemed not to know of your struggles, he was extremely busy, and when he wasn't, he seemed to think that everything was well and fine, since you were getting all your basic needs met and even more.

"...So I'm sorry, Ayato. This is just... All too much for me. I'm sorry,"

"...I understand. Forgive me, it seems that I've overlooked a lot of things...Perhaps it is as you say, that it'd be better for us to grow apart rather than grow together,"

Baizhu

because he is a ticking time bomb, no matter which way he looked it's not going to end well for both of you.

He either dies early or lives forever. In both scenarios he anticipates that the two of you are just going to be in a world of hurt.

Besides, he didn't mean to get so attached to someone in the first place, he knew his quest for immortality was long and arduous. You didn't deserve to walk that difficult road too.

While breaking up, will conceal the fact that he's only thinking of you and will possibly hurt you in the process.

"I'm sorry, but it's for the best. I ask that you continue going forward without me, there's no space for you in my... ideal future,"

Bennett

We all know it...it's his bad luck. However, it wasn't YOU who had a problem with it, it was HIM.

You understood that his bad luck was just some extended part of him, plus it's not like it was always bad, there were a lot of good times too. Plenty!

But the guilt ate him up whenever the two of you were stuck in a seemingly impossible scenario and predicament, brought on by his luck. He just had enough of it one day.

"I...I can't keep doing this to you every day! It's not fair..."

will be on the brink of tears before he even starts.

"Maybe it's better if you find someone else to adventure with, Y/N, sorry...!"

runs away before you can even get a word in.

Chongyun

Thinks he's not good enough in every aspect. It's really, seriously not about you. He thinks he's lacking in everything. Strength, maturity, experience, confidence.

So badly wants to stay with you but feels like he's not good enough and thinks that you're better off with someone else.

"D-Don't misunderstand... It's not because I don't like you anymore... I just...Please find someone else!"

Cyno

his bad jokes and TCG addiction. just kidding, you're not that shallow.

A lot of people are intimidated by him being the General Mahamatra because he gives importance to justice. While you, who had seen a bit more of him than other people had, it seemed more of an obsession to uphold the Akademiya's law and integrity.

This was not a big problem to you, you liked how he was serious at work.

Until one day when you were accused of plagiarising one of your papers and Cyno was the one sent to give you a first offense warning. The Akademiya knew of your relationship, that's probably why they sent him, to make it harder on the two of you.

Cyno didn't listen to your explanations on how it was an honest mistake, he still gave you the warning that you "deserved"

From then on it had just been different between the two of you, so it was really a mutual breakup. Or so you thought.

"...After that, I just realized that maybe this isn't the right time for us... We're both working for the Akademiya, we both take our jobs seriously...Unfortunately that seems to just be getting in the way of us...I think it's best if we stop seeing each other,"

"...I see." he pauses for a minute, as if tossing your words in his mind. "I...agree. Parting ways would certainly make work easier for both of us...it's the professional thing to do,"

Dainsleif

Has not moved on from his past.

Sure, everyone has their own baggage to carry, their own history to live through...but Dainsleif has heavier things than that. He seemed to wake up every day thinking of Khaenri'ah and the days long past. Was it regret? Nostalgia? Loneliness? You didn't know. You just knew that he wasn't really completely THERE with you in the present. Part of him still lived in the past.

When you explained that you felt like the two of you were not moving forward together and that it seemed like he wanted to go back to the past instead, he got offended.

"...My past is something that I carry forever, you'd claimed that you understood that," he starts.

"I do! But carrying it with you and letting it drag you backwards are two different things!"

He falters for a moment, only to leave you with his last words before turning away from you forever: "You will never understand, the weight that I carry,"

Diluc

is too guarded. You'd been friends for a long, long, long, long time before he decided he could let you in enough and be more intimate with you.

Even then everything was going at a snail's pace, though you were extremely patient with him.

The biggest problem with Diluc was that the two of you would progress one day, take a step forward, and then the next day it was like the two of you took two steps back.

Example: The two of you went out for a simple stargazing excursion late one night, it was nice and he had been incredibly affectionate. The next day he had trouble even meeting your gaze, and disappeared to do his work. It was also a little awkward during dinnertime. This scenario had happened more than once.

Hint: the closer he got to you the more afraid he became, thinking that he would one day lose you too.

"I...I can't. I love you but I...I've waited far too long. I'm sorry. I'm tired of this endless chase for you!"

He couldn't even say a thing. He'd wanted to ask you to stay, to wait for him a little longer, but he already knew how incredibly selfish that would have been. Instead, he grimaced, and looked away from your gaze, trying to find something worthwhile to say. There was only silence for a few moments.

"Goodbye Diluc," that's when you turned away.

Gorou

worships Kokomi too much and your insecurities just kept circling around in your head.

You know its his job. You know he isn't like that but the problem was YOU and not him.

Simply said you let your insecurity eat up the relationship between the two of you.

You couldn't bring yourself to say that you were jealous of the way he admired Kokomi so you broke up with him with another reason in tow.

Unfortunately, you're not a very good liar face to face so you did a butthole move and actually broke up with him through a letter. You just couldn't face him and tell him why.

All you mentioned in the letter was that you needed time to think and be away from him, and told him not to worry because it was your problem, not his.

Poor Gorou reread that letter over and over, trying to understand what went wrong.

Heizou

is just a natural flirt. You're not sure if he's doing it on purpose or not and you're not sure if he's even aware he's like that.

Anyway you'd seen him getting overly friendly (just another word for flirting) with a few other people a couple of times. You didn't let it get to you the first, fourth or even eighth time but you realized that he KNOWS that you're watching him do that.

So you confront him about it, but he claims that it's just his way of gathering information from others. People like to hear good things and some people are more susceptible to flirtatious comments so he resorts to that for his investigation sometimes.

You didn't really completely buy it and even if you did, it's not like this was healthy for your relationship. You just couldn't make yourself comfortable with it.

*You just chalked it up to the two of you being incompatible.

"I'm just not comfortable with that...I don't think I have to say sorry for how I feel but...I'm sorry anyway because I know you're just doing your job... It's probably best if we part ways here..."

"Is there any way to change your mind?" he genuinely asks.

You only give a lopsided smile. "You're a detective, I think you already know the answer to that,"

Yet he didn't stop you from walking away.

Itto

Kept breaking promises because he was too airheaded or too occupied doing something "stupid" with the kids or with his gang.

Pretty soon it just felt like you were an afterthought while everyone else in his life took precedent.

Got a ramen date? Oops, sorry! Got caught up looking for a strong onikabuto in the forest!

Needed his help to move some things? Gah, he was vandalising the bulletin boards, so he's running a bit late!

What's more you didn't actually mind that carefree, airheaded side of him...but it really got to you when he couldn't even seem to make you a priority. Not once.

He only realized that when he came running, late again, and stood face to face with a crying you.

"Hey sorry Y/N, I was just--...Why are you crying?!" is completely dumbfounded and clueless, mostly because when he came late, you had always shrugged it off with a smile on your face, or so he thought. This time you had a completely different reaction.

"I hate you...*hic* I hate you, I hate you, I hate you!"

Shocked beyond belief. It wasn't like you to just blow up like that, but he couldn't do anything except watch you turn and run away from him after that exclamation.

Kaeya

Sometimes you're not sure if he takes you seriously.

Recently, he's not where he says he is, you don't know why he doesn't just tell you where he is.

He said he'd be working late, but then you find out he's at Angel's Share.

He said he'll be at Angel's Share, but then you catch word from Jean that he's out on a late mission.

He said he's escorting a caravan to Mondstadt but he's actually on assignment in Liyue.

It came to the point where you altogether just stopped looking for him cause half of the time you couldn't find him. It's like he's avoiding you or something, which, actually, seems just about right since he's been so busy with "work"

It reached a breaking point when, for a week, you were unable to bring him the lunch you prepared...because he was not where he said he was going to be. It was starting to get annoying.

"I don't understand why you're lying to me! Why do you have to tell me you'll be at Angel's Share this afternoon when you're not? Do you realize you make me walk all the way there only to come all the way back with nothing achieved?"

"I'm sorry snowflake, that wasn't my intention," though he still chuckles despite knowing full well that you were about to turn away.

"You know what, let me know when you're ready to stop making jokes. Until then, don't bother contacting me,"

He just didn't expect you to actually walk away from him.

Kaveh

Entertains everyone and anyone. Naturally kind at heart, will stop for anyone in trouble...even that flirtatious man/woman who is clearly just pining for his attention.

No he doesn't quite realize this.

The same person had asked for his help at least 4 times now and all 4 times he had been happy to offer a helping hand.

The last straw was when he was invited into the stranger's house, they had apparently needed someone to help them move and re-arrange furniture and he did, working till almost dinner time.

You'd caught him right by the person's door, because Kaveh was actually honest and told you he'd be helping them today, but the person was clearly eyeing Kaveh rather flirtatiously.

"Come again next time," you heard the person say rather happily. Kaveh only replies with "If I have nothing else to do, I suppose,"

"Kaveh, they're coming onto you and you keep letting it happen!"

"I'm not certain what you're talking about...They just needed some help around their house, nothing suspicious happened at all. Even if there was, I won't let anything happen between me and a stranger!"

"Then STOP helping them!"

"There isn't anything wrong with lending a hand...It was a quick move of things, that's all,"

"How would YOU feel if I just went into someone's house and kept helping them "move" things?"

"...I would think that's nice of you,"

You actually threw your hands up. "Oh, forget it! You know what, for someone who LOVES helping others, you're not doing such a great job of helping ME," then walked away and never came back. "Good riddance,"

Kazuha

He's a wandering samurai. You knew what you were getting into but you didn't expect dating him to be so hard.

He was gone for weeks on end, and you were not getting on that boat with him. In essence the two of you were just not ready to follow each other to the end's of the Earth, and that was fair. The two of you were young.

Kazuha kind of saw it coming, whenever he visited you, you seemed less spirited and he had an inkling as to why. The time apart was just too much for you.

It was a rather clean break actually. A real mutual breakup that the two of you agreed on.

"...You could say it's just not the right time for us," you even managed to laugh under your breath and he did the same, though it was barely audible.

"...Mm. There are matters that you need to attend to here...and there are things that I need to do out there," he slowly stood up from his sitting position next to you and still gazed at you rather lovingly. "...Perhaps, in another world, you and I are bound together,"

You gazed back forlornly, "...Just not in this one, it looks like,"

Lyney

because he will always choose his siblings over you. Always.

Though that's not a bad thing because you also think that family is important...somewhere along the way you realized that family is the ONLY thing he had and saw.

Example: Lynette and you had gotten ill at the same time one winter morning. Perhaps it was the cold that was passing around Fontaine. Lyney had been so worried about Lynette, that he seemed to have forgotten about you for the next few days. In fact, Lyney didn't even realize that you caught the cold too. You had only heard from Freminet, who you happened to cross paths with, that Lynette was also ill.

You thought that incident was the end of it, but really it seemed that whenever Lyney wanted to hang out with you, Lynette had to be there too. You tried to understand...after all there's still that mystery of disappearing women in Fontaine.

The breakup was induced when Lyney completely forgot about your birthday, because Freminet's was around the same time as yours. You helped Lyney prepare everything for Freminet, and said nothing about your own.

You realized that there was nothing wrong with choosing family over everything else...but the problem here was that Lyney didn't even have space for you in the first place.

So you left without saying anything. You figured he'd get over it quick. You had even gone so far as to move away from the main city of Fontaine and out into another island, because what would you say if he found you? That you were jealous of his siblings? You weren't going to ruin a family like that and it wasn't right to make him choose...so you just left without a word.

Neuvillette

Had a whole brainrot for this man:

Part 1

Part 2

Scaramouche

surprisingly it's not his anger issues.

It's the way he wouldn't acknowledge your relationship. You wonder how you even got into one with him.

There's no public show of affection, but even behind closed doors it rarely happened.

You knew that he was going to be like that, and so you didn't mind it all that much.

It was getting a bit much though when, out in public, he would walk further in front of you and refused to walk next to you. When he pretended like he didn't even know you. When he didn't stop to help you even when another man had shown interest in you, bordering on uncomfortable.

The more time passed the more you simply felt unloved...but for some reason you still blamed yourself.

"...I...don't know. Maybe you find me undesirable, or just...unappealing. Maybe you're embarrassed of me or...or..." maybe you just didn't care in the first place, you thought to yourself.

There was a long silence. Of you turning your gaze away, of him still piercing into yours. And then...

"Tsk...don't waste my time...Leave if you want to leave, door's open,"

Tartaglia

This one is simple. It's his obsession for fighting plus his complete disregard for himself. It's a constant heart attack for you. At some point the anxiety is just too much for you to handle.

Imagine living every day just wondering if he's safe at the same time knowing that he just loves to look for trouble.

The foul legacy that you know of, he uses it with disregard as well, despite knowing that it wasn't good for him.

And there are even days where you know he was heavily wounded but didn't go to you, in an attempt to shield you from worry.

It's a constant battle trying to stay sane and unworried, until one day it all just becomes too much.

"...Nothing I say will change anything, Tartaglia. This is who you are...This is who you need to be..." you whisper while bandaging his knuckles. He lets out a short hum.

It was silent all up until you finished with his hand, you squeeze it gently. "...I love you but...I can't keep doing this to myself, I'm tired...more so than I have ever been before,"

He lets your hand slip away from his knuckles, and that was the last he saw of you.

Thoma

This one is also simple. He was always taking care of others and running errands for others that he sometimes just couldn't catch a break.

Just a classic case of not enough time for you since he had a job to do for the Kamisato Clan.

He knows it, and feels awful about it. So he's the one who makes the move.

"It hurts that I can't give you what you deserve, Y/N. This isn't it... You deserve more than this but I can't give you that and I'm sorry. Please look for the love that you deserve,"

Tighnari

Remembers everything. Can be critical of things you've done, specially if he thinks there's a better way to do it.

Simply said you just feel stupid in front of him sometimes.

He doesn't mean to, but he sometimes forgets to appreciate or give praise to the things that you do well and even if he does, it tends to be short lived compared to his constructive criticisms.

Pretty soon you felt like he only looks at the bad things you do, and never the good. Though he was really only trying to teach and guide you as an equal.

He in fact feels that you are one of the few people who can keep up educational conversations with him.

The problem is he kind of forgets that you're his lover, and that you would enjoy his praise and affection from time to time.

"Do you... Do you ever have anything nice to say other than 'good work' or 'great observation'?" the words were out of your mouth before you could hold yourself back. Sometimes it was tiring to feel like you weren't good enough.

There's a flash of surprise that crosses Tighnari's expression for a split second, before he recovers. "...Had I not been praising your work enough lately? My apologies... It has a lot of merits, I just thought that you wanted my opinion on how to make it better,"

You opened your mouth to say something, but closed it again right after to ponder on his words. Somehow even that had managed to make you feel embarrassed. It was here you knew that the problem also lied within yourself.

"...Sorry, Tighnari...I think I'll need some time alone,"

He obliges quickly and asks. "That's reasonable. When would you like me to come back?"

"...Let me rephrase that... I need some time away. From us."

Xiao

Unfortunately there's a lot of things wrong here... his lack of affection. His aloof personality. His dedication to his yaksha duties. Despite that he does actually try to be gentlemanly or respectful of you.

The worst of it is that he didn't know how to be in a relationship, in other words he just wasn't ready for one, or perhaps he would never be ready for one.

He didn't understand that humans craved companionship and sometimes touch. He didn't understand that meant having to favour you over others, sometimes even putting you first over his yaksha duties.

Worst of it all was when he shut himself off from you, sometimes for days on end, when his karmic debt was too high. He only really did it to protect you, but never realized how isolated that made you feel.

When you confronted him about it, he felt attacked. Hiding away was the only way he knew how to cope...why couldn't you understand that?

"Let me help you, Xiao,"

"I don't need your help!" his tone would make you wince and just like that he disappears into a billow of smoke.

You never returned to Wangshu Inn after that. If he couldn't let you in, there was no use trying to knock on his heart. Xiao being Xiao, never sought you ought again either.

Zhongli

He had experienced so many things and you had listened to many a tales from him.

This is what caused you to realize that you hadn't even experienced life at all, and yet here you were willing to tie yourself down to him.

It just didn't feel like it added up. Here he was with all this knowledge of the world and here you were who had never even stepped outside of Liyue. By no means were you stupid, but you felt that you could be better not only for him, but for yourself if you learned more.

There was just such a huge gap in life experiences, and though you never expected to get to his level (he was a God who had lived for a long time, you would never catch up to him) you at least wanted to see what was out there with your own eyes instead of through his stories.

He understood that wholeheartedly, and had no qualms in letting you go.

"You will always have a place with me, Y/N. No amount of lifetimes will change that,"

I’ve published The Ruthless Prince (Reader x Scaramouche) on paperback. Click here.

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Disclaimer: Relationships will always have some sort of problem along the way, maybe big, maybe small but I just want to reiterate that breaking up is not always the solution. Communicating is very important. So to those of you who like taking fanfiction too seriously, let it be known that this is just a work of fiction. I don't actually suggest breaking up with someone as soon as there is the slight indication of a problem (Just saw someone commenting on a similar themed post for Haikyuu that this wouldn't happen in the real world if both parties were mature... I mean, sure, but, idk, you must be fun in parties... it's called fiction for a reason...)

[strangestcase]

tomblr discourse in the monster high universe must be something else.

0 notes

💝​ lalalala Follow

What would I do without cherry smoothies... probably die again 💔​

🟥​ b3lfrypr3pz-deactivated09182022

Of freaking course the frilly daywalker is a vegan 😒​ bet you do witchcraft too you dirty hippie

💝​ lalalala Follow

🝢🜊🝣🝗🜚🝰

🟥​ b3lfrypr3pz-deactivated09182022

WTF is that lol

🟥​ b3lfrypr3pz-deactivated09182022

i t burns. wh at did you do to me .

💝​ lalalala Follow

^-^

17k notes

🧠​ msdeadfast Follow

Ok but Dead Fast: Night of the Living (2002) has no business being considered the worst Dead Fast movie when the MCU (Murder Cinematic Universe) not only retconned his origin story to make him a virus zombie rather than a curse zombie (which throws off his entire arc about being something more than his deeds!) AND made him be allied with B.L.I.G.H.T. of all organizations because Like say what you will about NOTL and the forced heterosexual romantic plot but at least 1) it gets what makes Dead Fast a hero and 2) GIVES HIS LOVE INTEREST A PERSONALITY AND SOMETHING TO DO

🕷️ 8legscomix Follow

Literally

Also they made the villain Dr. Igorable's motivations so laughable like..... so his wife got turned into a zombie and he wants to cure her? Ok? Did she ask for it? She doesn't even have any groaning lines. Im not even a zombie but that was offensive as hell. Like in the original comics he wants to straight up undo all forms of zombism forever

🧠​ msdeadfast Follow

NO FR LIKE....... so suddenly the eugenics obsessed human is tragic because being a zombie must be such a tragedy you guyyyysssss -_- and wanting to get rid of an entire monster type is ok. I swear that movie has turned monster attitudes towards zombies back into the 80s

⚠️ mentalhealth-hazard Follow

I am not sure if I'm overstepping here but, furthermore, the addition of Pendulum to the movie was unnecesary. Stereotyping shapeshifters as untrustworthy and traitorous is something of a past era. Either leave the character behind, or change it entirely.

🧠​ msdeadfast Follow

Jackson I love you and I love your takes. but you type like a Victorian in his deathbed ;-;

⚠️ mentalhealth-hazard Follow

The MCU is so dreadful, it's irrevocably turned me into one.

#It has also substracted years off my lives.

23 notes

🌊​ lacriatura Follow

🦈​🦐​🐠🪸​​🐡​🐟​

^ aquarium!

#lagoona's originals #ocean #sealife #ah-! so refreshing <- aesth tag

26k notes

🔥 666firepit666 Follow

Not to vague anyone but some of you have to shut the freak up about the ocean. You don't see me making little dioramas of the Malebolge because I'm not a little cringelet like you lmao

1 note

🌊​ lacriatura Follow

If you don't freaking love the ocean don't follow the ocean tag. Yes that goes for @666firepit666, square up and fight me if you're so brave Heath!!!!

#lagoona's originals #personal #more skulls for my skull collection!!!

10 notes

🌙​ wolf-in-chic-clothing Follow

Day 1 no toxic doomed yuri

🌙​ wolf-in-chic-clothing Follow

WRONG SIDEBLOG

#stop reblogging this

80k notes

🔩​ stitchez Follow

Got a new arm! Can't wait to try it out!

🐯 ninelives Follow

try it out how 🤨​

🔩​ stitchez Follow

Building a wretched creature out of corpses, of course!

🔩​ stitchez Follow

OH that was a double entendre! You should be ashamed of yourself!

🔩​ stitchez Follow

I would never use my arms for violent purposes!

54 notes

🔥 666firepit666 Follow

Lagoona dragged me into the pool and now my hair is out 😡​

🌙​ wolf-in-chic-clothing Follow

Skull issue.

🧠​ msdeadfast Follow

skull issue

👻​ ghostlygossip01 Follow

Skull issue. Take the L

💝​ lalalala Follow

Skull issue ^-^

🐯 ninelives Follow

skull issue lmao

🔩​ stitchez Follow

Skull issue! I dont know what that means but I'm sure it relates to your experience!

🎸​ innerdemon Follow

SKULL ISSUEEEEEEEEE !!!!!!!

🔥 666firepit666 Follow

Your own cousin 🥲​

🎸​ innerdemon Follow

I AM NOT RELATED TO ANY BALD PEOPLE

105 notes

💎​ scarab-g1rl Follow

Alright, who stole my sinister amulet?

[theresattrpgforthat]

I’m probably gonna sound very disjointed. But I have an idea for a superhero campaign where all the P.Cs are kids cause all adults have disappeared.

I thought MASKS would be a good system for this but my friend informed me that in order for MASKS to work you kinda need mentor characters.

So in your opinion, what would be a good, easy to learn superhero based system to run this game.

THEME: Superheros, Kids - Only

Henshin, by Cave of Monsters Games.

Henshin A Sentai RPG is a storytelling tabletop game about young heroes with transformative powers who battle both monsters and personal problems. It borrows from a Japanese superhero culture of color-coded masked teams, giant robots, and over-the-top special effects. Anyone can tell fun, collaborative stories in Henshin!, regardless of familiarity with the tropes, and the game showcases a diversity of settings and characters for every player.

This book includes instructions and actual play examples for everything needed to start playing Henshin! right away. Also included are the eleven Color playbooks, seven ready-to-play settings, original exclusive art, and references to digital downloads. Resources and information can be found at henshingame.com. Let’s Henshin!

Henshin is inspired by the Tokusatsu genre of superhero media, and reminds me intensely of Power Rangers. Your characters will wrestle with personal obstacles such as dealing with their temper, their failures, and the way they are seen by their peers. The system is inspired by No Dice, No Masters but that doesn’t mean it’s necessarily GM-less, just that it doesn’t use dice. Henshin’s settings are also very flexible, so you should be able to write your own custom setting in which the kids have taken on super-powered relics in order to survive in a world without adults.

Masks: Retconned, by Sam Roberts.

You’re like most teenagers, with one small difference: You’re a superhero. Fight villains, be part of a team, save the day, and maybe, slowly figure out who you are.

Masks: Retconned is a game of teen superhero adventures, designed for 3+ players. Most of the players will take on the role of individual Heroes on a Team. Imagine these as the protagonists of your new comic book series. One player takes on the role of GM, embodying the superheroic setting, supporting characters, and villains.

If you like the basic premise of Masks but you don’t want to deal with the adult entanglements, you might want to take a look at Masks: Retconned. The game is very bare-bones, and only has the basic mechanics - your stats, your emotions, and the graded success scale and what it means for moves. The rest is meant to be designed as you need it. So if you don’t mind doing a little bit of game design before you sit down to play, you might want to check this out!

Powered by Cereal, by bismuth.

Become the Teen With Attitude you always wanted to be Inspired by tokusatsu hero teams and magical girl squads, PbC is a game about building a brightly-coloured Hero team and playing their adventures across a Series, fighting to save the world from evil!

PbC brings all players together to collaborate on crafting a Series, with its own aesthetics for heroes and villains, its own setting, and unique qualities for each hero. Play comprises the Episodes of the Series: both the Heroes' lives, and fights against Boss characters. It uses a relatively straightforward d6 system and encourages the Hero players to think about how their individual actions work towards a team strategy, bolstering allies and keeping momentum!

Characters in PbC are embodiments of different virtues, and these virtues will define your personal strengths, as represented in the Verbs and Adjectives assigned to your character. Relationships are also important in this game, and this is represented by connections that each player will have with side characters, whether that be positive or negative. Overall the game is still very lighthearted, as it’s inspired by Saturday morning cartoons.

When you try to do something in PbC, you roll a number of d6’s, and check to see how many results were unique. The more unique results you have, the more successes! This means that there’s a cap on how successful your character ca be, but I think the fact that any roll is going to have at least one success really communicates the tone of this game. This another game where the setting is build-your-own, and I don’t see any mechanics that require adults to be part of the setting.

Teens With Powers, by Unknown Dungeon.

Teens with Powers is a one-page roleplaying game about extraordinary young people, inspired by TV shows like Teen Titans and Avatar the Last Airbender, and shonen manga.  As a group, the players and GM come up with the setting, themes, and age-range of the characters. Then each player creates a character with a singular power that they can use to help solve problems and fight evil, while also traversing the trials of being young adults.

Teens with Powers uses a dice-pool system to resolve risky actions, and a back-and-forth combat system to allow of maximum expression and excitement. Also included is a back-page with GM advice and rules.

Teens with Power is a stripped-down Forged in the Dark game. There isn’t much of a setting involved in the first place, so you should be able to build your own setting to fit your preferences. The downside is that there isn’t much guidance or inspiration for powers, so it might be worth it to check out something like Supertables to help you come up with your powers.

This ruleset has a mechanic called Limit, which tracks how close your character is coming to breaking down - push too far, and you lose control of your powers, likely causing damage and hurting something or someone you care about. This might be also good for a high-tension game where the disappearance of adults is the cause of a lot of stress and fear for your characters.

Super City, by David Garrett.

One in every one hundred children in Super City is born with super powers. You are one of those children. Together with your classmates at Super City Elementary, you save helpless citizens, rescue lost pets, and eat delicious ice cream.

Utilizing the ultralight VRBS system, Super City is easy enough for a six year-old to master, but also provides the structure for anyone to generate a superhero story of their own.

Super City was designed to be able to run for small kids, so the rule-set is definitely very light. Your powers will be represented as verbs, and you’ll gain better control over your powers as you progress. The game is organized over a series of scenes, which will present you with a number of problems that you’ll have to solve. You also have a collective pool of Energy, which is meant to track how close your characters are to running out of steam. The goal is to get through the mission without running out of Energy, which depletes when you fail a roll.

This is a game without a setting or history, which means you can backfill whatever lore makes sense for your characters.

Cosmic Ray Kids, by Hedgemaze Press.

Cosmic Ray Kids is a single-page (front and back) atomic-age adventure roleplaying game for all ages. Play as superpowered youngsters who fight the forces of evil with heroics and heart!

Cosmic Ray Kids uses a push-your-luck style of gameplay, that looks very much like the PUSH system by Cezar Capacle. Rolling a 6 is the best possible result. If you roll a 4 or lower, you can choose to roll again - but roll higher than a 7 and you’ve gone too far!

This game also has a Boost resource that is communal, and can be spent to improve a roll up to a certain point. This gives the players an option in case there is something that they can’t risk a re-roll for but still need a success, and also encourages the group to work together to figure out how to solve problems. If you want a game that has a retro-cartoon feel that encourages the characters to work together, Cosmic Ray Kids might be worth checking out!

A Special Extra:

It’s not a superhero game, but Children of the Fall is a GM-less game that takes place in an apocalypse that has turned adults into bloodthirsty monsters. It’s very gritty and dark, but an interesting premise.

[archiveikemen]

'Villain Wants To Bother The Little Robin' Story Event: Chapter 2

Jude Jazza & Ellis Twilight Route

This is a fan-made translation solely for entertainment purposes with no guaranteed perfection. I do not own any of the original content. Please support CYBIRD by buying their stories and playing their games. Reblogs appreciated.

❥･• Warnings and FAQ

Jude • Ellis: —!

(It’s coming this way!?)

The parrot flew towards the crown, attempting to grab it with its sharp talons.

(The veil will come off if the crown is taken — I have to stop it!)

I held the crown to my head and bent down.

When the parrot’s feet came closer—

My view was obstructed by a black coat.

(Huh…)

It didn't take me long to realise that it was Jude’s back in front of me.

I heard the sound of rustling feathers before the room fell silent.

(What on earth is going on…?)

Jude: …

In Jude’s hands was the parrot that had fallen limp, like it was asleep.

(Oh… Jude put it to sleep.)

Jude’s curse ability to make people fall asleep also worked on animals.

Abel: I am terribly sorry, Your Majesty! Is everything alright!?

Jude: Ellis.

Ellis: Got it.

Ellis leapt at the panicking ambassador and pinned him down, swiftly restraining him.

(— His physical ability never fails to amaze me, no matter how many times I see it.)

(The ambassador didn’t even notice when Ellis got behind him.)

Abel: L- Let go of me…!

Ellis: … Sorry, I can’t allow you to leave.

Ellis: I’ll listen to your side of the story… so stay still.

Ellis remained calm, as if he were guessing the menu for tomorrow’s breakfast.

The ministers present were astonished by his nonchalant attitude.

Jude: American Ambassador Abel.

Jude: Should your act of disturbance be determined to have been premeditated, you shall not be allowed to depart from this palace alive.

I couldn't help but feel surprised when I heard Jude speak in perfectly fluent Queen’s english.*

*And Niki does not know how to write in Queen’s english. Niki is not English, sadly.

(Just now, Jude…?)

I finally understood what Ellis meant when he said that Jude was capable of proper behaviour when in public.

Despite maintaining the air of danger surrounding him, his language and demeanour were refined.

Abel: That bird is usually very tame!

Abel: Although it gets excited when it smells a certain flower, I am certain that’s not the case this time!

Abel desperately tried to explain himself to Jude and I.

Ellis: The smell of flowers? … Are you talking about a sweet smell, like coconut?

Abel: Huh? That’s right… but why do you ask?

Ellis: … Nothing.

Abel: Whatever it is, I’m telling you the truth! Please believe me!

Jude: — If ever it is discovered that you may not be innocent, be prepared to send word to your home country, for we shall take action and execute your punishment immediately.

Abel: … I- I understand.

In response to the cold and stern warning, Abel nodded with a sincere look.

(That facial expression… and the way he showed genuine concern towards Her Majesty, they don’t seem to be just an act.)

(I wonder if someone like him is really plotting an assassination attempt…)

— The audience ended shortly afterwards, and it was time to move to the banquet.

Abel remained cheerful and unbothered throughout, further increasing my doubts.

However, when I was about to take my leave, a minister wearing glasses approached me and whispered into my ear.

Bespectacled Minister: Please be careful, Your Majesty.

Kate: …?

Bespectacled Minister: The better someone looks on the outside, the harder it is to tell what is truly on their mind.

(... I- Is that so?)

I inwardly cocked my head in puzzlement, and nodded in silence.

Jude • Ellis: …

…

The dinner table was lined with luxurious dishes.

While pouring wine, the ambassador conversed with the ministers at the table, discussing politics and trade.

(Thanks to the little bit of knowledge I tried to equip myself with beforehand, I can vaguely understand their conversations.)

(Because I have that knowledge, I feel less nervous to be sitting here… it turns out that my preparations were important after all.)

Jude was standing behind me like a bodyguard, while Ellis stood at the opposite end of the table and kept an eye on the whole room.

After the main course of the dinner, the alcohol started to kick in.

Abel: Speaking of which, does Your Majesty always keep the veil on while dining?

Kate: …!

My heart nearly popped out of my chest when Abel spoke directly to me all of a sudden.

(Victor taught me how to dine with the veil on.)

(That’s why I thought that Her Majesty regularly wears a veil… is that correct?)

I hesitated, and gave a late nod in response.

Jude: Her Majesty seldom dines in the presence of others.

Jude: Her Majesty has a bad throat today, she is therefore unable to speak.

Abel: Oh, I see! It is my greatest pleasure to be given the honour of being here during this very special occasion.

(As much as I’m grateful to him for helping me cover up, I’m worried about the consequences of being this indebted to Jude…)

I turned to look behind me, and my eyes met his amethyst eyes.

Jude: … 😏

His thin lips lifted into a smirk.

Abel: But why do you wear a veil? Is there something you want to hide?

Abel: Otherwise, wouldn't it be much easier to dine without the veil?

Jude: …

(Has this man figured out who I am…?)

My heart hammered uncomfortably against my chest at his extremely direct questioning — just then,

Ellis: Ah.

SMASH! The sound of pottery shattering echoed through the room.

Ellis: … I’m sorry. I leaned on it a little, and then it broke.

(Ellis…!?)

Ellis tone was no different from his usual, and he simply stared down at the large broken vase.

Plump Minister: T- That vase is highly cherished by Her Majesty…!

Ellis: I see. How much does it cost? :)

Plump Minister: A… a hundred pounds is no large sum… no, its monetary value is not what's important here…!

Ellis: Oh, really… sorry, Your Majesty.

(S-Sorry…?)

Our eyes met, and Ellis gave me a reassuring smile.

I nodded, while at the same time apologising profusely to Her Majesty in my heart.

(I think… I get why Jude said that Ellis is crazy.)

(Ellis is more than willing to use any means necessary to fulfil his purpose.)

Abel: Hahaha! Maintaining your composure although your precious vase was broken, you truly are magnanimous, Your Majesty!

Abel: Despite not being able to see your face behind the veil, I am still able to see Your Majesty's personality through your actions!

I wasn't very certain about it, but I felt that I had given the ambassador a good impression of myself as Her Majesty.

(If I rely entirely on the two of them, the amount of debt and damaged property will be too much to bear…)

(I must be capable of handling the situation well myself too—!)

My determination was useless.

A huge commotion was caused when a cat ran into the dining hall, and the tablecloth caught fire.

The way in which the dinner came to an end was far from peaceful.

…

(I’m exhausted…)

Kate: The plan is for me to sleep in Her Majesty’s bed chamber tonight… right?

Ellis: Mm-hmm, that’s the plan… are you worried? Do you need me to sleep with you?

Kate: T-Thank you for the offer, but that won't be necessary. I can sleep alone.

Jude: Lock the room door. Only people from the palace can open it from the outside.

Kate: Really? That’s a relief.

Jude • Ellis: …

Kate: I wonder if there really is an assassination plot…

Kate: Judging by his character, I find it hard to believe that Abel would plan such a thing.

Jude: … If criminals were that easy to read, then every single one of them in the world would've been imprisoned by now.

Jude: Wracking that tiny brain of yours is useless, just go to bed.

I shot Jude an annoyed glare when he knocked me on the head, but he already turned his back to me and walked away.

Ellis: Jude is right, you don't have to worry too much.

Ellis: … Good night, Kate. See you tomorrow.

Kate: Mm… thank you, Ellis. Good night.

(There's really no point in overthinking, I guess?)

(... I should go to sleep early, in preparation for tomorrow.)

After Kate went to bed…

Jude: Any changes?

Ellis: Two people entered and left the room. One of them was seen with the person who approached the crown.

Jude: Tch… we’re definitely going to work till late into the night. Damn it.

Ellis: Oh. I’m relieved that you’re coming with me.

Jude: Cut the crap and get moving.

Ellis: … I hope Kate is asleep.

Ellis: She’ll surely be frightened if she’s awake.

Jude: It'd be better to scare her a little. That way, she won't so recklessly accept such awful missions ever again.

Jude: She’s one troublesome princess.

[villainsandvictimsalliance]

>They are really following the “saving child shigaraki” path 💀

No? Well, yes, but Deku seeing what happened to Tenko and talking to Tenko was always going to happen, it doesn't mean that only child Tenko gets saved lol. Tenko is Shigaraki's origin, his core, his genuine ideas, his honne (true feelings and desires). Of course Deku has to understand and save Tenko to save adult!Tenko, lol. Nobody seemed to complain when child!Ochako was talking to child!Himiko and etc., so what's up with some people's attitude now? 😭

I think the fandom is a bit paranoid because they really fear some theories.

I sometimes entertain those theories just to fuck around and create what ifs. It's a mere childplay. "Oh what if the school burned today and we all graduated earlier" type of mindset. The odds of it happening are non-existent, but c'mon. Unless you plan to burn the school yourself or you know someone will try, the odds are almost zero.

"but somewhere in the world a school burned—"

Sure, some mangas decide to end things the worst way possible only to cause shock, to fuck with fans, for money, sometimes simply because they don't understand their own stories. Even the big mangas is subjected to that. The author can go bananas for whatever reason and give you a terrible ending.

From my perspective, Horikoshi has rarely lost sight of the story he wants to tell. If he opens a plotline, he takes care to close it later. We got our traitor, we got the resolution with the Todorokis, we got AFO, class 1B, the villain comebacks...

Even when there were moments I knew Horikoshi went a little on the tangent (like Stars and Stripes) he was quick to return to the main issue. In bnha, to get an answer for your question you only have to wait for the manga to explain it— or in some cases, check the spin-off. If the answer is not in bnha itself, it normally is in the Vigilantes manga.

When someone asks me "Hey Shan, do you think that is possible?" the correct answer is always yes, because as long as the story is not over anything can happen. Objectively speaking, yes, it is as possible as anything else. As long as you're alive a lightning strike can hit you. A shark can bite you. An alien can come for you. The odds are there.

Now, is it probable?

No, not much.

Turning Tomura into a child to erase his crimes and resolve Deku's role within the plot is not only the lazy route, but also a disservice to the story. People don't resurrect out of nowhere in bnha. Limbs don't grow again. This is a story where the consequences are permanent. Even saving Mirio had a cost. There are only a few characters that can magically heal and their participation is soo little, it's almost as if they weren't there.

Each story has rules. You don't care about the real life rules or your own law code or whatever; you care about the inner rules of that story.

So far, Horikoshi has taken care of not breaking the inner rules of bnha. Why would he do so now?

Another bnha trait is that it doesn't stay stagnant on a plotline that is interesting yet irrelevant to the main story. It also doesn't hurry the story if it needs to go down a certain path. It will happen on its own time, after the events that need to happen had happened too. Example: saving Tomura has been a whole process. If Horikoshi were to turn Tomura into a child, why would he show all that he has shown us?

That's 'cause Horikoshi is explaining Deku's choice of saving Tomura. I know the trend of separating Tomura from Tenko, but it's absurd. They are one and the same. The kid is the adult and vice versa. You save the kid version, you save the adult one too. In order to save the adult one, you need to save the kid first. And if you went all the way to save that person, why would you want to erase all of it and turn them into a child again?

Isn't the story about how Deku giving little Tenko a chance? Isn't the story about Deku telling others they can do the impossible? Didn't Nighteye say that Deku could change the future and now we see him also changing the past, if only to allow the present to be a little more bearable? Livable?

I'll say this here: the theory that dictates that the heroes will turn the villains into kids to save them and the villains will stay like that has absolutely no foundation within the story.

If it happens, it's bad writing.

Horikoshi uses the kid images as symbolism. It is meant to represent the core of a person. It's the part of them that would never change, the part of them that dictates their dreams and goals, what they hate and love, who they are. It's the most basic of their forms, their essence, their soul if you want to speak on those terms.

Heroes are meant to connect with those parts of a human in order to save them, because the job of a hero is not only saving the body, but the human as a whole. To preserve hope, to heal past wounds and give people a reason to smile. To help people laugh as a kid again, to bring back their wonder and their innocence, to fight the apathy and the cynical part of themselves.

Bnha is fantasy. People have powers. The dead can communicate with the living. Of course that the heroes can talk with the childhood versions of the people to heal their past traumas.

Easy as that.

I can't say for sure if the villains will live or die. I only have my opinion (they'll live), but I am not the author. Horikoshi can have an epiphany tomorrow and kill everyone in the story with a meteor. Idk.

I can only say that Horikoshi has presented a cohesive and coherent writing, one that follows the lines it dictates to their natural conclusion. If things stay like that, there's no need to fear none of the crazy theories circulating the fandom. At the end of the day that's all they are, theories.

[saurons-pr-department]

Hey anon, I have screen-shotted your ask because I am going to try stay out of tag/term searches here, which in an of itself probably answers your question XD

So! Thoughts as they occur to me!

I did give the whole first season a watch. Partly out of giving it a chance, partly out of morbid curiosity, like when you can't look away from something awful happening in front of you even when you really want to close your eyes.

What I think is interesting actually, is that my main issues with the show have somewhat changed since I initially watched it. While watching it my only thoughts were "wrong, wrong, that never happened, wrong, wrong, wrong, look how they massacred my boy (gn), wrong!" And while those thoughts themselves haven't changed my main issues have changed to focus more on how it's such a badly structured story (the timelines feel both stretched and compressed in a way that doesn't add anything to the stories being told) and how I don't think it knows yet what it wants to be (it's Tolkien, but it's its own thing, but it's a 'prequel' in the very modern franchise sense of the word to the PJ films, but it's also not those films).

For the structure, I personally wouldn't have put two major stories into one show. I don't think there's the time for that. Both the Akallabêth and the creation of the rings exist as very sketchy narratives that cover extremely long timeframes. Original content was always going to be needed to fill the gaps. But by putting both tales into the one show, I feel they've doubled the amount of gap filling needed while halving the amount of screentime they have for it because there's now twice the amount of canon to cover (tbf, they don't seem to want canon so maybe that's not an issue for them...). To force them to run simultanously and then add original content that isn't just filling the gaps but appears to be completely original, you end up with a story that is both too empty and too full. Nothing is getting the time it deserves. Big moments feel undeserved or rushed. It takes the wind out of its own sails. (and that's without mentioning that these stories running alongside eachother just throws timelines and motivations out of whack, but I refuse to get us all bogged down in the minutiae of my grumblings!)

It's a pity, the story of the fall of Númenor and the creation of the rings have such good parallels, but that would require them to focus on things like religion and politics etc and they seem to be more interested in mystery boxes, so... oh well?

In regards the show's identity crisis, to be fair to them, that's really not that unusual in first seasons. They're not special XD Let's face it, how often have we all been recommended something that came with the caveat 'you need to get through the first few episodes/first season before it gets good and finds its feet'? Especially fantasy and sci-fi that has to establish facts about the world as well as characters in a way a drama set in the real world doesn't. I wouldn't be shocked to learn that the show hits its stride a bit better in later seasons.

However, my current biggest gripe with the show is what I'm seeing in the writers' attitude to storytelling. I can't stand it. The actor for a certain someone whose name begins with H didn't know who his character really was until after shooting the first few episodes. There's the back and forth of is it H or the guy who fell from the sky who'll turn out to be the villain. Sky man even gets some stalkers whose only purpose was to add confusion to this situation and then be immediately killed, no further context. One of the writers (I don't remember who) when asked about deviations from canon said something to the effect of 'we don't want book fans to be episodes ahead'. It's the modern Marvel school of story-telling. It's mystery boxes and twists and fears of spoilers and people knowing what's coming next. That's not how you tell a story. You need more substance than that. Big moments are only interesting if you've earned them with a well crafted lead up. And what's the point of a big moment if it adds nothing to the story in the first place. They had one of fantasy's most iconic villains, why was there a secret? The Second Age is where he's cracking out his most rediculous long cons. The man's twirling his mustache while kicking up his feet and writing 'evil' into every date in his diary for at least a millenium, what does a secret identity add to this story really?

Don't worry, I will move swiftly on from the topic of my boy who is not really my boy before we get in too deep... No one needs to hear that... But do you get my point? Big reveal. No substance.

To add a note of positivity, I actually really like Sky man's music. It's genuinely a really nice piece of music. I also liked that they wanted to add one of the 'original' orcs, that's a cool concept!

Oh! And whoever okayed those American 'stage-Irish' accents needs to be fired into the sun :D

[shabriri]

This is just a draft of sorts of a little fantasy tale. I love DnD, The Witcher, Tolkien, Elder Scrolls and much more, so this is like a tidbit of my own little world. It feels more complete in my head and much more real, so this is still a work in progress until I’m able to truly find the words I feel can build my world to it’s fullest. So for now it’s really just what I could manage to write down in my precious free time.

Down the forested road came a large wagon, pulled by two horses. A very unique wagon it was, made of a lovely dark wood, decorated on the roof with a lavender cloth and along the sides with golden engravings. The Starlight Express was making its way to its newest destination. Outside stepped the nomadic merchant, Astelia D’Norr, Star of The North. A tall, red headed woman with a strong build and emerald green eyes. The nomad took a glance around the area, as she was seeking new riches in the Kingdom of Vulkov. Rather recently, a nobleman had passed away within the Kingdom and had been buried in a family tomb nearby. This greatly benefited Astelia as her primary source of income was none other than grave robbing. The only problem with this tomb is that it has been deemed “unrobbable”.

For the past month that the Count has been buried there have already been more then 10 failed attempts to rob the tomb, all those who enter never come out. Rumors claim that the burial site is a maze of sorts, impossible to solve. That was until now. Astelia was filled with the upmost determination to get her hands on the gold that filled those catacombs.

“Shouldn’t be too far from here” she assured herself as she glanced down at her map.

“Wouldn’t be the first time you wandered off path.” Spoke another voice, deeper and with a thick accent.

“That’s funny coming from you” she annoyingly replied with…to her sword. She had stopped in her tracks and unsheathed her sword. The sword itself was rather regal looking, the hilt and guard were black and wore an intricate golden design, the hilt wrapped within a purple fabric of sorts and was capable of being wielded with either one or both hands. The blade itself had a sort of bluish tint to it, made from a rare metal found up north, though none of that would compare to what was actually within the blade.

“You know not of what you speak, youngling” the man defended himself

Astelia scoffed and continued her search. It was a shame that her only company was a cursed sword. Not just any cursed sword, but cursed with the spirit of her own ancestor. The magic blade had been passed down for generations after its original owner and current spectral resident, Ulfrit, was trapped within it. From the sword he can communicate and see the world, the world which he has seen change greatly over each generation with the current one being his least favorite. Mostly due to the attitude of his current wielder.

“Your story has been passed down for ages, Grandpa Ulfrit” Astelia said, though Ulfrit’s title would have a few greats in it. “Ulfrit The Great, The Legendary, The Savior, The Hero, The Undefeated.” She then continued, mockingly, “The Terrible, The Forgotten, The Enslaver, The Villain. You were no savior, no champion. You threw all that away after your conquest of Nurden, an unjust war you waged over what? Women? Jewelry? It was your lust and pride that caused that witch to lay a curse upon you. The Enchantress of Nurden can’t be reasoned with and yet you still knowingly angered her…” Astelia ended her rant, visibly flustered with her ancestor after giving him quite the history lesson.

The sword had no words to rebuke anything she had said. He was left embarrassed and shamed. His descendant was open with her thoughts and would not hesitate to argue with him, as they often did. As the time passed, Astelia had made her way to the Tomb of A’thelon, the fallen members of The House of A’thelon’s new home. A home she was going to rob.

“Tread carefully” The sword warned her

“These hairy fuckers have been around forever. They are sure to be well protected”

This was one of the few times Astelia had agreed with him. The family had a reputation for their rather long lifespans, much longer than most of the Simos people. The House of A’thelon was a royal bloodline, their blood was purer and thus their lives would be long, but not as unnaturally as they had been since the days of Ulfrit.

Upon encroaching on the grand tomb, Astelia noticed a Distinct lack of guards. This was quite the troubling discovery for her.

As her ancestor began to suggest that she turn around, she sheathed the sword to shut him up and pushed forth, very cautiously. Was it due to lack of luck or just by chance that the moment she sheathed her blade she was struck in the back of the head. The blow was enough to disorientate her, but not knock her unconscious.

“Who the fuck-!”

Upon turning around she was greeted by an armored skeleton, wielding a thick wooden stick. The skeleton donned a mail coif and hauberk, visibly one could tell it had seen years of battle. The existence of an undead thrall would suggest the work of necromancy, meaning that the journey just got much more complicated. As she examined the skeleton, the skull instantly gave away that it was not human. It was of Simos origin. The other give away was the bony tail that was flying right towards her, with a dagger being held within it. She instinctively drew her sword and proceeded to parry the dagger, knocking the tail aside and following up with a thrust towards the skull. The simian skeleton had collapsed right then and there, rather weak and likely the spawn of a lower necromancer.

“We’re dealing with a sorcerer of sorts” muttered the sword “Beware it’s witchcraft and tricks, wielders of arcane forces are not to be reckoned with”

Astelia nodded her head and pushed on forward into the tomb, the further down she went the cooler the air got. At some point a thick mist had started forming, seeming originating from a pair of giant metal door where the mist seemed to originate from. Donning the A’thelon family crest which was split in half between the doors. On the crest was a quartered shield displaying a sword, a crown, a tower and a Simo. They had warmongering origins that could be traced to the elder days where kingdoms were not her formed and only warring tribes had wandered.

Stepping forth, Astelia planted her palms against each door and gave a hefty push, parting the two and allowing for the mist to blow out strongly. Covering her face from the force of the foul mist, she was overtaken by the stench, it reeked of rot and decay. As she raised her head, she saw seven figures gathered, all startled by her presence. In the middle of them was the recently deceased Count. The sorcerers prepared to make their stand against such an intrusion…

[womanwithahotdogstand]

carli is an idiot. the media members bending over backwards to accommodate her outdated attitude and falling ass over face to justify it at the expense of players who she vilifies is gonna be my villain origin story.

Someone said in an anon ask to me that she’s going after the young players but really wants to go after Pinoe (because Pinoe got the send off from fans and brands that Carli truly wanted) but the climate isn’t right to do so at the moment but the “take off your sunglasses and stop dancing” comment could NOT have been more pointed at Pinoe specifically. She’s doing exactly what Ashlyn is doing to Ali. She’s trying to ruin the last weeks of Pinoe’s career and send off because she’s mad that Pinoe got a better reception from the fans than her.

[atlasofthestaars]

i love love love this timeline's raiden i want to hold him in my hands like 🤲 and the little moment reader and him have at the end of chapter 4 was so cute oh my word 😭😭😭 "Yes please!" DO YOU HEAR ME CRYING 😭😭😭😭 ++ a question if you dont mind!! which of the characters (either ones you have written already or havent yet) would you say was the hardest to get a grasp on, personality wise? i deeply admire your dedication to writing a series following the story mode!

Same! I've always been a fan of Raiden, but this variation of Raiden has a VERY special place in my heart. I'm glad you enjoyed that part! I wanted to end it on a cute and light note :D

Hopefully within the next few chapters I can continue to provide more of those cute moments!

Oh and for your question, you gave me an opportunity to rant on characters for my FAVORITE series, so I will take this opportunity.

Also! I finally figured out how to put the keep reading link, so hopefully now I can prevent my page from being such a scroll LMAO

I have a lot of different reasons and feelings why the characters I find "difficult" are difficult, so I'll be splitting them into tiers/groups so you can kinda get a grasp on my mindset, tiers are ordered from "easy hard" to "hardest"

Also I'm JUST talking about MK1 characters in this post.

VILLAINS

On the BASE level I think the villains are actually pretty easy to write for. Aside from Shang Tsung and Rain who I am NOT including in this tier, I find that most of the villains are kindaaa one note. General Shao seeks power and seeks to elevate his position (actually, on second thought this isn't the BEST way to describe him, but I feel like I can write dialogue for him no issue), Bi-Han wants power and is kind of an asshole (sorry! but it's a good way to describe how he talks towards others) Quan-Chi, etc. etc. they all kinda fall under the "want one thing and are willing to do anything to get it with varying degrees of assholishness. And then there's Reiko who feels like the slight exception to that rule but his gimmick is General Shao and fighting. So why do I have a tier for them for hard to grasp personalities?

It's trying to figure out how to flesh out these characters without making them too far off from their original characters. It's not TOO hard, but I do think a lot on how to add depth in a believable way.

I'M IN JUST MY HEAD

This tier is like, I understand them, but I feel like I ALWAYS need to double check with their intros to make sure that I am getting them right, and when I do I just find oh. Nevermind I'm right.

Scorpion - I do NOT know why I struggle with Kuai Liang in this timeline, but I do! I just think for some reason I write him weird or don't quite understand how to write him, but every time I double check I'm like, yeah no that works.

Johnny Cage - He confuses me for NO reason at all, and I think it's because of how in every game his attitude is SLIGHTLY different every time in storymode/intros. In MK9 he's full comedic relief. In MKX/11 they tone him down a bit, but in 11 his younger self is more akin to his 9 self. I would say 1 is a good balance of comedy and and seriousness, but I always want to make sure I'm striking that balance.

Kung Lao - I don't know WHY I doubt myself so much on him. He is legitimately my favorite character, and that's probably it. I trust that I know him, but I worry that I might flanderize him despite how much I adore him. I think this is just me putting a lot of pressure on myself to get him so right so I can show you all why I personally love him.

NOT A LOT OF EXPERIENCE

While I've finished the MK1 story and watched a lot of intros, I've not dedicated a lot of time to these characters and looking too much into them.

Tanya - I like her! I just haven't gotten around to looking too much into her. I get the basics of her character, but I don't quite get the nuance of her yet. She also mostly sticks around the princesses in story mode too so her personality doesn't get to shine too much there either.

Havik - I haven't looked too much on him, and it doesn't help that the story mode doesn't do much with him (probably due to the credits scene), so I don't really know much! I know about his whole archanist schtick for the freedom of his people, his self heal, etc. but I don't really know much about him outside of that.

Sindel - I like her as well, it's just that she keeps on changing in every iteration so this has me all jumbled up. I know she's a strong, firm leader who cares about her daughters and isn't afraid to do what she must for her people, but I don't really know why I don't feel confident. I feel like I don't quite understand all of her motivations as deeply as I should to call myself "confident", and I don't have a clear grasp on how she would treat those she isn't too familiar with but cordial with vs those she knows better, and even though that may not seem too important, it is to me since I don't know how to quite write a proper interaction between her and the reader yet.

VILLAINS PART TWO

Here I place the more complex villains.

Shang Tsung - He's sly, sneaky, cunning, etc. But he's a bit more than that I feel. He looks out mostly for himself and tries to gain power by putting others down, and I feel like despite me dabbling in villain characters, I'm a bit afraid that I won't know how to write the nuances that make his character more than just a simple snake and into an iconic character.

Rain - Okay. Lowkey I did NOT care for Rain before until this game. I didn't care for the descendant of Argus schtick before, so having him in this game as an ambitious mage with a character arc that goes from greeding for unlocking more of his power to a man who regrets those he hurts really interested me. I just wish that WHOLE arc was in the story mode and that most of that story wasn't locked behind his story. So the issue with him is that I feel like he never got much time in the story to show how he acts before he was revealed as a character, he was kinda just there. And we don't really get to know how he acts before because I feel like a good chunk of his intros talk about the aftermath of his crimes and how he feels afterwards. So basically, I know how to write him after the tragedy, but not clear on how to flesh his arc out since he was sidelined so much.

COMPLEX TO ME

I just feel like these characters always make me question if I'm writing them right, both in actions and in dialogue

Kenshi - Everytime I think of him his MKX variation pops up instead. I know he's more of a serious character in 1, but I know there's definitely more there. I just feel like I always need to refer to all the material I can for Kenshi because I get SO worried that I'll butcher him badly and I do NOT want that because I think he's a cool character. He's a character I struggle to write for at the moment, and I hope to improve on that.

Reptile - I feel like most times people brush him off as just a "good man" but I feel like there's more to him than that? And I cannot describe him well. I know he's a good guy at heart but that's all I feel like I can describe him as despite watching a good chunk of his intros. I don't know, I feel like I'm just ALSO worried about butchering him.

HARDEST

Smoke.

THIS MAN. Okay, so I feel like he is the one I fear flanderizing the MOST. I feel like I already wrote him kinda off character in the two lines I wrote for him. I feel like a lot of people simply write him off as a golden retriever, which I personally disagree with. BUT, I can see why people misinterpret this. I only get that vibe when he's with Johnny Cage since he seems to really look up and almost idolize the dude due to his acting career. Aside from that, I think he's a more down to earth person who is really respectful. He's a bit more lighthearted and can be an optimist at times, and even has a more playful and I feel like people take this aspect way too far. I don't think it's helped by the fact that he is contrasted by more edgier and serious characters like Bi-Han and Kuai Liang. I could go on and on about Smoke, but yeah. I think I understand him and can put him into words, but I feel like putting all those concepts into paper is just...a struggle for me.

[manderleyfire]

hey, ali! i feel your pain about the tbosas adaptation! i cried so much during the movie but not because i felt emotional, seeing MY book comes alive on screen but because we were robbbbbbbbbbed and shot 😞😞😞😞😞😞 anyways, what's your opinion on the music tho? fav/least fav song? (my is the oldtherebefore and least fav the 0livia r0drigo's one)

hey, lollis!

‘robbed and shot’, exactly. i couldn’t have said it better myself because unfortunately, that’s spot on 🥲

I LOVED THE MUSIC! a dystopian reflection of our reality through intentional use of folk/bluegrass music is something that resonates strongly with me. i mean, they knew how to strike the right chord in the hearts of book readers for sure! *the only other thing i wish was different about the music it's the variety of tempo and rhythm because as much as i LOVED the unified sound of LG's songs, i would prefer each song to have its own individual tune and ~aura)

my absolute favourite adaptation that they did was 'nothing you can take from me' (boot-stompin’ version); i am utterly in awe of the powerful passionate energy that they gave to this song?? also i loveeed the similarity of rhythm and tone between 'nothing you can take from me' and a traditional american folk song 'man of constant sorrow', i kinda feel it was a deliberate parallel which worked just great. (also i’m glad they added maude ivory’s 'keep on the sunny side'!)

my least favourite is perhaps 'the ballad of lucy gray baird'?.. and though i did enjoy rachel’s rendition (she copies a young dolly parton in such a warm-hearted respectful manner!), and the respect for traditional appalachian music, she sang it in a cheerful 'to hell with you!' manner which is less intense and intimate that i remember it from the book to be? to quote tbosas here: 'the haunting melody set the tone, and her words did the rest as she began to sing in a voice husky from smoke and sadness' – the movie version really failed to capture both the haunting tune (their version doesn't really tell the story musically because of a major key) and the lucy gray's vulnerability here for me. in the book she did what carrie fisher told us all to do: 'take your broken heart and turn it into art' while in the movie she isn't even angry at billy taupe?? like his betrayal (and her place in the games) is not a big deal? she's openly rebellious and sassy with out of place 'i need no man' attitude and that simply didn't work for me personally.

it took some time for 'pure as the driven snow' to grow on me (i expected it to be more of a waltz-like, similar to maiah wynne's cover), but i'm coming around to it. yet… i wish it was STAGED differently??? they had to combine certain scenes and songs in the film but it was such a SURREAL idea to meld PATDS with 'sell you for a song' setting? and it took away so much from that moment of love and connection and unconditional acceptance, where lucy gray is finally ready to be emotionally unshielded in front of her lover (maybe for the first time ever)?? it was a PIVOTAL snowbaird moment but they needed to blend two songs together because obviously PATDS can't be love confession in form of a song because it should be taken as an ominous warning instead (duh!). 'bitch you better not turn out to be a bad guy even tho i knew you were a villain all along' :??? and it could've worked in its own angst-y way, if there had been any development in snowbaird love story?? but since movie!they are full on survival the whole time (there's no canonical teetering on the edge of an actual fondness/love and survival instinct), PATDS makes no sense at all. so… i extremely frustrated by the use of PATDS on screen but at the same time i love the sound of the full version on the soundtrack album.

annnd i'm actually IN PAIN because they had the audacity to leave so many songs out?? especially given their ties to the original trilogy?? 'deep in the meadow' aka rue's song???? 'the valley song' aka the one peeta mentioned seeing katniss sing at school when they were children????  the festive 'crawling to you' ('that thing i love with') likely performed at finnick’s wedding?? idk maybe it's a musical nerd who is speaking in me but i wish they could have included more of the book songs at least on the album, if not in the actual movie (even tho i'm still sure, it would've been possible to present the whole complexity of this book AND its poetic side too, if they decided to split the film in two).

[the score album wasn't much to talk about but 'snow lands on top' piece tho… vivid, striking, remarkable]

[beevean]

i really have to lament that the standards for female characters in media are still so abysmal that people are happy to eat up #girlboss'd maria and annette in nocturne

when their character bios dropped these past few days, my mind immediately went to this iconic kate beaton comic panel:

and this was a parody of how mainstream media "solved" sexism by invariably making every female character a badass, take no prisoners Action Girl™ (aka the proto-#girlboss) from over a decade ago

Absolutely incredible :^)

What grinds my gears is that the adaptation is deliberately flattening characters who were distinct in the original games and could have been fleshed out in a proper story.

Annette doesn't do much in RoB, true. Her one significant scene is the one where she threatens to slit her own throat rather than join Dracula. Sure, why not expand on that? An average woman without powers or training, but armed with nothing bur bravery in the face of corruption: she may not be able to strike enemies physically, but she won't fall for their mind games, and she might also be rewritten to be intelligent and tactic-- nope she's a metalbender now!!!! she's also a swordswoman!!!!! and she will be politically motivated!!!!!!

Maria is a plucky 12 yo girl without much experience of the world, but who grows to care about Richter and wants to help her. She doesn't understand, nor care, about Dracula's speech about the evil of mankind, while the adult Richter falters: she is pure innocence. Still, her unique powers give her an edge when it comes to demon slaying, all without losing her upbeat attit-- nope she's a political leader now!!!! she's also a swordswoman!!!!!! and she's always serious!!!!!! and she will be politically motivated!!!!!!!

In the original NFCV, Sypha was the only one spared because her personality admittedly was a little more upbeat and warmer, even though she also fell in the trap of being the One Braincell Of The Group. But Greta and the woman St. Germain simped for picked up the slack for her, as they were both the exact shade of competent, no-nonsense tough lady fighter, complete with "good thing I'm here to run your life now" in the former's case.

And the female villains? Striga was the only original one, being the obvious muscle of the group, but she might as well have been a henchwoman. Carmilla? A self-proclaimed queen whose personality begins and ends at #girlboss, all sexy and seductive and manipulative and with a dash of radfem. Lenore? Not quite as girlbossish, but still meant to be seen as cool and sexy (and fucking how) and a great manipulator. Erszbet? So far she looks like Carmilla 2.0. Drolta is the one we know the least about so far, but it's interesting how she was turned from an old human witch to a young sexy vampire.

You see the pattern here?

Annette and Maria are also the latest examples of characters who have been changed for no good reason in an attempt to "fix" them. NFCV hates normal people, they all have to be heroes and magic users and proficient weapon users. Instead of keeping Annette with her role of "Richter's girlfriend and a normal girl", but giving her a more substantial personality, she was completely reworked to be something that she simply isn't, and that rewriting is being praised as being So Much Better Than The Games. As if her original role is so undefensible that she needs to be reworked from scratch.

It's lazy. There is a sore lack of variety in the female cast of these shows. And it pretends to be "progressive" about it. As if women are only worth being celebrated if they're physically active and have a tough attitude.

Meanwhile, I will forever be impressed by how Ayami Kojima and Kou Sasakura took Rosaly, a literal non-entity in CoD whose only narrative purpose was to be the fridged woman, and gave her enough personality, without straying far from the archetype of the kind normal girl, that I seriously grew attached to her, something I would have never expected at first.

[ofmermaidstories]

ur post about oc fic and reader insert fic made me think about how every time i see a post dragging x reader it's kinda just... thinly veiled misogyny.

like i don't wanna get super deep or whatever but a good chunk of x reader writers (myself included) are just women or people socialized as women that have felt unloved or under appreciated in their lives because of their looks or their personality or their skills in things that women/feminine people are expected to excel in and i think that oc/reader insert stories give women a really important space to make themselves (or a version of themselves) the most desired thing which is something that they often don't experience. it's a space where women can feel comfortable and loved in a world where they're under appreciated and tossed aside because of things out of their control and it drives me up a wall when i see people shitting on these spaces and these works because these are just safe spaces for marginalized people PREDOMINATELY CREATED BY MARGINALIZED PEOPLE!!

n e ways this was a long rant oops..

omg see the thing that gets me about the occassional x reader/oc drag is that—the call is coming from inside the house LMAO. like, okay maybe original characters in fics aren’t a niche thing, but x reader sure the hell is, so you have to like, know internet culture/fandom to be aware of it let alone to start using it like an insult, you know? and i would argue that fanfic tends to be a hobby that attracts marginalised identities as you say, so like, why are we clowning on ourselves? LOL. it’s like a mathlete bullying the horse girl of their class, like, buddy—we’re both losers!!! get over yourself LMAO.

i think my favourite dig at x reader (specifically) that i’ve ever seen is some rando on tiktok saying it was fanfic for people who were popular in public school—i think it’s so telling of how other fans might view oc/reader content? like, “oh that’s just some straight girl shit, they’re not putting any effort into it/they’re stealing our precious ship boys for their pORN/they’re ruining the canon story by inserting themselves into it”. and idk—part of it is just human nature (we are always going to shit on things we don’t like, that is a fact) and part of it might be fandom/internet culture at large at the moment (the purity aspect/policing) but at the end of the day all we can do is tell them to eat dog shit when they sprout up in our spaces and ignore ‘em.

idk! it drives me bonkers though, because it does feel like these spaces/niches do get targeted unfairly for it—if it’s not for the simple crime of writing a love story with your favourite character, then it’s like… being old and doing it! because god forbid you be over the age of 18 and still enjoy engaging with fiction! don’t you have a mortgage to go pay? like—i never see that attitude (within a fandom space) directed at the grown-ass men and women and gender neutral pals who play like, Dungeons and Dragons. No one (within a fandom space!) tells them they’re weird for forty-hour long campaigns where they fight and fall in love and idk, put dragons in some dungeons or something. no—it’s the blatant love stories that get picked on. the ones written by girls (gender neutral).

romance—and falling in love—is one of the most universal feelings/acts in the world. we want to fall in love with everything! in every world! we wanna—fall in love and be loved by superheroes and the villains they fight and the monsters in the dark and the good guys that rush in with swords and the cute barista at the coffee shop down the road. if other fans wanna get hung up on the fact that a tiny fraction of others want to insert themselves in these incredible worlds and experience everything they want to (having powers; being saved. saving someone else—saving yourself) then that’s their problem lmaoooo. im sorry you can’t have fun and create whimsy for yourself by drawing an oc who wins the sports festival and saves bakugou from being kidnapped—but im built different. 😌 and im gonna have fun while im here.

[jadethest0ne]

You mentioned not liking how Mikey and Leo’s arcs are usually handled and trying to make something more suited in your once human au. I was curious what you do/don’t like about the all the brother’s arcs in general.

Oooh that is a good question actually... I think the simplest way to explain my issue with any of the character arcs in the TMNT franchise as a whole is that - I like my TMNT media to give equal narrative weight and screentime to all turtles, and my issues with Mikey and Leo's arcs boil down to the fact that Mikey is often side-lined and given no character arc and Leo is focused on way too much to the point that it gets tiresome and overdone.

And that's probably why I like Donnie and Raph so much because they do get fairly balanced moments of growth and screentime in most versions that they appear in.

It's sad to me that one of the few versions that I've seen so far that gives equal screentime to each character is TMNT 1987. Which is a fun version, don't get me wrong, but since the story itself is moreso geared towards villain-of-the-week type scenarios, there's not necessarily "arcs" for the characters that much. So it's frustrating to me that other versions, which do give deeper development to the turtles, don't do so equally. It somewhat defeats the purpose to me of the TMNT as a team, as a family, if they don't grow together.

That's the TL;DR of it, but for more character-specific info, read on:

So, let's break down each character and what I like/don't like about their arcs. I'm gonna go in (rough) order of who I think gets the most attention by the writers/creators, from least to most.

Michelangelo

It is unfortunate to me that Mikey seems to get sidelined the most. I haven't seen a TMNT version yet that gives him an actual arc (granted, I haven't seen ALL versions all the way through, but this is a general observation I have). He seems to be relegated to "comic relief" or "baby brother" in a lot of versions. I love him, don't get me wrong, but what I'd love to see in any version is maybe that wide-eyed optimism, friendliness, and jokester attitude challenged in a real way by the plot or by some villain. I think you could really get something deep with that, and I think such an arc would work well for his character. The closest I've seen to Mikey getting some deeper development is the original Mirage comics and Rise of the TMNT, but even then, I feel like the focus often stays on the other three. The one positive part of what he does seem to do for the narrative as a whole, is it often seems like he's the glue that holds the group together. When things get dark, Mikey is there to brighten things up in his own way. This boy deserves more love and attention by the writers on a whole!

Donatello

Donnie is another one to often get pushed to the side a bit and fills the niche "brainy/techy" role. However, his character is often less of a "joke" than Mikey is sometimes made out to be. He gets a lot of good moments in a lot of versions. He's given a lot of angst as well (looking at you 2003). The amount of screentime he gets seems to be largely dependent on the version. I believe the 2007 movie barely gave him any lines/scenes, but then you've got '87, '03, and Rise that gives him TONS of awesome standalone episodes. The main thing I'd change for him, is the same thing with Mikey and that is that this guy needs a bigger plot role as well and an actual character arc. He almost gets one in Rise of the TMNT - and I think it's a good one about feeling more self-worth, getting deserved recognition, and also allowing his emotions to show beyond his "bad boy" facade. Unfortunately, even in Rise, I feel like some of his growth is overshadowed by Raph's and Leo's (and Splinter's, too, actually) (side-note, kudos to Rottmnt for actually giving Splinter a character arc).

Raphael

Out of all of the turtles, I believe Raphael has the best balance when it comes to screentime, focus episodes, and character growth throughout ALL versions. A lot of versions give Raph the growth of having to overcome his anger and attitude, and allow him to work more cohesively with his brothers. I'm a personal sucker for the "tough on the outside, soft on the inside" character trope, and Raph is basically this to a T in most incarnations. I like it when his arc is often allowing that soft side of himself to show and allowing him to have a closer connection to his brothers and the people around him. As well as allowing him to be less angry at not just others, but also at himself. It's a solid character arc in my opinion, and one that doesn't take away from the others around him, but instead enhances them because his arc is often how he treats/works with others. Rise gives him a different version of that - he needs to work with others better, not because he's too tough, quite the opposite in fact, but because he needs to learn to trust his family just as his family trusts him. He needs to learn to let go more, which I think is a similar, yet unique facet to his character and I appreciate Rise for that. I have very little negatives to say about any Raphael arc. He could stand to hit Mikey less in '03 and '12 tho. That bugs me to no end, but is a frustration for a different time.

Leonardo

Ah yes, the golden child. The favored son. The one everyone (both inside and outside the narrative) likes. In fact, that's exactly what bothers me about Leonardo. Leonardo is pretty much ALWAYS given a huge arc that ties in with the main plotlines of the story, and it almost always is tied to his role as the leader. I feel like lots of versions of Leo give him the leader role and make him the "best/most skillful" ninja without him earning that title. He just is. He's the "eldest" son. He's just good at what he does. He's just Splinter's favorite. And I think there's something wrong with that when they're supposed to be a family and it kind of sucks to see the narrative, and by proxy, Splinter, play favorites. And often the narrative seems to present Leo's judgement on things as correct, even when sometimes he's wrong. But because he's the LEADER it's presented by the narrative that he is almost always right. It feels like the writers have to create a conflict that Leo needs to overcome or a decision that he has to make, and decide from the get-go that he's going to make the right decision, without really figuring out the nuances of said conflict first. So to me, a lot of his "leadership arc" falls flat, because I feel like he is written as Leader first and Character second. So it's a similar frustration to me with Mikey's (lack of) character growth - his role in the group/narrative is what defines him more than his actual personality. Rise of the TMNT is the only one where I feel like his growth was actually earned, and that is because he was starting from a much lower point. He needed to learn responsibility and heroism in a way that other Leos just have from the get-go. I could actually see Rise-Leo being leader because that growth was set up - not just his leader-like qualities, but also his skills with his weapons, and his ability to plan. I'd like to see more of that from Leo rather than just a guy that we're supposed to respect from the very beginning, just because the narrative says so.

So there you have it, my general take on character arcs in TMNT. I feel like what might help this sort of unbalanced narrative issue that TMNT has is maybe do something like what Ducktales 2017 or Teen Titans did - and that is give each character their own focus-season. In both DT and TT, each main character got sort of a season to themself that focused on them and followed their general arc. You could do something similar with TMNT - give each turtle their own season. And idk, if it goes further than four seasons, then idk give April, or Splinter, or Casey their own focus season, or one that ties everyone together for a big send-off. That's one idea. Either that or actually just plan out an equal-ish number of episodes and plot threads for each turtle.

Overall, my issue is with the balancing rather than the arcs themselves.

[365days365movies]

Action January II: Captain Blood (1935)

Part One: By the Sword

Fun fact about me: I am a non-classically trained fencer.

By which I mean I went through formal training as a child (starting at 6 or 7), then continued it sporadically through my youth and college. Kept up with it a little after college, but I'm no longer a fencer. Still, it was a pretty prominent part of my life, and one of the more bougie facts about me (of which there are admittedly many; I am, for example, struggling to not type bourgeoisie). I look back on it fondly, but it's not for modern-day me.

Still, I've always had a soft spot for swashbucklers, especially in film. Sure, traditional épée fencing doesn't resemble your typical swashbuckling film fight, even a little bit. Usually, épée with the fencing gear is put in a movie or TV show to demonstrate that the character or establishment practicing it is high-class or rich. Instead, I suppose cinematic swashbuckling is more similar to sabre fencing, which has a larger target zone than épée fencing, and usually involves grander movements...but even then, I've never seen any sabre fencer swing from ropes and rafters like, well...

Zorro is a character that I've talked about before on this blog. I've also covered the swashbuckler briefly in that post, but let's get a little more comprehensive this time, shall we? Zorro is maybe the prototypical swashbuckler character, starting with Douglas Fairbanks' epic film The Mark of Zorro in 1920! Yeah, old as hell. He was daring, dashing, and debonair; dressed in black and fighting for justice to get the girl and save the day, armed with only a sword and his wit! The prototypical action hero! Throw in some great choreography and epic music, and voila! A swashbuckler! To put one together properly, we need:

A dashing hero, with devil-may-care attitude that fights for the moral right. If we're talking in DnD terms, you can call this person chaotic good alignment, usually. Swinging from the rafters, a sword in hand and often a smile on their face. And, of course, a romantic aim and goal.

Swordfighting. Kind of critical to the genre. Swashbucklers are films that use swordfights as the driver for the plot. While not every action sequence may involve a sword fight, the main hero is always either armed with their sword or looking for it. And then it's time for the climax, you better believe we've got a big-ass swordfight on our hands. The villain of the piece, at least one of them, should also have a sword in hand.

A sweeping score is a very typical piece of these films. Whether in the past or present, swashbuckling can't be done without an iconic leitmotif for the hero, and battle music times to the clashes of steel. Usually throw some brass or strings in there, and you have a swashbuckling score.

Now, of course, there are a lot of swashbucklers out there based on those definitions, and...yeah, there are a lot of swashbuckler films! While The Mark of Zorro is typically called the first swashbuckler, it's not the first film to involve narrative swordplay by any means. The Count of Monte Cristo (1908) is probably the first of those, but there are others like The Prisoner of Zenda or Kidnapped. You may also notice that some of the classic swashbucklers are based on classic literature, like those above, and like Cyrano de Bergerac, The Scarlet Pimpernel, The Man in the Iron Mask, and the most prominent of these...

It's funny, for a character best known for his archery skills, Robin Hood gets into a lot of swordfights. Some of the most iconic filmed swordfights come from the emerald archer from Sherwood, and for good reason! There have been countless adaptations of the original stories, which are crazy cinematic, and they all take place in medieval England, during a time period where swords were predominant weaponry. Combine that with the fact that Robin Hood is, in many retellings, a nobleman who would've been trained in fencing, and you have a natural swashbuckler setup!

And honestly, Robin Hood is sort of the perfect swashbuckler. A morally good hero fighting against the evil establishment, for his friends, contrymen, and the woman he loves. Epic music, daring setpieces, classic fights, a lot of swingin' rafters...yeah, it's perfect. And again, one day, I'll talk about The Adventures of Robin Hood from 1938; one of my favorite action films, and my favorite adaptation of Robin Hood for sure.

But there's another type of swashbuckler that's just as iconic as those listed above, also involving a setting conducive to sword-based action, but often with heroes that are...a little more morally grey.

Pirate films are essentially a subgenre of the swashbuckler (yes, a subgenre of a subgenre of a subgenre), focusing on high-seas action rather than fighting in a hall or castle. The pirate film is a curious beast, appearing in film history in sporadic bursts, with no real period to call its own. They were popular from the '30s through the mid-'60s, had a tiny boom in the '80s, got badly nuked in the '90s, and then had another tiny boom in the '00s with the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise. They're always around, but never the first genre you'd think of when you think of action films.

Still, pirate films have an iconic feel to them all their own. The wind in your hair, the daring sword fights against a surly knave or an overzealous government stooge, depending on the nature of your morally dubious hero. Hell, maybe the hero has resorted to piracy after being wronged or lost at sea, and we're rooting for him and his lost honor. Either way, he's got an open shirt and a sword in his hand, and his crew are there to back him up (or betray him; again, depends on the narrative). You know a pirate film when you see one. And that's where I'm headed today: to the open seas with Captain Blood, starring an iconic action star of the 1930s and '40s. In fact, he's so iconic, almost every one of the above GIFs includes him.

Errol Flynn is undoubtedly a major film figure of his day. He's also got a fascinating and...sometimes troubling personal history, putting him up there with some of the great Australian film actors in cinema. But as much as I'd like to talk about Errol Flynn (and I probably will later), I'd like to finally jump into the film that made him famous: Captain Blood, a 1935 film directed by Michael Curtiz, another interesting figure with some...interesting history with Flynn. Again, more later.

Flynn was an unknown before this role, and immediately became an audience and studio favorite, essentially succeeding Douglas Fairbanks as a films and action star. Only 26 at time this film came out, Captain Blood was the beginning of an often turbulent career for Flynn, who would die at only 50 years old. Again, more on him later. And so, without further ado...SPOILERS AHEAD!!!

Recap

It's 1685 in England, and there's a rebellion happening! Known as the Monmouth Rebellion, it involved the deposition of James II, after succeeding his brother as king of England, which was contested by Parliament and Protestants, as James II was a Catholic king. Anyway, during the rebellion, Doctor Peter Blood (Errol Flynn) is summoned to aid a friend injured in a skirmish. A retired adventurer and swashbuckler in his own right, Blood is determined not to re-enter the...fight...

Is this Commando? Like, where a retired hero is forced to come back to fight for his country, and won't come back until a personal tragedy or offense is done to him? You know, like Commando? Just calling it now, before it happens.

As Blood is helping his friend, he's taken away and sentenced by Judge George Jeffreys (Leonard Mudie), who accuses him of being a liar and traitor to the crown, despite his complete innocence. Imprisoned and set amongst a group of similar prisoners for months, he attempts to defend himself on the stand, only to condemn himself even further beneath a biased kangaroo court. And for the record, Flynn immediately proves why he's so beloved at this time. He's an excellent actor in this scene, and I immediately sympathize with Peter Blood.

Meanwhile, King James II (Vernon Steele) is convinced by his advisor to send the convicts to the West Indies as slaves, as actual slaves are too expensive, and these guys are free of cost. So, yeah, British monarchy not looking too great. In any case, we set to sea for the first time, in the belly of an unrealistically humane slave ship. In Blood's words, the King was "granted their lives in exchange of an uncertain death". And with that, Blood and the convicts are sent o Port Royal, in Jamaica.

The convicts are set for sale (hate it), and most of them are sold to Colonel Bishop (Lionel Atwill) and his niece, Arabella (Olivia de Havilland). When she observes Blood's rebellious nature at being inspected like cattle, she decides to keep him from working in the mines on her own spoiled whims. Blood's not a fan, and the two immediately clash. Which, obviously, means they're gonna fall in love by the end. Come on, we know how this goes.

Blood's sent to work on the plantation with Bishop's other slaves, on a grinding mill that loves like it's ripped out of Conan the Barbarian. We see the indignity of slavery through...white slaves. Yeah, trying not to think about it, since this is a thing that happened, but it's tough. Anyway, our traitors are taught a lesson about treason, as an escapee is branded on his fucking face, and the prisoners all say how much they hate the fucking King. Great job, James, really fanning the flames of patriotism there.

Meanwhile, the uncaring and selfish governor, Steed (George Hassell) is complaining of gout, and is in need of a physician. Knowing of Blood's former profession, Arabella recommends him as Steed's physician, and is mostly elevated from the role of slavery, which seems...insanely easy. Irritatingly easy, even. But whatever; at least he hasn't forgotten his friends, his actual station, or the fact that Arabella bought him for 10 goddamn shillings! He's still understandably bitter about that.

However, he's in very good favor with the governor for relieving his gout, unlike the previous doctors Bronson (Hobart Cavanaugh) and Whacker (Donald Meek), who attempt to plot to get rid of the much more competent Blood. He puts them in their place, but begins a plot of his own. With the other slaves arrested for treason, he plans an escape attempt from Port Royal, with the help of friend (and the guy who got him in this mess to begin with, Jeremy Pitt (Ross Alexander). However, in the process, Colonel Bishop suspects some kind of plan, which is only circumvented with the help of Arabella. In the process, however, Pitt is captured and flogged for questioning.

While his friend is getting horribly whipped by the Colonel on the stockades, Blood and Arabella flirt (as expected), although a kiss from Blood is received poorly due to his status, leaving the encounter on a sour note. Peter goes back to care for the Governor before their escape that night, then finds Jeremy at the stockades and cares for him as well. He's caught by the Colonel showing mercy, and is about to share Jeremy's fate when a ship attacks the port.

This ship belongs to the Spanish, and the sailors aboard lay waste to the port. It's at this point that the slaves see an opportunity, and make their way to the ships. They take over the Spaniard's ship, and wait until the morning to take out the returning Spaniard captain and soldiers. With navigator Pitt and new gunner Henry Hagthorpe (Guy Kibbee), the new crew sets sale and escapes, under the purview of the new Captain Blood.

Colonel Bishop, like...like a fucking idiot, sails out on a rowboat to thank the men, not realizing it's his own slaves. And then, when he finds out, he still intends to keep them as slaves. THEY HAVE A SHIP, DUDE! You're fucked. Instead of killing him, which they consider, they toss him overboard, and Blood's crew sets sail for the Caribbean Sea, leaving Arabella behind. They abandon their citizenship, and officially become pirates.

The crew of Blood becomes famed and infamous across the seas, to the irritation of King James II himself. With Governor Steed having lost both money from the Spaniard assault, and being unable to reign in Blood in the first place, his appointment as Governor is given to Colonel Bishop, who swears to take care of Blood once and for all. Arabella is conflicted about this, but she's shipped off to England along with Governor Steed.

On Tortuga, Blood signs a deal with another captain, the French Levasseur (Basil Rathbone), and the two become partner pirates. Later on, Arabella finishes her extended holiday in England, traveling alongside Lord Willoughby (Henry Stephenson), who has been tasked to take out Captain Blood. On their journey, they see Levasseur's ship, which attacks them and takes the passengers hostage on a nearby island. They are soon joined by a surprised Peter Blood and his crew, who pretends not to know her.

Blood and Levasseur engage in an argument, as one of the articles of their contract was that no female prisoners would be taken. As a compromise, Blood pays for her ransom, both to save her and as payback for his purchase of her many years ago. This still enrages Levasseur, who wanted Arabella for himself, and he forgoes his honor to challenge Blood to a fencing duel. Fun fact, by the way: Basil Rathbone was an actual fencer, classically trained, and far better than anyone he ever fenced with on-screen, Flynn included. But, since he always played the role of a villain and cad, he was always forced to lose. And this fight is no exception.

Levasseur is killed by Blood...which is crazy, since he's Basil fucking Rathbone, and he was in this movie for maybe 5 minutes altogether as essentially a cameo, but...c'est la vie, et la mort. Arabella and Willoughby are brought on board, only for Arabella to angrily reject him. And yes, she's absolutely a goddamn hypocrite, but she's not fully unjustified. She puts Blood down as a beast like any other pirate (unfairly, of course), and Blood angrily rebukes her in turn. Even then, he plans to bring the two hostages back to Port Royal, where they are certain to die.

Willoughby and Arabella speak, where he convinces her that Blood's genuinely not a dick, and tells her that they're headed to Port Royal. At the same time, Blood's crew refuses to sail to Port Royal, officially acting in mutiny against Blood. And Blood...gracefully surrenders his command of the ship, admitting his affections for Arabella to be driving him against logic. And that ironically turns the crew back to Blood's command. I can't tell if that was a sign of their actual bond, or some straight gatekeeping-girlbossing-gaslighting from Blood, but...yeah, they're still going to Jamaica.

As they approach Port Royal, though, they find it being attacked by two French ships. Willoughby, finally being able to speak with Blood, informs him that France and England are at war. To their surprise, though, Governor Bishop isn't present, nor is the English fleet, since they're out chasing pirates. And so, the only ship to defend Port Royal against the French, is...well, Blood's.

It's then that Willoughby finally reveals his purpose for seeking Blood and his crew: the King has pardoned him. Obviously, they're not a fan of King James II given what he'd done to them, and refuse the offer. But then, Willoughby reveals the other political change: James II is out as King. With that knowledge, Blood and his men decide to fight for the English Navy, and for the new King William III.

Arabella is shuttled ashore, while the ship sails under a French flag to disguise themselves. They easily ambush the French ships attacking the Port, wrecking one and causing it to fucking explode. Honestly, it's pretty sick. The other ship mounts a harsher assault, and Blood's crew is forced to abandon ship. Instead, they simply take the French ship for themselves. And as the Captain swings over, you realize something: this is the prototypical pirate movie.

Yeah, OK, earlier films like The Black Pirate, as well as later ones like The Sea Hawk and Treasure Island, would be a major framework for pirate films in the future. But good goddamn, if this doesn't feel like a pirate movie, I don't know what does. The score is sweeping, the action is epic, and it's honestly just fun. And the most ironic thing is, this is happening at the point in the film when they aren't technically pirates anymore! Hilarious.

Anyway, Blood's crew wins the day for England, only for the Governor to finally return from his futile journey. Arabella, seeing Blood return and knowing her uncle's hatred of him, tries to warn him away while admitting her love to him. But to the surprise of her and her uncle, Bishop is officially deposed as Governor for abandoning his post in times of war to pursue his vendetta, even though he knew Willoughby was coming. He's at the mercy of the new Governor: Doctor Peter Blood. Honestly, it's funny as fuck. Blood bids him "Good morning, Uncle.", and the film comes to a close.

That's it for Captain Blood! Gonna do an old-fashioned review set-up and have a separate post for the Review! And that's because, while the review won't be terribly long...I would really like to talk about the man, the myth, the alcoholic legend himself, Errol Flynn.

See you in the Review!