#// i'm genuinely concerned about jin's character

[demonsfate]

Who's dumber like lmao

[whetstonefires]

Very fun thing actually about Jin Guangyao is he spent so much time and energy passing himself off as normal. The Normalest Guy, Look How Normal I Am. The Very Best And Most Skilled At Normal Things, Like Being Normal And Having Normal Opinions.

Which is great because on the one hand it reflects how he was kind of aware he absolutely was not. (And that by default this isolated him and this was Very Unsafe.) But on the other you see, with all the times he falls into the typical mind fallacy under stress and projects weird shit onto people, he also on some level believed everyone was doing this.

That being a Normal Person who had Normal Reactions to things, like being appalled by brutal violence, was an elaborate social lie everyone had to maintain to keep up the facade of civil society, and actually everyone was basically the same as him deep down. He was just better at it, and also the smartest.

Which is a very long way to say his character arc is heavily tied up with his evolving relationship with and skills at masking. I'm not gonna armchair diagnose him because that's beside the point, the point is that he is trying so fucking hard to be normal, but without a particularly well-developed definition of what's abnormal about him to begin with, resulting in some misfires.

And then you contrast him to some other characters and it gets more fun. One of his direct foils is Nie Mingjue, who literally does not know how to mask at all, not the slightest bit, but is fortunate enough to have been born the exact kind of weirdo his position in life demands, with special interests in 'saber training' and 'destroying evil.'

(He explicitly, per narration from wwx being inside his head, has no other interests and doesn't really understand the idea of having more than one activity you care about, do not tell me Nie Mingjue is walking around with a normal brain.)

So he is (jgy has a point about this, although he actually makes it about the luxury of having moral compunctions) free to totally embrace the conviction that everyone should basically be their authentic selves at all times, and just not do evil things about it.

On the other hand, and this really illuminates their relationship for me, Lan Xichen is absolutely trying to be normal. Like, he does try to excel, he wants to be best and he knows he's good, but as a person he is also trying to be as normal as circumstances allow.

He understands 'being normal about things' as a goal not in jgy's terms as an elaborate social fiction but as aspirational shaping of the self; if everyone is normal about everything then there won't be needless conflict. Living as normally as possible will optimize your mental health and your respect for others, and it's just a good baseline from which to be good.

Which is fine as far as it goes, but means harmless eccentricity (including gay) is to be tolerated and swept under the rug rather than really supported, and prejudices him to instinctively side with Jin Guangyao and anyone else who is pushing for Let's Be Normal About This, even when the people being weird are in the right.

(This is also to a non-zero degree a trauma response behavior; what Lan Xichen experienced as the largest existential threat to him growing up was something along the lines of being perceived as a selfish disruptor of norms, like his father.)

And then contrast that to Jiang Cheng and Lan Wangji, who are both very concerned at least initially with how things and people and they themselves are supposed to be, and feel some responsibility for ensuring this supposed-to is reflected in reality.

But neither of them makes any particular attempt to be normal about it.

And then ofc Wei Wuxian, another jgy narrative foil, never attempts to pass himself off as normal. He will sell 'I'm better than everyone ever' and 'I'm scum of the earth' in the same breath before he will try for normal.

Except that he genuinely seems to think his most virtuous traits, his throw-himself-between-victim-and-weapon impulses, are basically normal. If not everyone (who isn't a total shithead) does it, it's because not everyone has his insane confidence they can pull it off.

Which in a good mood he would say is fair, because he is in fact awesome and really good at winning. (In a worse state of mind he would definitely hate on all the selfish cowards.)

Nie Huaisang is probably the most genuinely normal human being in the main cast, probably even more normal than Jiang Yanli, and he's very happy to play that up and present himself as actually even more normal and average than he is, in order to keep expectations down.

Up until his whole life gets fucked and this little pretense turns into the most elaborate and successful mask in the entire book.

[emojellyace08]

Lookism Men x Singer/Musician! Reader 🖤🥀 🤟 🎶

A/N: I'm making the reader in the subculture of pop-punk smth like that for the most part but feel free to pick your own music genre. Genre: fluff ☁️, and slight angst 🥀 pairing: character/s x reader (romantic ; reader is gender neutral) Warnings: slight mentions of personal problems Picture/character name: Nana Osaki

Daniel Park/Jay Hong/Duke Pyeon/Eli Jang/Jake Kim/Jerry Kwon/Lineman/Sinu Han/Young Jinyoung Park/Jace Park/Kwak Jihan/(add in: Mary Kim! because why not she slays)

They really loves your voice. You're not only kind and helpful, you're also very talented and he feels very gifted to have someone like you :).

They also finds it a new interesting thing about you. If you're shy about your singing/music skills please don't! They're willing to listen to your beautiful voice and amazing talent. So there's need to gatekeep on what you can do (but they wouldn't pressure you too much they know boundaries).

They also wouldn't mind if you collaborate with them! They thinks it's a good bonding time in your relationship. Whether it's singing to other musicians' songs or composing your own they find it really enjoyable.

They would also be you personal manager or your bandmate if you asked me. I'm pretty sure that they at least know something about music or they're just also really good at it but they're also shy about it (whether if they're a good vocalist, knows how to play musical instruments or a composer they will do a good job with it and he'll appreciate it if you help them gather more ideas for new projects). You just gotta keep your relationship in private if both of you ever got famous because of some fans (y'know what I mean).

If you play musical instruments, they would blush when you insist to teach them the basics. Or, if you want to learn how to play and they know how to (please I want someone to teach me how to play the guitar it's so hard lol), they will spend their free time teaching you. Nonetheless if both of you are patient with each other, it can form a strong bond and connection.

They are willing to protect you especially when excited fans tries to touch you when they get a bit too thrilled to finally meet both of you. You even got to scold them while patching them up for being careless about themselves since they get hurt trying to shield you a bunch of times. But don't blame them, they want to make sure you and your privacy is safe (and they'll get flushed and a bit concerned when you also do the same for them).

They will be willing to listen and know about the meaning of your songs/covers. They will find a bit upsetting if you're ashamed of what you can do or if you are using your talent to vent out your negative emotions and personal problems as a coping mechanism. Nonetheless, they will be willing to reach out and talk to you about it. Besides they know that spending your time doing your hobbies/talent can be really healthy to release your stress. But next time don't hesitate to talk about your personal issues because they're your partner and they want to see you better, despite being a bit embarrassing on your part.

If you suffer from stage fright, don't worry if you don't mind they will sing with you! They find it a bit stressful for you to feel like this because they really believe on what you can do and also you as a person. So, they will cheer you up and give the best and genuine compliments.

1000/10 power couple vibes.

Zack Lee/Vasco (Lee Eun Tae)/Goo Kim/Jiho Park/Warren Chae/Tom Lee/Olly Wang/Kuroda Ryuhei/Vin Jin/Yuseong/Kwak Jibeom/Gongseob Ji

Do I even need to start? He will be your number one fan.

Not really good in terms of singing/music? (sorry Vin I do like you but Duke is just better lol). They're probably out of tune most of the times but he will practice almost every hour just to impress you lmao. But with practice and hard work (along with your help), he can keep up with you!

He is willing to give up his training just to stay beside you. They might be a little bit obsessed over you, but they do know boundaries. He'll respect it if you want your free time, but he will still cry inside because he really wants to spend his extra time with you.

He will not admit it, but he thinks that he enjoys spending his time with you teaching him your interests? It's not necessarily that he's super passionate with music (except for Vin). But he finds it a good hobby when he's bored. He would also find it enjoyable if he teaches you his body training techniques (but he may unconsciously push you to your limits so you gotta tell him what you like and what you're not comfortable with). He would also force you almost every night (especially Yuseong, Goo, and Ryuhei) to hum him a lullaby before he sleeps, bastard. But like I said, he would stop if you're not comfortable with it. But if he has puppy ears it would surely droop down the moment you turned off his offer.

He thinks that playing musical instruments is so damn hard. Like how the hell can you play *your instrument of choice* so smooth? Almost perfectly if you asked me. Now he wanna learns how to play too! Be patient with him because he may accidentally break it (for example strumming the guitar so hard lmao).

He will also whoop someone's ass if they ever tried to touch you. But he may misunderstand the situation with someone who's just excited to ask for an autograph 🗿. Now don't blame him, he's really cautious with any potential danger (especially when you became famous). Now you gotta scold his ass off telling him to be nicer to your fans and he'll be crying and sniffing pleading for your forgiveness. But still, his preservative demeanor will still be active especially when you're out for tours. He's also a great body guard even when he's super a blockheaded person at times.

He's the type to look really tough but cries at hearing emotional songs? You can see the tears that threatened to fall on his now red-glossy eyes as he doesn't know why he feels like this every time you sing a meaningful song with your beautiful song. You're like a goddess given life, his princess if you asked me.

He will scream like the biggest fanboy he's ever been when you're feeling nervous for a stage performance. The only thing missing at this point is him holding up a board with your pictures plastered with colorful/*color of choice* on it to cheer you up lmao.

He' a chaotic crackhead and also pretty dumb at times. He wants to guard and almost babysit you on rehearsals.

Gun Park/Johan Seong/Jiho Park (villain arc/James Lee/Daniel Park (post-gun training/Jay Hong/Jake Kim/Samuel Seo/Taesoo Ma/Kwak Jichang/Hudson Ahn/Yoojin/Mandeok/Cheon Taejin/Xiaoleoung/Jason Yoon/Brad Lee

He doesn't really care if you can sing or make music? But he does find it an interesting fact about you though.

He would be honestly feel a bit blessed if he have a partner who's not only strong willed, helpful and emotionally intelligent/logical but also talented (his type might be a too unrealistic but I guess as long as you're a positive or a good person he might catch feelings for you especially Daniel).

Doesn't really care about one's physical appearance in some aspects (some men in this list have preferences but he's not too picky either except for Samuel and Jiho lmao). But he would find it hot and appealing if you wear your own preference in clothing that matches your music style. He thinks that it can also catch your audiences' attention to be presentable not only talent/skill wise but also in your fashion sense.

He might not admit it but he loves your voice. He finds it calming since he's either having troubles with his sleep schedule and he's really tired. Anything you sing is okay for him, hearing your voice is enough as you ruffle his hair to help him take a nap. But his cold-stone heart will slowly melt if you sing his favorite song/s for him in a soft and calm manner.

He's not really a singer but he does hum at times either when if he's bored or in private all alone because he's too focused on his work or either he's embarrassed by it (Daniel has a very exceptional singing skills we all that). He might reject or skip your offer of him helping you out for your project since he's either busy dealing with his enemies, him getting a bit shy and unsure, or him just not being in the mood for it. But after some forcing persuading, he might accept your offer but he still have doubts about it lol. He might prefer doing some back-up vocals though. He will find it annoying if you keep forcing him to sing with you. But he can't resist to you as his partner. So you might hear a low (yet beautiful tone) voice of his singing along with you especially on karaoke bars.

Though I headcannon that he prefers being your bodyguard/manager (something along of the lines like that). Since he's super strong, cunning, fast and a very outstanding fighter he wouldn't hesitate to kick your stalker's ass the moment he catches up on them. He wants to make sure that your privacy and personal life is secured and safe as much as possible. And he will get his job done.

Not the best in comfort because he's mostly serious at times (especially Gun and Samuel), but he will still try his best to cheer you up before your performance. You're precious to him.

He will not admit it but he does find it enjoyable to spend time with you on what you like to do/hobbies especially when he's free. He might be interested to play your instrument of choice or practice his vocal skills more with you as his coach and lover. Who knows?

Bonus! DG (Kang Dag Yeom)/Daniel Park/Duke Pyeon (sorry I might come out as a bit of a biased person lmao)

He's a singer/musician as well! So no need to be embarrassed by your music skills.

Though he can't help to admire your beauty, he's most likely act professional in times of work. You got lots of projects to do that must be done on time, so he'll most likely put his feelings aside first.

He's very attentive about your ideas for your new projects. If you don't mind he might even recommend some tips and his thoughts for that additional flair on the music. Not only him working with you is organized, it's also very enjoyable while still being focused.

He might know how to play a musical instrument (DG for sure), but for Daniel and Duke they're more of a vocalist and composer. So teaching him how to play or you studying together to play your musical instrument of choice is also very entertaining. DG will be willing to teach you the basics first if you asked him for help when he's free. So you don't need to feel shy about it.

He also cares for the meaning of the songs you're composing/making a cover for. He really believes that music is not only something catchy on our hearing, but also it needs to be a beautiful and meaningful masterpiece. He might get concerned if your song of choice might be a bit personal on your side, but he'll make sure that he'll talk about it with you (in a good way ofc). Nonetheless as long as you're happy with the song, he'll be fine with it too.

He'll also try his best to protect you. Daniel and DG can kick some perverted people if needed. As for Duke, I'm not really confident that he can fight back but I'm sure he'll still try his best to take care of you in his own ways :).

They feel stage fright at times but he'll get a bit more anxious when you're the one that experiences it. He wants you to know that you can get through it. So if you don't mind he will sing with you too.

1000/10 couple vibes (again lol).

[demaparbat-hp]

The issue is that you’re always giving Katara the bare minimum of her culture. In your AUs, she can’t have both a betrothal necklace and hair loopies - she either has to have one or the other. I couldn’t even tell that it was Katara in your Lee and Kya AU. I thought it was Jin.

I think it’s wrong to assume that anyone who has an issue with your Fire Nation Katara AUs are automatically jealous and bitter Zutara antis. Even having read all the context, your portrayal of Katara in the Hunters AU along with the caption makes me uncomfortable as a woc.

I know it seems like I'm always putting Katara, in specific, in an uncomfortable position. Maybe I am.

I love to explore what situations like those—being forced to hide who you are, always a foreigner, holding on to a single remnant of your identity (and doesn't that sound like Zuko?)—do to a character. I don't always get it right, but I don't think there is a right way to do it.

These are extremely sensitive subjects, I know, and they are important to me, too.

It is never my intention to make anyone feel uncomfortable with what I think or how I decide to express it. I'm genuinely sorry if I made you feel that way.

I love these fictional cultures. I love these characters. And I don't want to "give Katara the bare minimum of her culture", but putting her in a position, within the AU, where she is forced to have only said bare minimum has consequences that I feel compelled to explore. Not only with Katara, but also with Zuko, with Aang, with Iroh, with Sokka... They are all different characters and react to these issues differently, and that's so interesting to think about.

The Southern Water Tribe culture is dying. Katara's culture is dying, and my stories' intention is not to finish the kill—I want to see how, despite every single obstacle thrown in its way, Katara's culture survives. And if I have to let her keep only her necklace to do so, then so be it.

On the other hand, I never thought of you as an anti, nor was it my intention to treat you, or any other anon, like one. You have been nothing but respectful so far (am I right to assume you're the one who asked about Katara's cultural identity in the first place?), and I would be a hypocrite to demand said respect without giving it in return.

Antis are rude. Antis are spiteful. Antis mention colonizers and woc and domestic abuse without caring or knowing about what they're talking about. Antis tear you down to feel better about themselves.

I refuse to treat anyone like an anti unless they give me reasons to do so.

You are not an anti. You are a person who has legitimate concerns about how I tackle sensitive issues in my AUs and artwork. You disagree with me, and you state your reasons for doing so, because these themes are important to you, personally.

I don't expect anyone to readily agree with me on anything. My opinion is my own, with all the conflict and trouble it may bring me. But it is mine, and I will defend it. However, I'm also self aware enough to recognize when I'm wrong, and when I'm treading on dangerous ground.

Someone once told me I'm as neutral as a wall. They meant it as an insult, but I guess they're right.

Judging everyone for the actions of a few is not really my thing. I have only come across one single anti so far (fortunately). I'm not about to get on the defensive and start attacking everyone. Unless they deserve it.

[doumadono]

mmm emergency request

take as long as you need to answer!! or if this is too triggering, no need to answer at all!!

tw for mention of childhood m*lestation

so recently (couple of weeks ago) i found out that my dad’s friend/girlfriend kind of knows the guy who m*lested me as a kid…

she knows everything that happened and knows how difficult it was for me to heal from. now finding out that she knows him— it set me back and i distanced myself from her.

a bit ago she called me, telling me that i should forgive him for what he did to me… and it went into a whole thing and now i’m trying not to cry while writing this lol

but anyways

it set me back really far and all of my progress is gone so i was just hoping for some comfort??

like twice or dabi comforting their gf/s.o. through this and helping them try to heal again.

maybe even twice or dabi getting a bit of revenge on the two people lol /j

sorry if this doesn’t make sense i’m just a bit out of it

- twice & dabi anon

EMERGENCY REQS MASTERLIST

Twice

Twice is initially shocked and angered when he learns about your troubled past and the person responsible for your pain.

He lets out a string of curses directed at the one who caused you harm, showing a protective side that you hadn't seen before.

Immediately, Twice pulls you into a comforting embrace.

"I might be a bit crazy, but I'm crazy about you. We'll get through this together, I'll never let you face it all alone."

After learning more about the person who hurt you, Twice puts together a plan for justice. "Nobody messes with my girl and gets away with it."

He ensures you have the support you need, encouraging you to take good care of yourself and promising to be there for every step of your healing journey.

As you try to hold back tears, Twice pulls a playful expression, "And if you need someone punched, I got a clone for that too. Or ten."

Twice is genuine, realizing that some battles require a team effort, and mental health is no exception.

Later, you discover Jin had discreetly gathered information to ensure the person responsible faced the consequences.

Twice, without a moment's hesitation, serves justice to the person who has caused you harm.

One day, accidentally overhearing him in conversation with Toga, you catch her asking for "the blood of his new friend." The request surprises you, but you eventually shrug it off.

The next day, Twice seeks you out and declares that the case is concluded, justice served.

When you express a desire to learn more, he simply smiles at you, smoothly shifting the topic, leaving the details in the shadows of his actions. "Don't worry, little mousie, Twice did his best to make sure they won't hurt you ever again."

Dabi

Dabi listens silently as you open up about your troubled past. His eyes, however, betray a mix of anger and concern.

"No one should go through that. I'll make sure they pay for what they did to you, princess."

Dabi, in his understated way, offers a warm touch, placing a comforting hand on your shoulder. "Don't think about that anymore. Let me take care of everything."

Dabi, true to his straightforward nature, ensures justice is served.

As you express your fear of encountering your past abuser, Dabi assures you, "I won't let them get away with it, don't ya worry your pretty, little head, princess."

Dabi, true to his character, never utters empty promises. Swiftly acquiring information about the person's name and address, he becomes a rare sight within the League of Villains' hideout for the next few days. Unbeknownst to you, he meticulously stalks every move of the individual, methodically transforming their life into a nightmare.

Days pass, and news reports flood the airwaves. Resting your head on Dabi's shoulder while watching the news, you hear of a house engulfed in flames, with a person unable to escape the inferno. The police chalk it up to a gas leak, citing eyewitnesses who observed the flames as an eerie shade of blue.

Your eyes widen, and you glance at Dabi, seeking confirmation. "Dabi..."

He, however, responds by gently placing his index finger to your lips, silencing any questions. "I promised you something, and I'm a man of my word, yeah?"

[suddencolds]

Who are your favorite artists/writers in the community?

THIS IS SO HARD, anon 😭 (but it's a question I'm curious about others' answers to too!) I have some time before work, so I'll attempt to answer somewhat coherently:

i've always admired @hachiibun, in particular for his ability to draw such a variety of poses and pre snz expressions (his somewhat recent post of h/sr snzcanons comes to mind)!! i'm continually amazed by the way he's able to capture nuances in characterization through the little visual details he chooses to highlight. i think he particularly excels at capturing like, the misery/harshness of a snz, and the all-consuming ticklishness of the build-up 😭

@mochindayo has super lovely ocs! i look forward to seeing their snz art and non-snz art alike. i love the way they draw hair in particular—it looks sooo soft and fluffy and i can tell there's a lot of care put into arranging the strands. the characters they draw genuinely look so pretty (even ruined with a cold or allergies, there's always something beautiful to them)??

i need to mention @6pmsoup bc their sketches literally always eat!! i feel like they always have such a tasteful way of like narrowing down which elements to give more dimension/detail/shading to. their art looks simultaneously so clean and engaging 😭 (cheating a bit here and i hope it's okay to say this, but i am also continually impressed by their musical ear and their compositional ability)

i really love @whiskey-tango-matcha's ocs so, so much! she has such an impressive handle on character voices and humor; when i read her fics, i really love how easy it is to get lost in the conversational flow. in particular, elijah and greyson have a super fun dynamic of like, simultaneous prickliness and concern?? it's not something i see a lot, but i feel like i could never get tired of the way they play off of each other 😭

one of the first snzfics i read which like blew me away was actually something @ithadtobesneezing posted to ao3 (i am embarrassed to say how long ago, haha). she has a very good handle on emotional depth 😭 like i feel like she writes with a certain clarity of character; her works carry like this sort of emotional intimacy and sensitivity to them, which always stands out

recently i have been head over heels in love w @vllergy's oc series. i honestly cannot remember the last time i fell for two characters so quickly 🥹 jin and vesen and their dynamic set me on fire; i have not enough words to describe how fun it is to read from jin's headspace. his character voice really shines through in the narration (and some of it is really funny too???); seriously check it out if you haven't already!

[cina-full-moon-xanadium]

So the thing about that movie is everyone hates the Heisei vs Showa thing. The thing the movie is named for. And like it sucks but I've watched it a few times by now to the point that any time it comes up I just sorta glaze past it. I've liveblogged a couple bits of it for the funnies but for the most part it goes in one ear and out the other because I am not here for that.

I am here for literally the best 555 movie ever made and how they effortlessly handle Takumi's grief in a way that bounces off Keisuke Jin's character while ALSO having Tsukasa being a funny motherfucker, and as far as I'm concerned it delivers. I feel like this is just the best way to advance Takumi on from the ending of 555 and I've gone into detail about it during the movie; it's just... it just makes me happy. Every time I think of 555's themes and characters I think of this movie. More than Paradise Regained I feel it understands the places Takumi would go.

Not much more to say, I kinda already said my piece when the Faiz and X parts came up. If you're a fan of Faiz I genuinely do think you should watch this movie, just with a warning to avoid the really annoying framing device around it. It's as good as it gets for a post-series project

[jiinjiinjarra]

BTS // Magazines // CanCam // August 2019 issue // 2019 // Pt.3

Scan Cr. takejun20522_ // Translation Cr. jinmajitenshi & kookceptional // Source: 1 & 2

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

-JIN-

The Worldwide Handsome eldest member who possess gentle calmness and inner strength

In little moments of our daily lives, (we) show consideration to each other. This contributes to what makes us BTS.

🐹: I’m the eldest of the team, and rather than being concerned about age hierarchy, i’m more of the type that prefers to meet people halfway. I wasn't very conscious of (age hierarchy) in the past, but recently I've started to think something along the lines of the "culture of treating people differently just because they are older or younger isn't good", and this type of relationship (based on age hierarchy) might seem insipid. A part of what makes us BTS is that it's not just me, but everyone in BTS who thinks like that. It can be felt from the little things in our daily lives that we show consideration to each other for everything. If (any of us) thought that "(Any of) the members would dislike this", then the other members would say "It would be better to stop (doing that)" before it happens. Other than that, charms of our members that only I know of... That is probably something that ARMY would know better than me. I don't watch our members that closely (laughs). Ah, RM's interview in the U.S. is interesting if you pay attention to it. His English is fluent, reliably answering questions, and (he) gives (us) the chance to reply with a few words instead of difficult English sentences. In RM's case, he excels in language study like that, for the other members, they dance well, sing very well too... I think that to be reliable and hardworking for each of our specialty is our team's forte and the cool side of each member.

Q. Any small happiness recently?

🐹: I'm into the drama called Walking Dead recently. There's a character that I didn't really like, and when I thought that (the character) looked like (they) will die, a zombie did (them) in (laughs).

Q. What kind of imagery comes to mind when you close your eyes now?

🐹: (When I close my eyes) I see zombies (laughs). (They) appear even if I close my eyes * for a long time. / *can also mean 'ignore'

Q. Something cute about the members?

🐹: Their genuine excitement when they meet their favourite celebrities at the BBMAs.

Q. A favourite part of a choreography in a BTS song?

🐹: When we bang on the table in Dionysus.

Q. How do you refresh yourself nowadays?

🐹: Zombies (bursting in laughter). I've only been talking about zombies today, but is that okay??

-JUNGKOOK-

Singing, dancing, perfect at everything. The "golden maknae" that never stops evolving.

Personally, I wish I had one particular skill that I was especially gifted at

🐰: In our new single "Lights" that's being released this time, there's a phrase in the lyrics saying "No one is perfect", and I love this part so much. It makes me think that I don't have to be perfect, and it feels kind of comforting. Many people compliment me "You can do both dancing and singing well, you're perfect!" but that's not the case at all. I wish I had a particular skill that I especially was gifted at. Trying to find it, I've involved myself in many activities, but right now, I just want to narrow down what's necessary for me, and work hard to make it my own. So with this going on, I get to feel relieved that I don't need to be perfect when I listen to the song. Oh, I don't have a skill I'm especially talented at, but I do have something I'm bad at. Using my brain! This is the one thing I seriously can't do (laugh). Since we're on the topic of new songs, Boy With Luv is also a really great song. After all, within BTS' songs, the choreography is a little bit easy. That makes me happy (laugh). Standing on the stage continuously, it does get difficult to sustain my stamina. completely. Near the end of our concerts, it seems like I'm unconsciously wringing out my stamina forcefully. I sometimes can't move from my muscle pains on the following day. So, my number one priority now is not injuring myself. I do want to get better at maintaining myself though, including building up my body… Oh, the part of my body I'm most confident in? Ah.. (embarrassed smile). Um, I wonder where. I don't know myself. I'll work hard to build a better body!

Q. You're in the middle of your world tour, but do you have any honest thoughts?

🐰: There's a song called "Mikrokosmos" in our album, but it feels like we're looking at it in real life. It's really moving, and it warms my heart. I cherish it thinking how much of a happy time it is.

Q. What kind of a scenery comes to mind when you close your eyes?

🐰: A lot of things come up, but they're not clear. Something is vaguely there…as if I can see it, but I can't (laugh).

Q. Anything that makes you think the members are. adorable?

🐰: Jimin. I can feel how much he loves the stage from the bottom of his heart, and I feel like we really connect in that way.

Q. What ways of refreshing yourself are you currently into?

🐰: I went to Ariana Grande's concert recently, and enjoyed it a lot. It stimulated me as a singer, and it was nice that I was able to enjoy the music from my heart.

Q. What kind of qualities does a person you admire have?

🐰: Someone who I have a lot to learn from, and can connect with me. And someone who is cool!

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

[thebiscuiteternal]

Ooo for the character ask game, 1, 6, 10 and 20 for Jin Guangyao?

1. Canon I outright reject

I have several things I don't like, but most of them are more "fanon accepted as canon" than actual canon. Probably the one straight up canon thing I despise and refuse to touch with a twenty foot bargepole is CQL deciding to have Rusong's conception be after the wedding instead of before. No fucking thank you.

6. Worst personality trait

His life still would have been difficult, but lying to himself as much as he lied to others made things much harder than they had to be. Chiefly "If I keep doing these terrible things for my father, eventually he'll care about me."

10. Best moment on screen (or in the book)

While I'm not a big fan of some of the way Nie Mingjue's death was handled in CQL, I love the added ambiguity of Jin Guangyao holding Nie Huaisang back, and I frequently add it into my amalgamated take (variant: Huaisang gets swiped the first time, then Jin Guangyao yanks him back before he can actually be killed). Did he do it out of genuine concern? To use Huaisang as a shield? To taunt Mingjue? Some combo or all of the above? Delicious.

20. Scars

Several small ones from childhood. Stitches from having to have a concussion and a fractured shoulder treated as a result of being kicked down the stairs (he also had a couple of cracked ribs, but those were just bound up, no surgery). Minor burn marks and nicks on his hands from his time working in the Wen sect. No surgery scar from the qin string because his core was strong enough to fully heal it by then.

[demonsfate]

The anime-ification of Jun over the years from spunky 80s style plain faced Japanese dyke with a bit of a tree hugging obsession to le peaceful caring mother with no temper to speak of and magical girl purity powers is one of the worst examples of the impact of anime culture brainrot on Tekken and I am surprised nobody talks about it.

I don't know if I'd ever call Jun a "dyke" (a little more fitting for Asuka), but I do agree with this. I really feel they're making Jun more of the Generic Mom character than what she was - at least, in concerns to Tek8. Just because for one thing, I do notice she's too smiley. And yeah, all her outros have to do with "I'm gonna save my family! :)" and "sorry for beating you up, I'll kiss your booboos :)" when in Tek2, she didn't really have outros of such kind. Of course, Tek2 had more limitations than Tek8 does when it comes to animation and such. But ...

she just had a regular win pose as her son would and everyone else.

thinking about tag 2 - she shows concern for jin, but she actually bitches kazuya out. it would be nice to see a jun that could still bitch out kazuya, all while still caring about him, too. like it's possible to tell your husband he's a dumbass for his world domination plans and all the murders he's caused, while still loving him, and wanting to save him.

i wouldn't say the issue is "anime-ification" of jun's character but it's more so, boiling her down to an overused trope character and also flanderization. because her character has always had "pure" symbolism (wanting to save kazuya, her ending literally being called purity, and her love for animals) - we must really hammer the emphasis of her purity and we can't see her acting out. we can't see her get seriously angry or annoyed - she must mostly express concern and compassion. because she's a mother now, she must be depicted as a more nurturing character who smiles a lot, and also with the purity thing, very, very caring.

i do think it can be debated that the series + lore does have a problem, but not perse an anime problem. because some animes are genuinely really good and creative. but it has a problem with utilizing overused, predictable anime tropes. the series has always used tropes, and well - most stories use tropes. that's not a bad thing itself. but when it starts using overused tropes without a good spin on them, then it starts lacking creativity. that's the argument people have when they say the series is becoming too anime. yes, tek has always had a bear and a robot. but when the series now has a guy who can teleport with a sword and a robot girl who looks like she's jumped straight out of a magical girl anime, that's the problem people are having.

but back to jun - i think the reason people don't bring it up as much as they do say characters like victor, alisa, tek6 jin, or even at times - lars, is because jun has only ever been in one (1) main game until tek8. the other games she was in are both spin offs (the tags). therefore, her characterization just isn't as noticeable as it is with other characters. and tbh, the writers probably mostly forgot what she was supposed to be like either other than a simple wikipedia read of her goals and how she presented purity and her being a loving mother to jin.

jun was like her son in regards that she was quiet, and often had a blank face. in fact, her face may have been even more blank than jin's 'cos jin usually has that intense, kinda angry look to him. meanwhile, jun just stood there without a smile. she was also noted to be mysterious, and honestly - she was probably a lil weird. she saw frickin ghosts. it feels like that stoicism is being taken away just for the Mom Role.

[fujunfuren]

It was a slowburn for sure.

His friend!! Meanwhile it's fun to see his smiley face because of discovering the tension btw these two, I'm a lil bit sad about what he said after selling his car. Hope it won't get any deeper. I like their friendship, I need them to stay as one.

Yeah... there is a spark in his life. I'm slowly wondering what Dong Jin would look like when he is happy. I'm so used to see them serious or sad.

"don't like me" thing wasn't annoying! She regrets about her previous actions and is stressed about her new positive feelings building up for him. I like that these are the factors of her mixed actions! She puts a distance as well as does things in his favor. I can't find a proper way to explain it now but like... the confusion in the episodes were understandable for me. And yes it was also fun to watch Dong Jin reactions. Idk maybe I'm convinced well that this time it didn't annoy me seeing a main couple avoiding each other. Kdrama writers have a shitty timing preference for this type of situations.

the number of side characters/plots and episodes concern me. I don't want this drama to end up like Cheer Up. I genuinely hated to see all potentials getting wasted. I'm praying hard for a possibility that the writer(s) thought thoroughly about the direction of the scenario.

Coming to my experience with this week's episodes...

His ex's past and (seems like our permanent villain) old boss took a bit of space in this week's episodes meanwhile the main characters were busy with putting a distance.

Ex's past wasn't a waste of time, surprisingly. I liked and understood the reason perfectly since the drama did a great job showing how annoying and tiring Dong Jin's mom is for everyone. Dong Jin wanting to give more time for his gf for her sake and Minyoung misunderstanding this as reluctance on taking a step further... understandable.

Ending of ep7: her realization of her feelings. PERFECT. For her part, I loved the confusion and the long talk. Additionally, I loved Sung Joon's eyes in that scene. He delivered well and it was shot well. Those eyes were pretty! (Alexa, play 예뻤어)

Ending of ep8: his acceptance of his feelings. PERFECT. one "어" and lots of feelings on that face. I also liked his talk before this moment.

And it is cute that both characters lived that moment while they were alone with their close friends.

Ms. Baek!! She keeps getting my attention. I liked her small scene with Dong Jin. (Also remember how she got soft towards Woo Joo at one point?)

There are small plots winking at us. Woo Joo's sister takes some pills?.. Dongjin promised to go to camping (and we all saw that picture but unfortunately didn't see the SCENE yet)... Woo Joo's mom getting mentioned pretty often... Jun's confusing acting performances?.. (does he really act? which statements are he actually serious about?) There are some uninteresting ones, too. Like the old boss's revenge. I thought and hoped he would stop at one point but he's racing for the main villain role... Aaand I don't think we would have a fun time with Woo Joo's dead father's will? The less I see that woman, the better.

Hope there would be many good/fun things to mention next week!

frienddddddd the way you go off with all the detailssss i could neverrrr!!!!!

like you said, I too feel the main couple "avoiding" each other is very apt in this storyline. It's the way they wanna put distance but keep doing things against it like how woojoo sewed his button and told him she want to do it so dont stop her or lock the door aasdjkjfd. It doesn't feel frustrating or draggy yet (I just dont want it leaning that way soon >.<).

Yesss I really want to see more of the other characters mainly her sister and jun. There's a lot to explore so I hope they dont make the side characters get drowned unnecessarily. and i also picked that up about haesung supposedly taking pills???? 👀👀

everytime they show flashbacks I get more intrigued. I would think dongjin already talked to minyoung about his mom and how he's brought up. From the flashbacks, dongjin seemed to be quite emotionally stable despite his own baggage when he was with minyoung. It's understandable that minyoung would feel that him delaying to meet the parents as reluctance for the next step but the fact that she cheated for a year still doesnt sit right with me. Although, there might be possibilities that she fake cheated cos she didnt get married anyways and stayed in US alone.

OMG yes ms baek seems to be such a sweet person and she was also very accepting of woojoo when she joined because she can do her job. I like that she's always supportive and professional in a very subtle way.

i hope the mum rot in jail or somewhere and never bother anyone again like goshhhhhh. and his ex boss...in the next ep teaser he seems to be wanting to assault minyoung w a rock? like bruhhhhhhhh

im looking forward to the revival of best fairs after all they went through!

Have a great week ahead! cant wait for wednesdayyyy

[samejimamitsunari]

Hi! its anon again :,D I'm thinking about J&A again... as much as I hope for more material for them I wonder what they can really do story-wise... I've been pretty sad about them from jins birthday up until the cover song annoucement and while im deliriously happy that they're getting a cover song but it feels like everything we get about them is just out of pity or small font last minuite stuff, idk even the cards they use in the promo art is turning 5 yrs old this year.. sometimes i just think to myself "what can they really do with them storywise?" they've done the whole revival event thing and while i feel like theres a million and one things I want to learn about them I still cant help but feel a bit doomed about the future of their characters

hey anon! thank you for your ask!

i totally get you. all of your concerns have been mine as well for a pretty long time! and it’s so true that most of the things done for them are out of pity lol (they only got shinsekai cards because happyele didnt want sora to be the only 3* card). ever since es2 era, genuine relevancy has been scarce but there were Some good things that came out of this era.

personally, i believe theres still so much they can explore with jin and akiomi as characters and their past. some might argue that we already know so much about them, but really. i feel like thats only in the case of jin. and even then, there’s a lot we don’t know about what happens behind the scenes (see: good-for-nothing son and bad teacher 2).

there’s potential, especially with akiomi. portrait has provided so much insight of how she operated within the modeling industry, her perception of the entertainment industry as a whole, and her initial goals. as well as giving explicit information about her family and showing how she took care of model trio. but as far as the intricacies of akiomi’s idol career, we only have pretty vague information about it. yes, we know that akiomi’s career flopped horribly due to super idol sagami jin’s reign. we know that she wanted to stand by his side, but was swept away by the new unit system the idol industry adapted to. akiomi worked substantially hard to be where jin was at, but realized hard work was not the only factor that took into account of success.

but i think there’s more meat on the bones! what can we say about akiomi’s unit? what kind of unit were they? how did they treat each other? can we speculate that akiomi’s cold behavior towards her previous unit due to not only just it getting in the way of grasping the super idol status, but also because the other members outcasted her? resented her? that’s what i’ve been curious about the most. she also mentions a “friend” she has in the beginning of guilty of perjury. it’s most likely a detail that should be overlooked since it’s minor, but i wonder about akiomi’s social life or if she even has one that she has to balance with work.

i mean. they could still come up with some other shit for jin and akiomi, i believe they can. but, i’m focusing more on what’s been lacking for a while.

one thing i would like to point out though, before i talk about the next part, is regarding jin & akiomi as a unit. officially, jin & akiomi is listed as an unofficial unit. and this is easily notable that they have never performed with each other. “but what about in rainbow?” within project saga, jin and akiomi performed within rain-bows and ba-barrier, not as jin & akiomi. there were no mentions of the unit. and even though rainbow stairway IS the song associated with that event, sure we can assume that they performed it during project saga, but we all know that it’s merely for happyele’s real life marketing purposes. speaking of that, yeah. jin & akiomi is meant for real life marketing purposes considering they are the only adult characters with singing voices. therefore, happyele wants to capitalize off of what little fans they have. very… rarely i guess. anyways

here’s what i could imagine them doing if they wanted to do an event with jin and akiomi. firstly, i believe it would be extremely ideal to put them in a tour event. there wouldnt be a song happyele would have to worry about. this would also clear up anything about jin and akiomi not being an official unit within the canon enstars storyline. and typically, bloomed card illustrations for events show the characters in their idol outfits performing on stage right? they dont Have to make the bloomed illustration a current era jin/akiomi card. they Could use their younger selves. for instance maybe an illustration of young idol akiomi performing alone but the unbloomed is her current self. just like how the guilty of perjury cards are set up. it’s honestly not impossible. and not all tour events have to have paid mv outfits (ie. obbligato). they Could bring up things about their past still and give more commentary of how the previous system operated and how the transition affected hard-working idols like akiomi in more detail.

this is very akiomi-centric since its objectively fair for her to receive more content in this era. (i’m jinP) but in terms of uncovering more of jin’s story i mean. same would apply. don’t have too many thoughts about it. mainly because jin already has a 5*.

but in terms of a song event. actually. even if we have all these plot holes such as jin&akiomi unit inconsistencies, anything could happen. a song event theoretically could happen whether it be their current selves or younger selves. how? SSVRS. it’s a virtual reality system that was created by switch i believe. they used it in the SS story, shinsekai with valkyrie. in which young jin and akiomi showed up. but, it was only their avatar models and it wasn’t jin and akiomi operating it themselves. natsume speculated that jin was the one that gave permission to some strangers to use his old super idol sagami jin model, but only under the condition that idol era akiomi would perform alongside his avatar as well. he concluded that jin wanted to see them perform as their younger selves since they were never able to and found solace through the VR system.

a pretty OP system within the story would be good news for us senseiPs, but happyele obviously isnt that great with implementing the senseis in anything, aren’t they? and this isnt even the last time they used SSVRS because the mv for believe 4 leaves takes place in SSVRS. so obviously, they are capable of making something like that for jin and akiomi. given maybe they want to make models for their younger selves or new outfits for their current 3d models.

there was one last thing that was the most important factor for me that left me delusional for so long and it’s the main reason why i still believe an event could happen. i’ve mentioned this many times on twitter (though i feel like i’ve mentioned these things in general a lot on that site), but it’s the lack of accessibility to jin and akiomi’s homescreen winter outfits. these outfits were officially shown in antique legend around the end of january 2021. normally, if they werent going to have cards to unlock these outfits, homescreen outfits like these would be unlockable through the ES coin shop easily. however, after almost 2 years, we still can’t unlock them. this is why i believe that eventually, they’ll get cards within an event so we can unlock them through their idol roads. a former delusion was also the fact that fusionic stars and surprising thanks official unit covers were typically released with new unit song album cds. and i assumed that jin and akiomi would eventually get one so their official mixes would come out (like the ensemble taisou album). but it’s been 2 years. i don’t know. but yeah. it’s these outfits that have been dictating it all for me.

“it could be the fact that happyele could’ve forgot!” sure, they forget the senseis sometimes. but you have to remember that when jin and akiomi’s old es1 teacher outfits were displayed in a story, they were immediately released in the ES coin shop. when the shinsekai cards came out, only their idol era outfits were unlockable. when portrait akiomi was released, only middle school akiomi outfit was unlockable. therefore, what makes the winter outfits an exception? we even have birthday editions for their winter outfits (bc they were born in winter) but not even the original ones? it’s strange. it drives me nuts. but its one of the shreds of hope i have for anything jin and akiomi related.

anyways, yeah. these are crazy mental gymnastics i go through on a daily. i am somehow hopeful for this year though. for sure, we are getting a new jin card so i’m looking forward to that. and i don’t think this will happen but i hope jin and akiomi get their own personalized outfits and mv for their new cover song. did you see that the song they’re covering is a gay pride song? i cried

here’s to 2023 being the year we could probably get something as good as portrait again

[revclver-jesus]

Isn't he really...not actually confirmed to be legitimately religious, though...? It's kinda a plot point that what SEES reads in a newspaper is just outright not true and the first confirmed example of Takaya consciously lying about something (he knows SEES isn't at fault for the apathy syndrome, nor the murders and he does not actually considers himself to be Nyx's prophet, either. Plus Aki says that Takaya isn't being truthful and the general narrative framing of this game is a really obnoxious "main characters say so = it's objectively true").

Jin then claims that Strega literally only learned about Nyx after Ikutsuki's death, which implies that, up this point, they only vaguely recognized Tartarus as having some sort of role in bringing the end of the world (hence the "Tower of Demise"), at best (although, imo, they didn't know that either, since Takaya was clearly puzzled by what the twelve shadows even had to with it and seemed more concerned about the potential disappearance of the Dark Hour itself, rather than the tower). And, I mean, sure, he absolutely does genuinely recognize Nyx as a god, but also that's what she just objectively is (and Adachi felt similarly about Ameno-sagiri, if I remember correctly).

And where I agree that, outside of being a mercenary, his biggest sin within the narrative is literally just having a different life ideology than the main characters (which is actually more ableist of Atlus, than it is antagonistic of Takaya, for that matter, because unironically calling out who is functionally a palliative patient for passive suicidal ideation is just so absurd it's hilarious), but...isn't his actual religiousness literally just...fanon? Unless we are simply finding it interchangeable with fatalism (which he definitely is).

Unless-unless I am totally just missing some crucial piece of information, which is honestly kinda why I am even sending this in the first place, taking advantage of the guy's obvious understander saying something on the topic I've been curious about for some time. Sorry if it reads like I'm trying to um-actually you up, I promise it's not the intent, haha. Thank you in advance with how stupidly long this message is 🤍

(( Ok, forgive me, it is very late at night, so I apologize ahead of time if I'm not reading this great but if I don't answer now I will almost definitely forget to later--

First, I do want to clarify, everything I say about Takaya I am referring to my canon divergent take on him that i've written for 3 years, he's had a few adjustments made to him to make him a more coherent character, that's also why I emphasized "potentially a good antagonist" in that rambly post and my wording of I love the "idea" of a religious person in persona-- that is to say I don't think they actually depicted that completely in the canon series

Though honestly! I swear to god, I couldn't really give you a provable quote off the top of my head, but I've seen the novel, the stage play, the in-character AMA replies, and I could have sworn... I saw Takaya imply real reverence for Nyx. Because I remember making a post freaking out about it? Besides... I just find it hard to believe he didn't intuitively understand his persona and ability to see the dark hour were something from a higher power when he consistently refers to them as "blessings" and as the lab children as "chosen ones". You could argue he's referring to the scientists that tested on them but that's very unlikely considering he talks very resentfully about how they used him in his final fight speech and he seems to disregard Ikutsuki a unimportant. Its like he's... referring to something else blessing them.

This is the thing with Takaya-- I cannot give you... a single, easy, quick refuting explanation. I can only point to what little canon characterization he has and hope it makes intuitive sense lmao.

So.... What I think is most likely here, even by the main game's logic, disregarding my own canon-divergences... is that Takaya does indeed have a religion of a kind, but much like how the game takes the time to explain that Strega calls the tower something else, " The Tower of Demise"... They just didn't know the name of the god that was going to kill them. But surely they knew a god was going to kill them, why else would they call the tower the tower of demise, how else would they deduce that the tower was leading to anything of the sort without some higher knowledge of what's going on? And then that leads you to wonder where they got that knowledge, etc, and that's where headcanon has to fill in the blanks because its very unclear.

( though I admit i might just be forgetting something- )

Now one thing I do think, in my experience of having to depict this guy, is that it would be near impossible to not depict Takaya as a religious zealot-- as in a person with intense ideological drive based in spiritual beliefs-- and still keep him acting and speaking as he's only ever shown to speak in canon. To me, its very much a... "all but said" situation? Yes, he is a dishonest and manipulative man but... that passionate sermon in his final fight was entirely him showing his real zealotry. Its so evident in his archetype of character, his design, his way of speaking, that it naturally lends itself to depicting a man that is very religious in his thought process. Not merely a fatalist, but someone who holds visible reverence and manic exuberance for that which can end the world. To the point where I think it is fair to assume that in the event of say, my future-verse where he lives to see other gods attempt to end or change the world, Takaya would choose to side with the gods basically every time-- not simply because he wants the world to die, but because he holds their power in higher regard than humanity's obsession with trivially living on, unchanged and unimpeded. Its hard to explain-- but to me Takaya has a personality that is so fundamentally anti-mundane humanity that it necessitates a reverence for the supernatural and the divine-- if only because he seems to find the grand and cataclysmic to be outright awe inspiring in a very religious way, if not ideologically necessary.

Something of which is evident in how he seems to find such beauty in the dark hour itself! Such as in the novel, where he not only marvels at the sight of it but he's described as seeming to be revitalized by the atmosphere, as if coming alive. There's no magical explanation for this-- its just his mental state. He has some sort of worship-like fascination with all this supernatural stuff.

There's even an element of faith in his behavior! Notice how Takaya, despite his passion and frustration with the main party, will take a deep breath... and say... very well. "fate" will decide who is right. Why would he say that without some kind of belief in a destiny, that something will guide the outcome in his favor? Notice how he puts on the illusion of calm only right up until its evident that fate isn't on his side, then he seems to claim an unfairness. He's not merely indifferent, he has faith that things will go in his favor, because it rightfully ought to.

And the idea that he doesn't believe himself to be a prophet-- I don't believe that for a second. Perhaps logically he knows that not to be literally true, its not like he hears Nyx's voice giving him advice, but there is very much something about his personality that feels he deserves that title to some extent, he almost certainly believes he is some sort of " truth bestower " as entirely evident by just how he presents himself and how he speaks. I mean.... " It appears even I am fallible " is a battle quote of his.

Though full disclosure.......... I appreciate you thinking I'm the expert on this guy, but I'm... just some nerd fascinated by him more than anything! And even if the above is me trying to describe a more objective look at canon Takaya... My headcanon take, the one I write, has been shifted by dozens of interactions and years of headcanons-- I wouldn't be surprised if I'm just misremembering details.

If the new game comes out and... it turns out his entire behavior and mannerism is just an act he does for fun purely because it tricks the weak minded, I mean valid and I'll take that L, but I have to admit I can't blame fanon for taking this as his personality if its consistently his behavior whenever he's on screen. ))

[koddyroddy]

Okay, I wasn't planning on doing any character deep dives, but--I have to share a few thoughts.

I find Por's story rather fascinating in how much of his personal journey is not explicitly stated but shown through his and others' actions. I don't find him to be a completely static character myself, particularly when you look at the story from his perspective. I find it to be a rather subtle journey.

First of all, Por doesn't have any real, genuine friends. He has friends of convenience, and I highly doubt he ever expressed his real concerns and fears with anyone in that friend group. (In fact, I'd argue the only genuine friends in the group were Tee and Top.) Por is afraid of failure, and he's afraid of disappointing his father. His concerns are ones that would likely be mocked or dismissed by his friends in the same way they dismissed the group's success in winning the production money, assuming it was because of Por's father. They are blasé about something that I think is likely an integral part of Por's self-esteem. I'm not surprised we don't see him providing insight into his true feelings about what he's going through until he's weakened on the couch.

Getting into Por's self-esteem, I think much of Por's reaction to Non is because of Por's insecurity about his own capabilities. His father wants Por to be impressive. Por is interested in film-making and wants to impress his father in his chosen profession, which is why Por fears failure, fears not being perfect or amazing, fears being mediocre, and fears making his father and family look bad. He wants to be someone his father respects. Given that his father doesn't disapprove of his chosen creative pursuits, Por wants the film to be good. His father expects a lot of him, and he wants to live up to those expectations. He's also a teenager who doesn't want to be a failure and doesn't want to look bad in front of others.

So he has an idea for a short film, but it's only half an idea. He's brainstorming the project with his friends when some loser (from Por's perspective) interjects with a decent idea that fills out his own partial one. When Por's too afraid to put in the hard work to write the script himself (which is a natural tendency for many people who fear not being perfect), he forces the work onto Non. If the script sucks, it won't be Por's fault, it will be Non's fault. There's much "creative back-and-forth" about the script, and Por is constantly asking Non to rewrite it and make it better. He is there through the entire process (minus the times when Non is actually putting in the work), and he knows how much rewriting Non does. My assumption: Por recognizes how much work Non is putting into the script. More work that Por put into it. I think this is when Por starts to really feel a difference between himself and Non as creative individuals and storytellers, though he may not yet recognize it.

It is at this point that the group wins the production money. Por doesn't want to acknowledge Non's contribution to their success and doesn't want Non there at the proposal session. While Por celebrates with the group afterwards (minus Non, of course), his friends joke about their success being the results of Por's father's influence while Jin argues for Non's creative contributions. What a comparison! In a moment when Por was feeling successful, he's reminded that he himself didn't contribute that much to the success. Not in the ways that mattered.

Then the inciting camera incident occurs. Por goes from a general indifference to Non as a person to outright bullying him. I find your point about Por potentially seeing the footage of Top breaking the camera and still blaming Non an interesting one. At first, I thought the idea far fetched given the camera broke and they had to buy a whole new one. How could Por have seen the footage? But then I remember SD cards exist (hahaha). He might have pulled the storage card and seen the video Top had shot, if Top had indeed pressed record before the camera broke.

Over the course of filming, the Por-Non dynamic continues to change. He tolerates Non's presence for a while and even pushes off editing the film to Non (again, classic behavior of someone who questions their own abilities and are afraid of doing a bad job), but keeps the camera work and the directing for himself. I assume Por is more confident in his abilities in these areas.

Then the next incident occurs--Non and the horse accounts. At this point, I bet Por can barely stand the thought of Non. Everything about Non is just intolerable, bringing shame and disappointment, particularly Por's father's disappointment. Now the Por-Non negative dynamic escalates again. Por wants Non out but still needs his script. Non is starting to push back, and Por outright says he won't allow Non to take his script back. He'll use it with or without Non's permission. Things only continue to escalate. Non produces a whole new script that's even better than the last one. Por agrees that it's a better script! Yeah, Non straight up pulled another creative work out of no where (from Por's perspective).

Filming continues, and Non ultimately attacks the group with a knife while filming and accuses the group outright of bullying, stealing (that's you, Por), etc. This I think is another turning point for Por. He reacts so strongly to Non as a threat and was willing to continue beating Non after he fell unconscious. At the same time, he seemed so shocked by what Non said almost as if he'd never really considered what Non had been feeling this whole time.

At this point, they pull the film together. I have to wonder what the editing sessions would have been like. Was it Por or Fluke who did it (I don't remember)? Did they take the footage from the original shoots (based on the original script) plus the more recent footage from the new script to make the film? Or did they just not bother with the new footage? The ending of the film is not the same as Non's new script, so I assume they may have stuck with the original and worked with whatever footage they had.

[Side note--I've been writing this for a couple hour, and that was never my plan. How did I end of writing so much about Por of all people?]

Now the coverup really begins. Standing on that stage with his parents, presenting a film with his name on it, Por knows he wasn't the one who wrote that script. The story wasn't his own. He knows the situation is a bit of a farce. I believe others have done deep dives on this scene alone, but alas I'm too far deep into this meta to go find them.

Then the time jump.

This is where the true speculation comes in. I have to wonder at what Por's been thinking about these past three years. He doesn't talk about the film three years later. It's not something that he brags about, and he doesn't seem comfortable when it is brought up. He keeps up the front that he wrote the script when Tan/New first asked him about it in 12th grade, but it seemed painful for him to say it.

And then we get to Phee. I have to wonder at Por letting Phee rope everyone into reshooting the film. Where once he called the shots (at least as far as the film goes), he's now handing it over without much protest to someone else. Por seems like he's lost his self confidence and his drive to be in control. (I might argue that Por was never really the leader in the same way that no one was actually his friend, but that might be a moot point.)

Perhaps the combination of Phee and Tan/New joining the group, both of which are not pushovers, and Por losing his confidence (plus any changes Tee went through) led to a change in the group dynamics. Phee definitely has that type of personality to not easily follow others, and it would take someone who has more dominate qualities to lead this group when Phee, Tan, and Tee are around. Definitely more than what Por has by the time they arrive at the murder house.

What was my point in sharing all of this? I've forgotten TBH. I just had to get these thoughts out about Por after hearing @dribs-and-drabbles own thougths. Thank you for sharing! I always enjoy people's perspectives on interesting shows and characters.

One more point about DFF—

I really, really, really wish Por had found out before he died that Top was the one to break the camera.

[admirableadmiranda]

Do you think reconciliation will ever happen in MDZS concerning JC? I imagine it'll take time, effort and development but I'm curious about your thoughts

Reconciliation with who? Because I think there's one character that he does have a chance of genuinely improving his relationship with post canon and them having a perhaps terse, but decent relationship for the rest of his life.

That person is Jin Ling. His nephew who does care for him a lot, but will not follow directly in his footsteps and is fostering a close relationship with Wei Wuxian as well. I could definitely see Jiang Cheng managing to repair and maintain his relationship with Jin Ling even as he grows up and continues to hone himself into the man he wants to be.

If you meant Wei Wuxian though, well there's a quote I believe from some of the audio drama art for the extras that I think sums it up pretty well.

"If perhaps someday we should meet again, it is better that we have nothing at all to say than too much."

To reconcile with Wei Wuxian is the sort of thing where I think it could only happen at the very end of Jiang Cheng's life, and even then it would never rekindle what they had before. As the book ends, Wei Wuxian is content to leave their relationship and Jiang Cheng in the past. Too much has passed between them and it has simply been too much to make it easy, and Jiang Cheng's responsibility for Wei Wuxian's first death and the death of those he swore to protect will always be there. The most they can do now is be not enemies, but strangers. There are simply too many burned bridges between them to ever truly reconcile in the way that people want.

I really like that about Modaozushi actually. Some things can't be fixed. Jiang Cheng and Wei Wuxian really take the best option when they just decide to not try anymore. Their friendship died long before Wei Wuxian did, it just took them thirteen years to let go of those last lingering feelings.

[pharahsgf]

i get that some of jc's attitude towards jl is supposed to be taken as him just being a cantankerous cunt but i think that even with that reading, fans miss the point that his attitude isn't cute or harmless. the framing of the scenes where jc berates jl; the music, the expressions wwx makes, the undercurrent of genuine fear/emotional pain on wwx's part, give the atmosphere a tense, heavy, almost awkward weight. jc threatening to whip jl w zidian (even IF both parties did know that would never happen) hits different when we've seen wwx be abused by that weapon. and knowing anything about jc's character at all, tells me it's not something he would joke about either nor something he would say lightly (the scene where he does it certainly doesn't feel jokey or light). whether he would actually do it or not, the intention of that threat is to intimidate jl. on a very base level, to instinctively threaten physical harm (even IFFF jc never "actually" did it) is pretty fucked up actually. and while jl is "comfortable enough" to talk back, mostly his response is actually to run away. and then there's that time where jl flinches back at the end, which he doesn't even do when he's about to be cut in half in the temple--it's either a trained or an instinctive reaction! also, the only other time we see that posture is when wwx is putting his hands up to protect himself from being hit. it's so uncomfortable and like the only semi-sympathetic reasoning is that jc wanted jl to be a little afraid of him and cultivated that fear through verbal threats and an outward lack of concern for jl's person. he probably does genuinely love jl and maybe he never actually followed through (the fact that this is extremely debatable doesn't look GREAT) but even so the results of his hand in jl's guardianship shows in how unhappy and dysfunctional jl is before wwx steps in and literally just goes "hey...i care about you and maybe if you were nicer you could have friends and be happier" and i haven't even gotten INTO jc encouraging jl to be violent towards others at the slightest provocation. how does no one talk about this

also just to add onto the last ask about jl and jc's relationship being a clusterfuck, isn't it weird how even before jl knows "mxy" is wwx, he doesn't bat an eye at jc whipping him in the street, surrounding him with swords, and taking him up to his room to be tortured/killed??? like this is just a thing jc DOES?? HELLO?

oh lmao i talk about this all the time but i'm literally not joking when i say jiang cheng is 100% responsible for jin ling lacking of any sense of self-preservation or humane thought processing in the face of genuine compassion from other people. like ofc jin ling was bound to suffer growing up in such a predatory environment without his parents but jiang cheng seemingly took zero steps to alleviate this and instead encouraged jin ling to center his identity around a tragedy he can't even remember, damaging jin ling's self-perception and ability to connect with peers just for the sake of validating his own grudges and individual trauma.

following wwx and jyl's deaths there is no one left to temper jiang cheng's reliance on physical violence so i'm sure he sees it as an accomplishment that he "only" defaults to threatening jin ling with harsh corporal punishment at the slightest provocation, but in reality he bullies and scares jin ling who nearly gets himself killed for the chance to gain a sliver of respect from one of his closest relatives. and that's not even touching upon jin ling's desensitised view of the violent assault repeatedly carried out by jiang cheng and how that may inform his opinion on how jiang cheng treats HIM

like there is so much shit about jin ling and jiang cheng's relationship that goes completely unaddressed so ppl can feel good about calling jiang cheng a dilf or whatever. jin ling's first scene literally has him trying to murder a visibly scared stranger just because jiang cheng told him to but it's clear we'll never be able to have a conversation about what the fuck was going on there because half the people on here will only acknowledge jin ling's existence to celebrate jiang cheng for selflessly raising his sister's baby despite the (checks notes) 5 seperate scenes where he beats the kid