#[aspects of black and white]

[superkirbylover]

peppino and noise character studies

in this essay i will explain why i am the only one to understand these characters

[disgruntledwyvern]

James and cyprians relationship truly does fascinate me. They hate eachother for such valid reasons, James was directly involved in cyprian’s brothers death and the death’s of the rest of the stewards. And cyprian is a representation of the people that drove James out for something he couldn’t control and tried to kill him. They’re also both just. Complete dicks.

And then in dark heir we get that scene by the river. Where James is clearly trying to reach out to cyprian and grappling with his own conflicting feelings about the stewards. Where he directly says that he didn’t enjoy seeing cyprian kneel to the Devil like he’d made Marcus kneel. The entire exchange really hammers in that these are two teenagers raised in what amounts to a hardcore cult, but who had very different experiences of leaving that environment. James’s treatment and the way it shattered everything he’d known all his life and left him to figure it out, and the way he clearly built the stewards back up in his head after the fact, vs cyprian never questioning it or having any reason to stop believing in the steward ideals or the things he was taught. Both of them have the mentality of extremely isolated children in their own ways, kids think in black and white and now with the stewards gone they’re both being forced to confront that things are gray. But cyprian clearly isn’t ready for that yet, and he certainly can’t accept that from James yet because James is responsible for the deaths of hundreds of people cyprian cared about including the torture and murder of his brother. So the exchange ends up being a conversation of their conflicting viewpoints where they can’t yet really make any real progress.

It’s tragic because they’re the only two people left alive with the experience of being raised with the stewards from birth, of never really having a choice about it, but they both have different experiences that are so at odds that they can’t actually find solace in that shared situation.

[leonardcohenofficial]

saw a letterboxd user who gave the african desperate a one star review that gave wicked four stars and included barbie in their top four god i hate people so much lmfao

[daily-xisuma]

[172] Fanart for my stupid game (affectionate)

[voidtouched-blue]

starter for @forgotten-contract

Bustling cities had a kind of charm about them that just drew people in. Merchants bringing wares to sell, adventurers seeking their next job, the impoverished looking for a new start, and of course knowledge seekers pulled in by the wealth of information and skills the guilds provided. Ul'Dah was the jewel of the desert. It's streets gilded by the sun, and its people the heart of its illuminating glimmer. Yet, in all the excitements and pleasures the glittering gem provided, what interested Cyra more were the secrets that laid in the dark.

It had been six months with no answer to her summons, and she grew tired of waiting. The wound still fresh in her heart had been her driving force for the last year, and now her curiosity and thirst had brough her to the Thaumaturges' guild once more. The brothers that commanded their charge of the tomb their order operated out of were no strangers to her. The healer had made generous donations of both monetary and service-related origin in the past. Even her interest in the arts of Thaumaturgy had captured their interest enough to allow her nearly free roam of the sanctuary. What interested her more than their method of manipulating aether was the carefully kept tomes secreted in their collection.

The art of Thaumaturgy was deeply rooted in an understanding of the Voidsent, and the natural charge of a Black Mage was the power of destructive magics at their fingertips. The techniques had been passed down from mages who had learned to wield and control the secrets given to them by the denizens of the Void, and Cyra's desire for those secrets carried an unnatural thirst for the forbidden knowledge stored within the sanctum. While she had the support of the guardians of the tomb, none of them were willing to grant her permission to access those materials.

Perhaps there is aught I can glean from their available texts. In the very least I can try to keep track of constant themes between tomes. Her thoughts danced around the idea of sneaking in after hours, even casting a simple sleeping spell on the brothers on watch just to get a glance. Initially, she only wanted to ask permission to simply see the secrets they kept locked away, but even her display of mastery over the destructive magicks wasn't enough to convince them that she could keep her wits about her.

They had the right of it.

Cyra's want for their information was borne entirely out of her craving for power. Were she a little more lost to her madness, she would have considered taking it by force, but her principles kept her from acting on impulse. She would not take a life so needlessly. Not unless her well-being had been threatened first.

The hours she had spent in one day alone was more than most of their students would spend practicing their craft. So driven was she by her desires that she neglected any attempts at getting her attention throughout the days she had spent perusing their collection. She would find the answers she was looking for, and if she had to, Cyra was prepared to even commit crimes to fulfill her wish. "Gods-damnit!" She cursed in a sharp whisper. "This would be so much easier if they would just let me have a peek." It took a significant amount of restraint to keep her from slamming her fists onto the table in frustration. Several stacks of tomes covered the surface within her reach, with a rather large and delicately decorated one opened in front of her. She tapped her dry quill on the page, rereading her notes as she compared copied passages from multiple books with one another. The mentions were too vague to have any immediate connections to the titles she had heard Cocobuki mention in passing to one of his brothers.

She leaned back in her seat, setting the quill down in the ink well and letting out a frustrated sigh. The Miqo'te rubbed her face with her free hand, her gaze shifted distantly to the candle that sat just out of reach on the other end of the table. The playful dance of the flame held her focus for a moment. It was curious how something so small had the power to cause catastrophic destruction. She knew what she asked of the brothers. She knew what the consequences would be should she lose control over the magick she sought to control. Cyra was sure that her determination and desire were strong enough to overcome any perceived failure they may have had nestled among their doubts.

"Aghk!" Something in the light felt like it burned a hole into her mind. She winced, hunching over slightly in the chair as she cradled her face delicately with her clawed hands. She had felt headaches before, but this was different. The sharp pain behind her eye moved to her forehead. Her vast knowledge of the body, and its innumerable ails didn't provide her with any immediate answers.

"Perhaps..." She grunted, rubbing her temples. "Perhaps it's time for a small respite from throwing my head at the wall." The healer pinched the bridge of her nose and pushed her seat away from the table. As she moved, the headache seemed to pulse. The way it ached had her nearly incapacitated. But as suddenly as the pain appeared, it had subsided to a dull throb. I should return home. I doubt they will grant me access, and I have much to go over. I would also prefer to suffer through this fatigue in the comfort of privacy.

As she stood up from her seat, spots obscured her vision. She wobbled, only catching herself at the last moment on the surface of the table before she had completely toppled over herself. In her brief episode, she had knocked over the chair. The sound of the wood clattering onto the stone floor had silenced any conversation happening throughout the sanctuary, and yet she couldn't be bothered to even pay attention to it. All she wanted was to regain control of herself. But something felt like it was wriggling around in her head, sending her vision into a spin and losing focus on the task at hand.

The flame on the candle flickered towards her curiously.

[inarcad1a]

Horus (Egyptian Mythology) stimboard with themes of: falcons, healing, and the sky.

x . x x x . x x x . x x x

[yyshm]

big fan of this guy, fucked up and doomed rat my beloved <3

[curiosity-killed]

Sometimes you see posts on here and it’s like…your argument isn’t entirely logically wrong but it is predicated on a pretty clear lack of understanding of the words you’re using

[realbeefman]

i know chase obviously wins the religious trauma competition but can we please talk about how foreman was not only raised by a deeply religious father, but was most likely raised BAPTIST. no wonder he’s so repressed. the baptist experience is like. you’re in church every sunday listening to a man scream about how love is something that should hurt. you believe in a good, loving god - but to believe, you have to accept that true love is painful. that to be a good person, you must suffer. to love is to endure it, to work mercilessly. you’re not worthy of the love of The Almighty, and you never will be, and that sense of unworthiness is fundamental to having faith. when you sin, you don’t just hurt Him, you hurt everyone around you. you make the world worse because you have dared commit the sin of existence — to be human is to be sinful. to be loved is to feel unworthy and pathetic and hopeless. like YEAH no wonder foreman self isolates and is emotionally closed off. he was taught from BIRTH that he is fundamentally unworthy of love, and that in accepting love, he is also accepting that he truly is worthless.

[natjennie]

kitty's instinct towards ingratiating herself with groups of young women is so fucking tragic like, her joking with mike's sisters in ghost of christmas, trying to get in pictures in about last night, walking with sam's bridesmaids in perfect day. she sees a group of lively young women and trips over herself in excitement trying to be part of them. it just reeks of someone who knows they're usually left out of things, aching to be a member of the group. female friendship is so important to her and alison is her only outlet for it. and it takes a little while for alison to realize how hurtful it is when she specifically deprives kitty of it, like telling her to go hide in redding weddy and telling kitty off for getting in the way of her and lucy's relationship. but she grows, she sees how vital it is for kitty to be included, specifically in a manner of sisterhood. "you're the sister I never had" and she hugs her to the best of her ability. she gets kitty balloons for her birthday and watches her favorite movie with her. she considers her opinion on decor for the gatehouse. kitty's practical joke is the least mean-spirited. she watches is it cake with her and guesses along. she shares her complaints about pregnancy and gently explains conception to kitty when she's still confused. she makes fake blue plaques out of cake to surprise her. they're friends and they're sisters and they love each other are you hearing me.

[poisonerthing]

i know most people have talked about fuuta and amane having locks on their doors already but its so interesting to me that rumerie's signature points at the keyhole on fuuta's

it leaves me wondering if we missed anything in backdraft except for the graffiti and the end part or if that was all there was to see

(more on my rb)

[ooooshetriesss]

When you finally find the ppl you would create+transform with…

[dirtytransmasc]

thinking about how Miles's whole vibe when it comes to being spiderman and being a hero is that he does it for his people. he tries his hardest to save others, not just cause they're people with their own lives to lead, but because they're his people. he protects them like they're family.

but the second layer to him, is that anyone and everyone he interacts with on any level, are part of his people. it doesn't matter if he knows them or not, if they're even from his universe or not, because he's so kind and selfless and people-oriented.

he refuses to be lonely, he refuses to be this loner hero no one knows nothing about, that comes in, saves the day and disappears. he doesn't protect people because its his job, but because he wants to on such a deep and meaningful level. it sets him apart from other spider people we see (outside of pav and maybe some of the other teens, we don't see enough for me to judge them completely just yet), what makes him one of the best Spidermen.

saving people isn't a job, its a need for Miles. saving people isn't something he does cause they're innocent and its the right thing to do, its cause they're his people and he values them as not only living beings, but also as people with lives that are strands in the web of his life, and he doesn't want to lost them, even if they're technically a stranger or from a different universe.

life is something Miles can't put a price or stake on, he will always try to save everyone, because life is never a factor in a "greater good" situation. he won't pick who lives and dies, because that's not a decision he will make, be able to make, nor one he should be able to make.

Miles doesn't have a god complex; he just sees himself as a kid who was given the ability to help people (he gets a little cocky sometimes, cause he's a teenage boy, sue him, but deep down he is just so good).

there's just so many layers to why I think he is one of the best spidermen out there and I can't stop thinking about it, but I also can't get the words out of my brain right, please, someone indulge me, discourse (? that word always feels negative, but I'm blanking on the actual word I'm looking for) on this with me so I can finally get this shit out of my skull.

[envolvenuances]

as the masculine woman who wasn't allowed to use the girl's bathroom in school and to this day have straight women prefer to stand than sit next to me at the bus or question if it's "appropriate" to have me in school staff teaching teenagers. the only "gaslighting" in this is the pretense that it is either a new phenomena or increasing because of The Trans Question being divisive in current gringo politics. when it's classic lesbophobia that always existed and honestly if you ask me things have been improving. but then I do feel like transphobia itself is a restriction of homo/lesbophobia against the mostly visibly gender non conforming of us.

[nexttrickanvils]

Some more Mermay fun.

It's been so long since I've drawn these two but the recent HD collection sparked that old Hyperfixation.

(You're free to interpret this how you want, platonic or romantic is both fine 😊)

[empty-blog-for-lurking]

If youre ok w sharing then i would love to hear your thoughts on lotor........ Hes such a weird guy. Dissecting him like a frog

If i get hate for this, i am blaming you/j but in all honesty i apologize if this kinda messy, as i have said it has beem awhile since i saw any of the episodes about him. Most of it is my personal interpretation and opinions of his character-

First of all i personally hate both "L0tor is evil rapist imperialist who did not have a single redeemable quality" and "L0tor is uwu poor baby who did nothing wrong", because yeah he had good intentions and he seemed to genuinely love Alura and care for Alteans but also he very much did do a lot of things Wrong. I am pretty sure a lot of his actions fall into category of Very Wrong

Lot0r to me is an absolute control freak, he has to be 10 steps ahead of everyone, he needs to be control of the situation no matter what. Whether it be through a silver tongue or by his blade (see N@rti's death, him vs White Lion). This is as much as a ruthless strategy as it is a trauma response. Being raised under Z@rkon, a father who only saw him as inferior half-bred, he had to learn survivor tactics. He will do anything to survive whether it be beg, lie, manipulate, and kill. He is a survivor of some genuinely godawful abuse he suffered for 10,000 years, combined with racism he suffered for being half altean

However this need to be in control extends to his allies and people he cares about. I am sure Lotor may have loved Alura, it doesnt change the fact that he very much abused her trust. Their entire relationship was based on a lie. He knew Alteans were still alive and not only did he not tell Alura about it he leaned into the "last survivors of Altea" for their relationship, which is why it was doomed since the beginning. And if it had not been this, then it would have been something else. Cause lying and manipulation are very much core of his character, that is how we are introduced to him

Like i see people going "Oh Lot0r could have been good if he had therapy and a hug", and i am not really not sure about it, cause like would he? Would he choose to be vulnerable and actually let his feelings out and be truthful in a an unbiased reliable way that will neither serve him in any way nor make him look better nor is a part of some machivilian scheme he cooked up because he doesnt trust the therapist he is paying? No

And thing is he does desire connection. He looks for connection in people who are similar to him. Half galran, altean survivors, Alura these are the people who he chose to get close to. He looks for similarities, people he can relate to, people who he sees as like him, people who he thinks can give him a sense of belonging. He is deeply lonely. However his desperation for control, absolute mistrust in anyone and everyone, and his inability to be actually honest dooms any relationship he'll ever have

Also this is probably just me, but for someone who is this morally complex character he has tendency to see things in black and white? Like it is His dad and empire= bad, alteans=good. He idolizes Altea to the point of seeing it as an Utopia, and this ideal was more important to him than any Alteans who are alive and with him. I also cant remember him ever caring about someone outside of the Dichotomy. Like at most i remember is after he became the emperor Lance pointing out how other planets need to be freed and he just brushed it off

Overall he gives me the "smart people dont always make good decisions, but they are good at justifying their bad ones" vibes. We dont know exactly why he decided to use alteans as batteries but i am choosing to go with my interpretation- "Lottor saw something fucked up in that future showing space whale thingy, decided the only way to solve was altean batteries except in true self fulfilling prophecy greek tragedy way it only made things worse and started a series of event that will cause the thing he saw causing real trouble a few years after his death.

Another thing! I think it should have been him being the focus of Evil Altean episode instead of A//ura. I hate that episode and everything it stands for but like if there Had to be an evil alteans episode then it should be around someone who is you know? Obsessed with Altean culture? Is big on control and manipulation? Is more geared towards big picture and "greater good" over individual? Is worried about turning into just like his galran father and so desperately wants to connect to his idealized version of his altean mother? Yeah