#'___ is the true villain' takes are a plague on society

[jakeperalta]

hitting "not interested" on these posts isn't enough I need a gun

[g00ngala]

hopefully this is the last long post i will ever have to make about hit disney show the owl house but I am so sick of people posting paragraphs of lukewarm takes on philip's death so. one last rant for the road, i suppose.

belos's death wasn't unsatisfying, nor was it purely physical. first of all, philip is a representation of greater societal problems (which are notably still there, remember, there's people who want to reestablish his order for their own gain). he is a plague and parasite on the world and a demonstration of humanity's worst cruelties, and his pathetic death by boiling rain and stomping as the most true and good character, who does her best to do right by everyone and believes in second chances, in the entire show, looks at him with no emotion in a way that directly parallels the way caleb's ghost looks down upon him, and he claws at her feet in a desperate attempt to use another person's good nature once again to get what he wants, and fails and dies, is INCREDIBLY symbolic.

and TWO. the point ISN'T that philip is an Evil Liar Who Lies and his backstory is being shafted for simple evil, he is an incredibly realistic depiction of how many people are consumed by their fear of what they don't understand and their hatred, let it fester into a desire to harm, and then elaborate lies to not only manipulate others but trick themselves by their own rhetoric so they don't have to feel bad for it

throughout the show philip is paralleled to cult leaders and militaristic dictators, and he is LITERALLY a puritan colonizer. philip is white man ego in its purest form. yes, the awful society is 75% the fault of Just One Guy, but this is a cartoon. he represents every man who has tried to build a world like this, who burns what he doesn't understand and makes up lies to justify it and trick his own guilt into not eating him alive.

people keep bitching that philip didn't truly face his own lies and realize how awful he was before he died, or that he wasn't given any chance to change, but philip has run the fuck out of chances. the point is he will never learn because he chooses not to. philip had to die because he'd rather lie and rot and take everyone down with him than EVER admit he's wrong. he killed his brother because he tricked himself into believing that caleb betrayed him, romanticized the idea of Caleb in his head and delusionally convinced himself that he tried to save him, while his knife hangs over his brother's ghost eternally, symbolizing the shoved down guilt he'll never truly outrun.

he made hunter believe it was his fault that philip repeatedly harmed him, he told the people of the isles after slaughtering them over and over that it's better if he rules them because he is better than them, he eternally victimizes himself over and over because he is an abuser. his lies are not just to others but to himself. he makes himself believe that the ends justify the means, when the ends are nonsensical rhetoric and the means are horrific violence. because philip is a person who may have had the capacity for good, but he chooses to live in his own hatred and rot everything around him, taking advantage of hunger for power and good natured kindness in the same breath, and he chooses to turn away from the mirror every time, to refuse to acknowledge the monster he's become because he's a coward.

the titan said it themself. his motives aren't genuine, not because he's evil for evil's sake but because he'd do anything to continue to live in his own delusion of heroism and perpetual victimhood. philip is someone you can find in the behaviors of dictators and colonists and evangelical christians and run of the mill abusers all throughout history. this doesn't make him a cookie cutter villain, it makes him a REALISTIC villain, or as realistic as you can get in a cartoon on the disney channel. he wants power and he wants admiration and he wants death and suffering to the people he's scared of, and he'd rather kill himself and take everyone down with him than ever face who he is.

not all villains need a redemption arc to be complex. he doesn't love to rub his hands together cartoonishly and watch the world burn, but some people do actually enjoy harming others. but the realism comes from how he lies to himself and others about it.

sometimes someone can be truly evil, not because they were born that way, but because they choose to be, and because they choose to live in denial about it until they're rotting in the ground.

[agirlandherquill]

Ruin's Reprisal - WIP Intro

I was recently tagged by the lovely @mysticstarlightduck in a post of theirs and it inspired me so much I thought I'd put my own spin on it for my novel!

rules are simple, or to my mind, easily breakable (not that I will, because this rule is so broad and so fun) - pick a WIP and post something about it!

so without further ado, here's my WIP Intro!

Title - Ruin's Reprisal

Genre - Fantasy/High-Fantasy (if that's still a thing, sure hope so)

Tags - (ought to come up with some, shouldn't I? ah, well, I'll update this when I do!)

Synopsis - like me with my edits on the manuscript, it's a work in progress

Disgrace. Servant. Murderer.

Three people with nothing in common, except that they were wronged.

And now, they’re willing to do whatever it takes to make things right. Which means taking the one thing that their society rests on; its sins, its saints, its deaths and broken dreams.

The unlikely band of criminals are going to steal the crown.

Everything depends on one heist. Take the crown. Free themselves.

Will any of them survive? Or will they fall to the country that took everything from them? 

Only time will tell.

And they’re running out of it.

Plot Features, Tropes, A Little Warning Of The Chaos You'll Find

Heist. One big, life-risking, soul-aching heist

I killed for you. Because of you.

Life-saving debt, and then some

Royalty, a Court, and gut-wrenching normality - add a hint of rebellion while you're at it

Gifts and Curses, what's the difference?

My heart is in your hands, literally.

Morally Grey Characters

Deniable Feelings

Lies, lies, lies

A Wedding and A Funeral

I'm going to die. I AM GOING TO DIE.

Ballroom dances. Need I say more?

We had a plan. We had many plans. What now?

You love me. You won't hurt me.

Sacrifice

You made me feel. I need you to stop. I need you to break me because I cannot do it myself.

The Crown was never yours, it's mine.

You were supposed to come to me, to be with me, and I'd have made it all stop.

Slow-burn - light that fire, watch it burn

Limping into battle - best idea I've ever had.

Revenge. Revenge. Revenge.

He broke you? I'll destroy him.

I have hated you since the day I met you, and it still isn't enough.

Heroes and Villains

Light and Dark

Framing for a crime

Who knew a letter could destroy everything?

Character Portraits

Edeva Vitaire - Once a woman with everything: title, gowns, respect, the lot, now she is nothing more than an Exilza, someone exiled to the Half-Lands for a crime she did not commit. Edeva has learned the hardest of ways how someone can lose everything, and she knows what to sacrifice for revenge - she wants her mother's killer more than she wants her innocence restored, and she has only learned to survive in the wilds this long because of it. Mild-mannered by birth, spine steeled by survival, Edeva will do whatever it takes to get answers, even if it means partnering with the last person in the world she would want to help her.

Lucien Vaisey - Trained from birth to serve and protect the Alvarros, Aliria's Royal Family, Lucien understands duty more than most, and what it costs. His sword is at the mercy of other's commands, except when it comes to protecting those he cares for, then, this soldier truly becomes something fearsome.

Fenley Evander - Outcast by nature, damned in soul, Fenley is one of the few with a stomach for violence, and the darkened desire to do something with it. He kills for coin, to maintain a balance in the world, but there is no balance in himself. Plagued by a power deemed unnatural, Fenley is forced to hide his true nature, until the time calls for it. A dangerous man as ever lived, Fenley does not mourn for where his afterlife lies, instead he devours the fear others bestow upon him. He feeds the emptiness inside, and still he continues to hunger for something far harsher than violence - revenge, and to obtain it, he will stoop to wretched depths - manipulation, murder, and even betrayal - no man, nor woman, on this earth can possibly get in his way.

Chapters!

Part One:

Hunt & Hunter

Monsters & Mavericks

Saviour & Solace

Ashes & Absolution

Murders & Markets

Blood & Bravery

Cabins & Crime

Invitations & Irritation

Farewell & Forever

Emancipation & Exile

Puppet & Puppeteer

Part Two (this is as far as I've got with edits and changing chapter names so far, I'll update when I get more done)

Dance of Dismay

Lament of Larkhill

Rumours of Rage

Night of Nothing

Aches of Affliction

Trials of Twilight

Climb of Contemplation

Death of Diplomacy

My Inspiration!

This section is simply me getting to ramble about the things that stoked the fires of my imagination - movies, books, shows - songs, all the works! (as and when i recall/think of more, i'll add them to the list)

The Cruel Prince - had to go far into the depths of my memory for this one, but it was this series that truly got me invested in the likes of Fae and that sort of fantasy, and I took a lot of inspo from that! (in the early days, the Haelish were Fae but I wanted to go outside of that character stereotype and create my own fantasy bloodline/species, for lack of a better word)

Throne of Glass - to this day i'm still in awe of the world, the plot, the characters, everything and though i've only read it once parts of it have stuck with me

Six of Crows - the heist aspect of my novel shockingly came about before i'd read this but it certainly helped that part of the plot along

Red Queen - the villain of my novel, not saying who because who enjoys massive spoilers? (spoiler alert - not me), was deeply, deeply inspired from this series - I'd wager it was the first fantasy novel I'd read that gave me an insight into a truly 'dark' character, and I loved that, and of course, I used it as inspiration and to this day I am still torn between preferring a villainous character to a hero - it's one of the tropes I really, really enjoy

Far From Home by Sam Tinnesz - this was one of the very first songs I'd found for my initial writing playlist, and it's been played many, many times since

Lovely by Fleurie and Tommee Profitt - this embodied the regality and the tension that takes place in so many parts of my story, it was impossible not to be inspired

To Be Alone by Hozier - my ears will never forgive me for this, but it's true of any Hozier song, but this is one of my favourites

Pirates of the Caribbean - grew up watching these repeatedly, needless to say some of the characters did give me inspiration

The Mummy - one of my absolute favourite movies of all time, Rick O'Connell's attitude was an important factor for me to take inspiration from, he's such an interesting character

[chalicedefinite]

I have been on this tag since day one and the majority of the posts and blogs I've seen adore Louis. Pointing out canonical traits like him actively lying in Canon books and now the show as well is not being hateful or disrespectful. Saying episode 5 and the whole tale infact being revisited is Not fans of lestat being apologists. It is what Anne Rice canonically did with the Vampire Lestat and the books that followed. Louis is loved widely in this tag. Lestat is being hated on as a result of the villainous portrayal in season 1 which again Canonically is a tale (not a true one) being told both in books and in the show. A lot of people however took it too far with the lestat hate and started calling anyone who liked him names and then people starting to fight back and the rest is how we got to here. If there is no understanding to fans of both characters the two most loved characters in the show -who at the end of the series canonically end up together- then what the hell is the point of being in this Fandom in the first place? Please don't take this as a personal attack it wasn't meant as one but as another person's experience and thoughts of the fandom so far.

I’m going to be honest I find this very hard to believe that it was only just about liking Lestat.

I’ve gotten more hate and vitriol from Lestat fans ever since I’ve joined this fandom. I’ve never talked bad about his character and I make it very clear on my blog that I love him and that he’s my favorite character both in the show and in the books. And yet, because I calmly engaged with a popular blog’s theory about episode 5; everyday I wake up to hate in my inbox that I have to delete. Lestat fans have been nothing but disrespectful to me for no reason.

Im a Lestat fan myself and I talk about how much I love him all the time it seems and I haven’t been once called a racist. I’ve had anons accusing me of hating Lestat but never ones accusing me of racism. This is the second time someone has told me that Lestat fans are bullied for liking him when all I’ve seen and experienced thus far is the exact opposite which begs the question: Is it really because you like Lestat or is it something deeper that other people picked up on but not you yourself? 3. How is anyone’s rational response as a human to someone calling them racist for liking Lestat is to deny the systemic oppression of black people? This is the main thing that doesn’t make a lick of sense to me. How did we go from, “Users were attacked for liking Lestat” to “So a bunch of blogs are now starting to agree with and talk about how reverse racism is real.” I’ve gotten attacked for liking characters before and my reaction to that is blocking whoever is causing trouble and ignoring them. I got harassed to hell and back in the Voltron fandom for defending and liking Allura and never at any point was I thinking about how affirmative action is the real systematic evil plaguing society. If this kind of thinking was always in the back of certain people’s head as they were analyzing the show then it’s safe to say that people weren’t mad at them just because they liked Lestat. You can not properly analyze a show where a black man talks about how he was systematically oppressed for being black when you don’t even believe in systemic oppression yourself. How can you sit down and watch this show where Louis is constantly being put down by the white people around him, where he has to pretend to be his husband’s chauffeur, where you see white people burning a black neighborhood, where Louis and Claudia cant even sit next to Lestat and have to sit at the back of the bus and come out of it thinking that reverse racism exists in our society? Louis is the age of a lot of black people’s great grandfather, what he went through was not that long ago and the society he lives is still alive today.

4. What purpose would it serve narratively to have Louis and Claudia lie about episode 5? I’m leaving this question here because the last time I tried to have this discussion it led to anons hounding me.

[eardun]

So I have this amazing fanfic idea, hear me out:

The society is split between heroes, the defenders of justice, and villains, the masters of instilling fear.

Deku is a wicked villain who runs a large corporation, seen by the media as a rich playboy. He nurtures plans to destroy the hero system.

All Might learns that the Hero Association is run by extraordinary people who control the world from the shadows. They founded the Hero Association to turn everyone's admiration for heroes into a religion, so they can hide their crimes and keep people unaware of the true problems that plague the world.

All Might confronts them but tragically dies, falling victim to their evil schemes.

His successor, Lemillion, learns about this and decides to fight against them.

He gets mortally wounded in a battle, and in his last dying breath, passes his quirk to Dynamight.

Katsuki’s quirk merges with OFA and he defeats this villainous organization.

He and his friends become the new Symbols of Hope, while the hero profession takes on a new meaning – it stops being about fame, power and prestige and becomes about upholding honor, virtue and helping those in need first.

Villain Deku had been observing this whole spectacle from the shadows. He flees to another Universe using a time-travel machine, but gets intercepted by heroes and accidentally messes up the controls, waking up in the present Universe of My Hero Academia. There, he’s All Might’s successor, and Dynamight isn’t his archenemy, but a childhood rival instead

The Hero Association isn't controlled by some dark shady group either... Or is it?

Deku has to navigate in this new reality, and this is where the story begins.

AO3 Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/45672259/chapters/114932653

[darklordazalin]

Azalin Reviews Darklord Adam

Domain: Lamordia Formation: 575 BC (the actual date various in different sources, but I was there to witness its formation, so take this date to be the most accurate) Power Level: 💀💀💀⚫⚫ Sources: Ravenloft Gazetteer Vol 2 (3e); Domains of Dread (2e); I, Strahd the War Against Azalin (Novel).

Based on rumors, Lamordia went through significant changes in its latest rendition, but this week I shall review it as it once was and tell the tale of Darklord Adam and the constant harsh weather that plagues “his” domain. The settlements of this land are constantly assaulted by deadly blizzards and frigid air coming from the Sea of Sorrows in the winter and infestation of insects and insufferable heat in the summer. I do not recommend visiting, especially given how adverse the entire populace is to magic. I am positive my late father would thoroughly enjoy it, however.

Everything about Lamordia is based upon structure and scientific reasoning set within a utilitarian society. The people have a scientific explanation for everything despite the obvious supernatural phenomena that occurs all around them. They are adverse to any type of magic - whether it be the far more superior arcane arts or the divine. This disbelief is so tightly held that the land itself is known to suppress those that attempt any form of casting. Though, I have it on first hand accounts that this effect does not always occur.

It is highly dangerous for those who deny the existence in the arcane to essentially practice it. I’m surprised Lamorida hasn’t imploded in on itself yet, for Dr. Victor Mordenheim’s science clearly surpasses the realm of the supernatural. Given the nature of the domain, you would think Mordenheim would be its Darklord, but he is not. His creation, a flesh golem of rare independence, is the true Darklord of Lamordia.

Let’s dive in a bit to the tale of these two idiots. When Mordenheim and his wife, Elise, were unable to conceive a child, he devoted himself to the study of life and death; above all, other ways in which life could be created. I can...understand that inclination. It is important one has an heir to carry out one's legacy and rule. Of course, he went about it like a blind fool with no sense of the magics he was tapping into for he denied their very existence.

Adam was the result of 13 years of labor which he spent away from Elise. Moredenheim created Adam to appear as a perfect physical specimen. And upon first blush, I suppose one could say that is true. He is muscular yet lean with long black hair and I am told that sort of thing is appealing to some. However, close up he is a mockery of beauty like a horrible painting gifted to a King by a so-called artist.

Made up of pulsating arteries and tendons seen just beneath the thin bits of grey flesh, Adam is disgusted by his own appearance. Interestingly, when my little scholar interviewed Adam he told her that Mordenheim made him but another source provided him with his “soul”. So, it seems that Mordenheim’s science only brought him so far and it was likely the powers he denied that truly brought life into Adam.

Elise was unsettled by Adam’s appearance and despite her discomfort her husband decided to adopt a girl to act as a playmate for Adam. That seems like a very bad parenting decision and coming from me...well, that says something, doesn’t it?

Adam became obsessed with Elise and wanted nothing more than her acceptance and approval. Accounts of what transpired on the night Lamordia appeared on the border of Barovia differs between Adam and his maker. They both blame the other, but in the end whether Adam was a murderous villain or a victim attempting to gain acceptance, his adopted sister fell to her death after an encounter with him and Elise was mutilated.

Death would have been kinder for Elise, but Mordenheim keeps her alive through “scientific” means. Her heart beats through the working of machinery alone and he constantly switches her limbs and skin out in attempts to receive her, but only accomplishes keeping her in constant pain. If the foolish man believed in Divine or even the Arcane and not dismissed those practitioners of both, he could have healed her condition. I myself have been known to use such magics to prolong my own life when I was a mortal man.

Mordenheim’s monstrous creations roam Lamordia, but despite the obvious arcane nature of these creations, the people and the Doctor himself still dismiss the arcane. They will not accept it, just as they will not accept Adam. And this is the curse the Dark Powers bestowed upon Adam, to never find the acceptance he so hopelessly craves. To live alone on an island, over-dramatically named “The Isle of Agony” as he plots against his creator. When my little scholar interviewed Adam he said that Lamordia was Mordenheim’s even though it shouldn’t be and that they were “all his children”.

Adam is tied to Mordenheim and devotes his existence to making the Doctor’s life as miserable as possible, like the overgrown rebellious teenager that he is. Though, this is quite easy seeing as the Dark Powers bond the two together so that Adam experiences Mordenheim’s physical pain and the doctor experiences his creation’s angsty teenage ways.

As flesh golems go, Adam is one of a kind with many immunities to mundane weapons and certain magical energies. Still, without any arcane mastery of his own, a skilled wizard could make quick work of him. Though his curse is interesting, it makes his tie and rule over his own realm obsolete. As such, I will give Adam 3 skulls for this review and Mordenheim does not even get a skull. I despise those that practice the art without respecting it and those who do so without realizing it? Utter fools.

[kywritess]

Bleeding Red

Introduction Chapter

K.Bakugo x Vigilante reader

warning. vigilante!reader, angst, violence, prohero!Bakugo, aged up (early 20's)

A/N. Hi everyone! This is a short introduction to a Bakugo x Reader fic I have been working on, Bleeding Red. My brain has been in overdrive the past few months coming up with ideas. I hope you guys love this concept as much as I do. I am very open to criticism and would love to hear what you guys think. Also keep in mind that this is just an introduction, the first chapter of this fic will be out by the end of the week. Thank you and happy reading!

.......................................................................................................

In the buslting city of Musutafu, there lived a vigilante named Y/N Kiyoshi. With her lighting fast reflexes, immortality, and unwavering sense of justice she single-handedly fought off villains and saved countless lives. The people of Musutafu idolized the masked vigilante, considering her the epitome of bravery and virtue.

Y/N, once a student at U.A., dedicated her life to protecting the innocent and upholding the law. However, as time went on, she grew increasingly frustrated with the flaws and limitations of the hero society. She witnessed criminals exploiting loopholes and escaping justice, leaving the innocent to suffer. Her faith in the system began to crumble.

One fateful night, while pursuing a gang of notorious criminals alongside a fellow student, she found herself face-to-face with the corrupt Chief of police, who had been secretly aiding the very criminals she was meant to apprehend. The man, known as Kenji Tsuragamae, sneered at the girl, revealing the depth of corruption within the system. Consumed by anger and disillusionment, Y/N realized that relying soley on the law was no longer enough to combat the deep-rooted corruption plaguing the city. 

In that moment, a profound transformation overcame her. The once trusted second year U.A. student made a decision that would change her life forever. She shed her brightly colored costume and put on a mask, vowing to take justice into her own hands. Three years later she became the shadow that struck fear into the hearts of criminals- a vigilante fighting for justice beyond the confines of the law.

Donning a new identity, Y/N became known as Nova, the enigmatic vigilante of Musutafu. Armed with her unparalled combat skills and a newfound ruthlessness, she lurked in the darkness, targeting villains who believed they were above the law. Nova's methods were unorthodox, often toeing the line between right and wrong, but she believed that the ends justified the means.

As Nova, Y/N operated from the shadows, carefully gathering intelligence and targeting the most dangerous criminals who had evaded the laws grasp. With each successful takedown and kill, her reputation grew among the city's oppressed and disillusioned citizens. While some feared her and her methods, others saw her as a symbol of hope- a symbol that justice could prevail even in the face of a broken system.

As the city's crime rate plummeted and corrupt officials found themselves exposed, Her alter ego became a thorn in the side of the establishment. The hero society, torn between gratitude for her work, and the exposure of the law. Nova had targets on her back, Pro Heroes that wanted her gone. 

Yet, the girl remained resolute. She had seen the true face of corruption, and was determined to tear it down, brick by brick. While she acknowledged that her methods were controversial, she firmly believed that they were necessary to protect the innocent and bring the justice to Musutafu.

So, what happens when the number one hero Endeavor, hands Nova an ultimatum? Having to choose between freedom or the thing that she holds deep down in her heart. She knows what must be done, but can she successfully do it without hurting the ones she loves the most?

[thekingofavon]

King Lear

EDMUND

 “Thou, Nature, art my goddess. To thy law

 My services are bound. Wherefore should I

 Stand in the plague of custom, and permit

 The curiosity of nations to deprive me

 For that I am some twelve or fourteen moonshines

 Lag of a brother? why “bastard”? Wherefore “base,”

 When my dimensions are as well compact,

 My mind as generous and my shape as true

 As honest madam’s issue? Why brand they us

 With “base,” with “baseness,” “bastardy,” “base,”

 “base,”

 Who, in the lusty stealth of nature, take

 More composition and fierce quality

 Than doth within a dull, stale, tired bed

 Go to th’ creating a whole tribe of fops

 Got ’tween asleep and wake? Well then,

 Legitimate Edgar, I must have your land.

 Our father’s love is to the bastard Edmund

 As to th’ legitimate. Fine word, “legitimate.”

 Well, my legitimate, if this letter speed

 And my invention thrive, Edmund the base

 Shall ⌜top⌝ th’ legitimate. I grow, I prosper.

 Now, gods, stand up for bastards!” (Act 1, Scene 2, Lines 1-23 )

In this speech, we hear Gloucester's “bastard son” giving his take down speech for Edgar(the legitimate son). This is, again, something that we see with villains in Shakespeare’s  plays. They are often scorned or feel that they have an extremely huge importance in society and others should recognize it too. It gives them their back story on why they do what they do. They think that taking down the world is going to make everything right within them and banish the past.

[foxiswriting]

four basic types of villains

understanding where your villain(s) fall into these basic categories is one of the first steps towards developing them into a multi-dimensional character that you truly understand.

the evil villain!!

the stereotypical villain, the one that usually comes right to mind

they are cruel, selfish, and don’t care who they hurt to reach their goals. if you really, really want your reader to hate your villain, this is probably the route to go

they are usually hypocritical, and the best (or worst) part is, they are always the hero of their own stories. they will find a way to justify all their actions, and in their opinions, they aren’t doing anything wrong. very end justifies the means, except their “end” isn’t usually very cool either lol

they lack compassion and take full pleasure in their sadistic nature. they may have god complexes and believe they are always right, and because they’re both cruel and hypocritical, they are especially hated by readers.

the insane villain!!

to preface this, not everyone that has mental disorders is evil. this is a harmful stereotype that should be avoided at all costs.

the insane villain is a villain not because they are “psychotic” or “out of their mind,” but because something about them takes away their ability to recognize the difference between right and wrong. they, unlike evil villains, do not believe their actions are justified, nor do they think their actions are cruel.

very hard to sway emotionally because despite not (usually) having sensible reasons for their actions, they are steadfast. because they cannot be swayed, they make for fierce opponents

the reader most likely won’t hate this villain if they understand it’s almost uncontrollable. they might pity them for not being able to understand otherwise.

the envious villain!!

this villain may be hated passionately by those attached to the hero/victim, but they also hold room to be pitied and understood, because we have ALL been this villain before to varying degrees

they are driven by jealousy, ego, and insecurity, vices that plague everyday people. they treat others badly out of spite, and to them, the situation is personal. to them, the other is the villain just like with most other instances.

many times, this villain seems to have it all, but the reader finds out through time that the front they put forth is a disguise for their true struggles. think of the popular girl that bullied the protagonist and is fighting for prom queen. we all hate her, until at the end we learn why she is so cruel.

this villain is seen as the most human, but they shouldn’t be underestimated. it’s our most human faults that drive us to do the worst things.

the ethical villain!!

the ethical villain, just like the evil villain, believes that the end justifies the means, except this time, their version of the end is genuinely good.

the ethical villain isn’t a bad guy. they are someone that wants so desperately to do something good that now, they’ll go to any measures to achieve it. blinded by self-righteousness and their own moral code, they don’t realize that the destruction they cause may not be worth their end goal.

for the most part, this villain’s values line up with society’s — until they don’t. it’s when or where they don’t match that the villain becomes the villain. ethical villains are morally grey characters. they invoke great response from readers who become frustrated by being unable to formulate rigid opinions on them, and they add a lot of depth to your character(s).

if you want your protagonist to also be the villain, this would be the obvious approach.

[mettywiththenotes]

Dabi And Stain’s Body Count

Okay so I’ve talked about this before with Dabi, but let’s also talk about Stain and this connection

With Dabi, I theorized that he’d planned those 30 murders for the sake of ruining Endeavor, not because he wanted to. That he did this only to be established as a Villain and then leave it at 30

Which was only a simple theory until Stain said this in the recent chapter

40 murders. That’s quite a lot, and yet not as many as you would think someone called The Hero Killer would have

Stain’s goal, his will, is to do away with the fakes of society. Any Hero looking for only fame or money, he targets and kills them. Except, let’s not forget where Stain started

Before he became a killer, he entered into a private high school. Private. Which means his family must have had a lot of money, or at least enough to get him into the school. He then despaired over the corrupt view of Heroes in the system and dropped out

He started making speeches, pressing for True Hero revival, but this ended when he said that words are lacking power. In the 10 years that followed, he trained himself to kill which is where he got his skillful blade wielding from

He says Hero isn’t a title to be given out to those seeking rewards and fame, and the narrator described Stain’s influence as a purge

And, personally, I always found it hard to see where Dabi was taking inspiration from Stain. He said he’s following “Stain’s will”, but nothing so far had shown why and what parts he was following exactly

But now I get it

40 is enough to get you seen. It’s enough to make you acknowledge the killer

10? No. 20, a glance maybe. 30 causes the world to look your way. 40 makes you feared

Hopefully you’ve had a look at the link and skimmed the post to know my thoughts with Dabi on this

Dabi, too, has controlled his kill count. For Dabi to be a Villain, for Dabi to be seen as a killer, you would expect the count to be higher. But it isn’t. It’s always that specific number that gets repeated; 30

Dabi is Touya. He’s a Villain, but he’s still that little boy trying to get attention, trying to be acknowledged by the world and his father

Just as Stain is Chizome, the boy who wants a just society, Dabi is Touya, the boy who wants to be acknowledged

The similarities don’t end at the body count. The commentary for Stain’s internet video strikes me with very similar narratives too

“Deeply impressed by All Might’s debut, he sought to become a Hero.”

Private school = a lot of money, and as we know, the Todoroki’s are very wealthy

“He despaired over the fundamentally corrupt view of the Heroes within the educational system.”

“He dropped out the summer after his freshman year.”

“He concluded that words alone are lacking in power.”

“Only through a relentless purge can society be made aware.”

“This guy’s whole style is gonna spread like the plague.”

A plague... almost like an apocalypse... a catastrophe of some kind

The only bit of that video that differs is the part where Stain had said “Hero should be a title earned through tireless self-sacrifice.”

Whereas Dabi’s hot take is

I believe that Dabi took inspiration from Stain almost word for word

The body count is similar in how small it is, they both have a fall and rise story, and they have a singular moment which defines them, something that makes them famous, something that had an incredible impact on the country

One more thing I want to add is this quote said by the news presenter after Stain’s capture

Stain’s body count of 40 is, apparently, a large number for an independent Villain. It’s, apparently, a mark on the history books

Dabi killed 10 below that number

Remember what I said before?

10 victims? No. 20, a glance maybe. 30 causes the world to look your way. 40 makes you feared

It’s quite interesting that Dabi didn’t want to aim higher, or even surpass Stain. He kept it at 30, which tells me that maybe there’s a sense of humanity in him. Or maybe that he didn’t want to turn full Villain. Again, I’ve talked about this in the linked post

I think it’s also interesting that we’ve never actually been told Stain’s exact body count until now (from memory anyway). They only said “With the largest number of murders (...)” which, upon hearing, you would think would be higher for such a famed murderer

Which means that Dabi must have researched this. If they hadn’t said it in the news, if they didn’t even seem to say it in the internet video, then Dabi had to have researched his body count

I keep seeing a humanity in Dabi, a self-awareness, where if he had taken inspiration from Stain and researched the body count which was 40 - if he wanted revenge and wanted to make the world see but didn’t know where to even start, and then came across Stain’s video - then he’d use his will but make it uniquely Touya

I wonder if a part of Dabi/Touya didn’t want to kill, not as much as Stain anyway, so he killed as much as was possible to make him seen. He’d use Stain’s will but still be himself

Of course, the “no true heroes” differs, but the action of it all? Minimal kill count, famous videos, rise and fall with admiring Heroes? It’s so similar that I just can’t see it being any other way

Thank you for reading :)

EDIT:

@lastsunlight​ brought to my attention that Stain’s kill count BEFORE prison was 17, and after prison, where he likely killed some if not most of the retired fake Heroes when he got out, it was 40. I was under the impression that Stain’s body count was 40 even before prison, but this is actually super interesting!

(I’ve discussed with lastsunlight’s ask about Stain’s 17-40 kill count here, but I want to talk about his connection with Dabi regarding this)

Dabi killed 30 people, whereas Stain before prison killed 17 people.

This actually makes Dabi more famous than Stain

Stain’s independent kill count was 17

Dabi’s independent kill count is 30

The news presenter said himself that

Stain’s was the largest number of murders of any independent Villain. He made history

And, as we know, Dabi worked alone to kill those 30 people. He was a part time independent Villain in a way

So what this means is Dabi surpassed Stain

Dabi has made history, not just by revealing that he’s the son of the Number One Hero, but by being the youngest and only independent Villain to kill 30 people since the advent of All Might

Of course, there are different factors to take into account

Stain is basically a human, so he was chasing after Heroes with quirks that could outrun him or overpower him. He had his skill and his own agility but at the end of the day he’s a human man who has to get close enough to taste blood in order to win - I know he did this with Tensei but I just mean in his earlier years, where he was just starting out. Let’s also remember that Stain seriously injured 24 Heroes during his time as Hero Killer, so these are likely 24 Heroes that only just got away, maybe because of their quirks

Dabi has a fire quirk that works long-range. He could kill people from far away if he wanted to (and he has)

Really, Dabi has a little more advantage over Stain, quirk-wise, but agility is a big factor too. No doubt Dabi has quite good reflexes but I don’t think his agility is anything much, while Stain has been training for 10 years in the art of killing, and an extra 2-to-5 years killing Heroes; overall 12 to 15 years of agility training in order to catch up to the enemy

Another thing too is that Dabi probably started killing once he watched Stain’s video, which means Dabi has been spacing out his kills for at least a year, whereas Stain has been killing for 2-to-5 years (not counting training where he may or may not have killed a person, who knows)

There’s quite a few things to take into account between these two and how many they have killed, but it doesn’t change the end result: Stain - 17, Dabi - 30

OR AT LEAST IT WOULD BE THE END RESULT, had Stain not come up in the latest chapter and said

So, narratively, Stain bumped up to Famous Independent Villain status again. Kind of. All Might’s era is already over with, and with the general chaos after the War, I doubt anybody is keeping track of a murderer’s kill count, but still

I actually find it kind of funny that Stain was the most famous, then Dabi, and now it’s like Stain has come back to “reclaim his position” or something lmao

BUT let’s also take into account their influence

Stain inspired Dabi, then Dabi kills people and shakes the world with his reveal, causing the collapse of Hero society, then Stain comes back and, likely as a result of Dabi’s consequence, begins to kill people again. We’ve come full circle

I say “full circle” but I kind of hope Dabi and Stain keep narratively competing to see who shakes the world more. I’d love to see it

[longitudinalwaveme]

The Mayor of Central City tells the RPG heroes about the crisis facing Central City in a manner that oddly implies that a) Captain Cold being in Central City is a sign of something unusually bad happening rather than just business as usual, b) that the Cheetah lives in or near Central City or has for some reason been sent to a mental institution far away from where she lives, and c) that the mayor moved to Central City from somewhere else. 

The book states that the mayor is a former police officer, but it also makes it clear that he’s unused to dealing with the costumed crowd. But the Central City police force worked with the Flash all the time. And the Rogues have been plaguing the area for forever. And the Justice League occasionally drops by. In other words, he can’t possibly be native to Central City; nor can he have lived there for any length of time. But if that’s the case, how did he get elected as Mayor? 

Also, the book seems to imply that the Secret Society of Super-Villains are invading the city from the outside (Pied Piper is called out as being a native, but he’s the only one). This is in spite of the fact that Captain Cold and Golden Glider are also native to the city and should by all rights have already been there. It’s kind of confusing, actually.

Also confusing is the fact that the Rogues aren’t ever mentioned as an established criminal group in the area. True, Mirror Master, Golden Glider, Captain Cold, and the Pied Piper are either part of or trying to become part of both groups, but it does seem a bit odd that the Central City guys are totally cool with this outside group coming in and taking over their town. Some of this is, of course, modern Captain Cold’s characterization bleeding backwards to affect my perception of this 1986 RPG book, but even in the Bronze Age the Flash Rogues were a defined group with a stated fondness for Central City (see for reference Flash #243-244, among others). Why they aren’t being addressed at all is hence a bit of a mystery. 

On a less nitpicky note, LOL at Sam getting knocked out during an attempted robbery. I know that it’s probably meant to imply that the police knocked him out, but I just get this hilarious mental image of him, like, slipping on a mirror or something and knocking himself out before the police even get there. 

[randomrosewrites]

Scorched by the sun

*Contains BNHA manga spoilers up to chapter 291*

Pairing: Hawks x gender netural reader

Word count: ~1700

He looks so small without his wings. Helpless. Without them, he seems younger than he actually is. It’s so hard to think that the person in your arms is a pro-hero, and not just some college student trying to pay off his student debt.

He’s still so young, and yet, he’s already had to decide between his life and the life of others.

Warnings/ tags: BNHA manga spoilers *Up to chapter 291*, angst, brief instance of a panic attack, decription of Hawks’ injuries, angst and fluff, reader is a pro-hero��

a/n: I needed to get my feelings out about Hawks in the latest chapter so take this (with better medical treatment because why the fuck would you lay an unconscious person face down?) Also, the reader’s relationship with Hawks is never specified

Read it also on my ao3!

WARNING: This work has BNHA manga spoilers up to chapter 291 

Everything is in chaos. 

People are screaming, multiple sirens wail in the distance, and the smell of smoke clings to the air, even with how far away you are from the battlefield. There’s this persistent urgency that spreads like a plague from person to person, making your nerves jolt with electricity. 

“Bring only what’s essential and light enough for you to carry!” you shout, directing a wave of people further away from the evacuated area. “Leave behind anything heavy or non-essential!”

Boom! An explosion a few blocks down makes the ground shake so much you have to put a hand out and steady yourself. You grit your teeth and regain your balance. That was the closest one yet and they’re just getting closer. 

Things aren’t looking great for the heroes. Even though you’re on their side, that doesn’t mean you don’t agree with what they’re doing. 

You never agreed with the world the Hero Public Safety Commission strived to enforce. One where heroes were expected to always triumph, where they never lost, where they were always pure of heart. Just listening to that gobbldy-gook being ranted about everywhere you went was enough to make you roll your eyes. 

No, you aren’t on the side of heroes to hold up the ideals of the commission. You’re only one reason why you’re on the side of the heroes. Specifically, one person. 

That’s when you hear it on the radio. 

‘H - kws i-s….d...own...out...figh…’

Your heartbeat pounds in your chest. You press the bud deeper into your ear, moving to get a better reception. 

‘H...awks….is...Hawks is down and unable to fight. I repeat Hawks is down and unable to fight!’

Your blood turns to ice. 

You don’t think, you just move. You take off, sprinting in the opposite direction of those evacuating. One of the on-duty heroes calls your name, you don’t hear them. 

You shouldn’t be doing this - you know you shouldn’t - but you can’t help yourself. 

The radio crackles in your ear. “ Y/N, hold your position!”

“Where is he?” you bark into it. 

“That’s not-”

“Where is he!?” 

The person on the other end sighs. “The temporary med camp by the rear guard - don’t! -”

You tug the bud out of your ear, letting it bang against your shoulder as you run.

Please don’t be dead, please be ok. You pray, forcing yourself to sprint faster.    

---

You go as fast as you can, but it still takes you a while to each the medical camp the person on the radio was talking about. 

Located behind the last line of defense, the place is a chaotic, frantic mess. Broken trees are snapped in half and lying on the ground, rubble is strewn across the camp and some white, medical tents have collapsed on themselves, temporary beams propped up haphazardly to keep them from falling completely.

Doctors and nurses run around, tending to the wounded, giving out blankets, or passing along bottles of water and first aid kits. The wounded lie on blankets spread out on the ground, wherever space is available. The place reeks of disinfectant and blood, making your nose curl. 

You pass, ten, twenty, and even thirty wounded. They’re bloody, pale, writhing in agony or clenching their teeth as cold sweat pours from their face. The knot in your stomach only worms itself tighter with each person you pass. 

Then you spot him. 

Near the end of the camp, lying on his stomach, covered in bandages from the waist up.

Hawks. 

Or a figment of what used to be Hawks, the number two pro-hero. There’s no sign of his beautiful, large, red wings, only little bandaged humps where the stumps would be. His hair is tousled, singed at the edges and spread upon the pillow like a halo. 

Tokoyami is beside him, eyes wide when he notices you. “Y/N!”

“Oh,-” the cogs in your brain turn and you rush forward. “Oh my god. Jesus, Tokoyami, why is he on his front?!” 

Don’t cry. You tell yourself. Don’t cry and don’t panic.

You kneel beside him going to touch Hawks before you pause. You know it’s bad to move people that are injured. “Is his neck injured? Why is he on his front? He shouldn’t be on his front! You could cut off his airway!” Fuck it, bad or not, you’ll take it over Hawks suffocating. Being as gentle as you can, you gently roll Hawks onto his side. His body is limp as you do it - he’s unconscious. 

“I- I didn’t know,” Tokoyami splutters. “There’s been so much going on and there’s not enough doctors and-” he cuts off, choking on his own words.

Fuck. The poor kid is terrified and looks to be on the verge of tears. You take a breath, putting a hand on his shoulder. 

“Hey, look at me.” 

He lifts his eyes to meet yours. 

“I’m sorry for yelling at you. I shouldn’t have done that. I was panicking, and not thinking straight.” You shouldn’t have even moved Hawks without knowing how severely he was injured. “Deep breaths. Slow. Ok? Here, breathe with me.” 

The two of you take breaths together. As you do, your eyes travel to Hawks. Relief floods you when you see his chest rise and fall slowly.  He’s breathing. 

You breathe in silence. You don’t want to say ‘Everything is gonna be ok’ or give some sort of false reassurances to Tokoyami, because will it? You don’t know.

Once you’ve both calmed down, you ask him, “Can you tell me how he’s doing?”

“He’s badly burned.” Tokoyami starts. “I tried to stop it as best as I could but…”

You clutch Hawks tighter. “Who?”

“Dabi.”

You growl. That bastard who’d been ranting on the television just as you had almost reached the camp. Among his speech, he’d made a few stabs at Hawks, claiming he was a violent person and revealing to the world how he murdered a villain in ‘cold blood’. 

Your fingers tighten. Hawks killed someone, in cold-blood or not. It’s a hard but true pill you need to swallow. 

Despite that, you want nothing more than to wrap your arms around Hawks and hold onto him for dear life. The only thing stopping you from doing that is the fear of aggravating his injuries further. You settle for combing your fingers through his hair. What would normally feel soft and healthy now feels like dry straw between your fingers. 

Just how badly was he burned?

“I asked Hawks what to do and he told me to run, so I grabbed him and ran as fast as I could,” Tokoyami continues. “We got here less than an hour ago.”

You look down at Hawks, where the little patches of bandages don’t cover his face. The skin is an angry shade of red, stretching up his neck and his face. “Is it...bad?”

“He’s stable, but he’s in rough shape. He hit his head as I was trying to get us back and he’s been unconscious since then.”

You brave yourself for the thing you’re most nervous about. “How about his wings?” you ask breathlessly. 

“...There’s barely anything left. The doctor’s don’t know if they can be saved at all.” Tokoyami pauses, biting his lip. “I wonder, if I’d been faster-”

“Hey. No,” you interrupt him. “Don’t start that. You did amazing, Tokoyami.” You pull him into a tight hug with one arm, nails digging into his back and tears pricking your eyes. “Thank you, thank you so much for saving him. Thank you for keeping him alive.”

Toyokyami slowly wraps his arms around you, squeezing tightly and sniffling. Dark shadow pops out from under his cloak and wraps around the two of you. You hold each other like that for a while, letting the moment soak in.

When you finally release Tokoyami, you’ve both got tears in your eyes. He hands you a handkerchief and you gratefully use it to wipe your eyes. 

A sudden roar shakes the air and ground, reminding you of your situation. You both look in the direction of it and grimace. The fight’s not over. 

Tokoyami turns back to you, face serious once more. “Can you watch over Hawks? I’m gonna go see what I can do to help.” 

“No,” you say firmly. “Tokoyami, you’re exhausted. Dark Shadow’s lost most of his strength too.” He seems unconvinced, so you keep going. “If you push your limits, you’ll get yourself or someone else killed.” 

He hesitates, brow furrowing. 

You sigh. “Look, I got Hawks. Just...stay here and get some rest, ok?” 

Even with his quirk, he’s still just a kid. His biggest concern should be studying for a test or figuring out where to eat for supper. Not worrying about society falling apart or having to die on the battlefield. 

“Ok…” Tokoyami relents. “I will.”

He heads off into one of the tents, supposedly to get a bit of rest in the dark.  

In your arms, Hawks twitches in his unconscious slumber. Your attention turns back to him and you rub a hand over his hair, shushing him.

“It’s alright,” you coo. “I’m here.” 

He looks so small without his wings. Helpless. Without them, he seems younger than he actually is. It’s so hard to think that the person in your arms is a pro-hero, and not just some college student trying to pay off his student debt.

He’s still so young, and yet, he’s already had to decide between his life and the life of others.

Slow small tears leak from your eyes. You let them fall, curling around Hawks’ fragile form. 

Fuck. You’re feeling so much right now. Both relieved that he’s ok and upset with how much he’s injured. 

But more importantly, you’re so glad he’s alive. So, so so glad. 

You kiss the crown of his hair. He smells heavily of smoke, and you’re heart breaks at the thought of how painful his fight must have been, how scared he must have been. 

“I’ve got you,” you whisper, clutching him tightly “I’ve got you and I’m not letting you go.” 

You don’t know what Hawks’ future will hold. You don’t know how hard his recovery will be. You don’t know what will happen when he wakes up to his entire life being shattered before his very eyes. You don’t know if he’ll have the strength to piece the broken shards of it back together. 

You don’t know what will happen. But for now, you hold him close, staying by his side until he does open his eyes. 

[thevoidable]

Why did Dabi let Hawks into the League? (major manga spoilers ahead)

This is a question that’s been plaguing my head ever since Dabi proudly announced to Hawks that he’d known all along that he was lying.

If that was the case, what was the point of bringing him in? Surely Dabi must have seen this coming by enabling Hawks to continue his infiltration? What exactly was Dabi’s end-goal here???

It’s unclear whether or not if this will get explained eventually, but after giving it a lot of thought, I think I have a pretty good answer to the question regardless. Essay under the cut.

What is Dabi fighting for?

First, we have to address Dabi’s motivations. They run deeper than just making Stain’s will a reality - he’s taking steps that Stain never even considered to make, because even he was blinded by something that Dabi despises more than anything: hero idolization. Stain saw All Might as a true hero, someone worthy of the title, but in Dabi’s eyes, All Might is one of the biggest contributing factors to why there is such a huge problem with the hero system, and aside from All Might allowing other heroes to become complacent, it’s all because of Endeavour.

Hawks and Dabi are two sides of the same coin when it comes to the new no. 1; Hawks grew up seeing Endeavour’s ambition to surpass All Might as impressive and heroic, mostly due to the fact that Hawks himself lacks the drive to become so great, because all he wants is to live life comfortably. But for Dabi, Endeavour’s need to surpass All Might was nothing but a blinded greed for power, the need to be the best of the best for his own selfish desires rather than to actually save people. It was a path that led him to horrifically abuse his own family in order to achieve it, because he saw Quirk breeding as the only way to fix his own flaws. As such, Dabi, AKA Toya, suffered greatly at the hands of it. He knows firsthand just how much the hero system is unjust, allowing for people with unhealthy mindsets like Endeavour to gain positions of power. He knows that people admire Endeavour for his heroism, but are unaware of the monster that lurks behind closed doors, even when his temper comes out during public patrols. This is a man who is the very definition of a false hero, a man who let his eldest son die and traumatized his entire family.

Dabi goes on to claim in chapter 267 that there are no true heroes - this, however, does not mean that true heroes cannot exist. All he means is that there are simply no heroes currently present and he plans to change that, because in the system that society has right now, it’s near-impossible. Hero idolization forces heroes to become perfect images that people can admire, and it also enforces the mindset that only the greatest heroes can come from schools like UA and Shiketsu. This results in a flood of people longing to become heroes for reasons other than saving people. Uraraka, for example, while she is gentle and kind-hearted, is still only becoming a hero so she can support her family. It’s a well-paying job, and that kind of promise will most certainly lure anyone in who is desperate enough. Yes, she has good intentions in mind, and she does want to save people, but saving people is not her ultimate goal. So, by Dabi’s definition, she is not a true hero.

Becoming a hero should also not be as easy as it is, and becoming a hero certainly should not start at such a young age. UA and the other hero schools are putting teenagers between the ages of 15 - 19 at severe risk, and we’ve seen worst-case scenario results of this twice over the course of the series, and it’s terrifying to think that there are most likely more that we haven’t heard of.

First you have Shirakumo who died before he had even graduated, an incident that led him to becoming a nomu working for the League, who would then go on to cause the second result.

By placing children in such a dangerous training course, it automatically places targets on their backs for villains before they even get their licenses. The League proved just how incapable the staff are at protecting their students by not only successfully attacking a location within the school, but also kidnapping one of said students later on, even after UA’s attempt at keeping the location of the training camp hidden and Dabi himself had revealed their basic plan to Aizawa.

This is all fuel for Dabi’s fire in his journey to rip hero society apart at the seams, and while he is absolutely planning to kill every false hero he comes across, he also has a secondary plan in mind, and that is for the students.

In One’s Justice 2, Dabi has this particular voice line to Hawks: “We’re working for the glorious future where those UA kids are hollowed, and brought down to earth. We’ll have to see what you’re working for.”

Dabi knows that while they are all still young, there is still time to prevent them from falling into every hero’s brainwashed mindset: villains bad, heroes good, no matter what either of them do. 

Something extremely important that the MVA and the current war arcs do is flip the black and white narratives on their heads, showing us just how human and empathetic the villains can be, while the heroes are doing nothing but making unheroic choices and opting for making the violent move first. We’ve seen all of the heroes do nothing but dehumanize Shigaraki, calling him “it” and “thing” like he’s just some monster that they have to kill. We’ve had to watch Hawks murder Twice in the name of “justice” simply because Twice refused to come quietly and be forced back into a life he felt miserable in. Even X-less chose to focus on the machinery next to him rather than getting a near-dead Shigaraki medical attention, and we all know how karma decided to treat that.

And this is where I would like to bring your attention to Tokoyami.

We’ve seen multiple times before how Dabi seems to have no interest in actually harming the students - initially, anyway. He leaves Aoyama alone even though he saw him; he taunts Shoto but doesn’t attack him to get him away; and lastly, Tokoyami first showing up to rescue Hawks actually calms Dabi down. Dabi shows no intent of hurting them because they’re still just kids, not heroes.

Calling back to how the heroes are currently being depicted as the ones making all the disturbing decisions, Dabi doesn’t hesitate to be the first to call out their decision to bring the students into what is essentially a covert-ops assassination mission that has turned into an all-out war. He first recognises that the boy in front of him is just that: a boy, and instead of attacking, Dabi gives Tokoyami a chance.

But what chance, exactly? To escape? Absolutely not.

The first thing Dabi does is make Tokoyami aware of the crime his so-called mentor just committed, and carefully wording it so that the stakes were made clear.

Twice was trying to run away to protect his friends.

But Hawks still killed him.

Dabi is giving Tokoyami a chance to recognise that the hero system he admires hides many skeletons in its closet, and is something that is severely corrupt. He’s giving Tokoyami a chance to rethink his working relationship with Hawks and everything Hawks has taught him.

But Tokoyami doesn’t take it.

As soon as Hawks speaks up again, Tokoyami returns to being obedient, ignoring everything Dabi just said and focusing only on the task at hand regardless of the moral dilemma presented before him, and that’s when Dabi’s intention for Tokoyami changes, because as Dabi put it, “You’ve stopped thinking for yourself.”

And indeed, Tokoyami has. Tokoyami is now cemented in the brainwashed mindset, blindly putting his faith in that Hawks’s decision to kill Twice was right, simply because Twice is the villain and Hawks is the hero, and Dabi realises this.

Tokoyami is now a false hero, and thus on Dabi’s kill list.

So, we have established that Dabi fully intends to wipe-out existing false heroes, while simultaneously trying to save those who have the chance to recover/escape from the brainwashing before it’s too late.

“Keigo Takami!!”

It’s no secret that Dabi clearly knows exactly what kind of situation Hawks is in. The fact that he knows Hawks’s real name alone tells Hawks that Dabi knows far more than he is comfortable with. So, seeing as Dabi was able to see through Hawks’s lies so easily, let’s assume that Dabi knows most, if not all, of what we the readers know about Hawks and how the HPSC groomed him.

Considering that Dabi came from the no. 1 hero’s household, there’s a high chance that he knows quite a bit about the HPSC and just how shady they actually are, especially if the theories are true that they had a hand in covering up his own death. Dabi is well-aware then that the HPSC is responsible for the hero system being so broken, and the reason they do nothing to fix it is so they can stay in power. They are not afraid to make questionable decisions which they know is only making the villain situation worse, because villains are what’s keeping them in business. And what’s sad about this is that even when the decisions they present are clearly morally wrong, the heroes are in no position to argue, because the HPSC is in complete control of their jobs. The HPSC governs the hero system, so whatever they do must be just, right?

Well, Dabi definitely knows the answer to that.

The HPSC deliberately manipulated the heroes to believe that the UA students were needed on the front lines for this mission, and so far, we’ve seen that they really weren’t, actually. The evac team remains the best place for the students to be, because while the pros with all the combat experience can focus on the villains, the heroes-in-training can focus on the smaller task of getting people to safety. Sure, Kaminari, Tokoyami, and the other front-liners helped, but the pros absolutely overwhelmed the PLF on their own. All the front-liners did was just kind of...pave the way, make things easier, and then they were sent back to rejoin their classmates. And the heroes didn’t question the decision at all.

What’s even more disturbing is that the students weren’t even aware of what they were getting into, and most of the pros weren’t aware that the students weren’t aware.

But, as mentioned before, Dabi doesn’t hesitate to call this out.

It’s highly likely that he’s able to connect that the HPSC were the ones who organised this attack and sent the kids out onto the battlefield, which also means that he’s unfortunately no stranger to the HPSC reducing talented children to nothing but weapons, a concept he is also personally familiar with.

Toya was bred with the intent of creating a Quirk superior to Endeavour’s, and then put under extremely harmful training that abused both his mind and his body. We already know that Dabi is heavily against valuing a person’s Quirk over their individual worth, thanks to his fight with Geten.

And in the world of heroics, this unhealthy mindset is unfortunately in abundance, especially in Hawks’s case.

What makes Hawks an especially tragic character is that he started out with the same longing to be a great hero that every child has. He wanted to be a comforting sight to those in need, and his innocent mind thought that the HPSC would help him make that reality.

Instead, the HPSC presented him with a life-changing decision that a child his age has absolutely zero mental capacity to consent to, and it’s heartbreaking that Hawks’s grooming began right from the second they met. The HPSC forced a child into intensive training at an age even younger than students training at proper hero schools, and they ever-so-gradually began chipping away at Keigo’s hopeful dream, starting with the erasure of his own name, the first step in disconnecting him from who he once was.

Over the years of the hero Hawks growing up under the HPSC’s wing, he had been stripped of his childhood and moulded into the perfect image of a hero, one that is loveable to the public, obedient to his handlers, talented in his work, and completely self-sacrificing to his missions.

The HPSC has successfully groomed Hawks so that his selflessness is now their trump card that they hold over him - instead of using his selflessness to save others no matter who they are, he’s been manipulated to believe that he has to give up everything in his life to be a great hero, that he’s not suited for being a “shining light”, thus bringing about his new goal of creating a world where heroes have free time, a goal that he is unfortunately pursuing in the wrong way. He’s been brainwashed to not think about villains too much, to not sympathize with them and dig into where they came from and why they became villains, which is why he’s targeting the wrong problem when it comes to making his dream a reality. He believes that he has to solve every case as fast as possible, and eventually there will be virtually no more villains left to hunt down, but the League has already shown us that the roots of villainy stretch much further down than that.

We catch a glimpse of how Hawks even acknowledges that he’s being held down by hero society, caged, and yet he does nothing to change it.

The result of his grooming has left him stuck in a thoughtless state, where it’s easier to believe that everything he is doing is right, and the villains are wrong.

And this is unfortunately something that he has spread to Tokoyami, as evidenced earlier.

Hawks is a hero who was groomed and manipulated from a young age, being thrown into training just so he could become a tool for those in power to use.

Sounds awfully familiar, doesn’t it?

Dabi can read Hawks like a book

It’s wonderfully ironic how Hawks prides himself in being capable of fooling anyone and everyone, making himself the hardest person in the room to read while simultaneously being able to read everyone else, and yet the one person that he couldn’t predict ends up being the only one who knows him better than anyone else.

Throughout all of their interactions, Dabi has always been two steps ahead of Hawks, able to catch him off-guard and ruffle his feathers. Keeping in mind that Dabi had known all along that Hawks was faking his desire to join the League, it’s interesting just how long Dabi kept stringing him along. Was he simply doing it for his own enjoyment?

Maybe a small part of him was, but in the long run, Dabi was absolutely still testing Hawks’s worthiness. What makes this great, however, is that Hawks was unaware that Dabi wasn’t testing him for what he originally thought.

Loyalty was absolutely out of the question for Dabi, since he knew from the start Hawks wasn’t planning on being as such. So, what exactly was Dabi looking for?

Looking through the tests that we know Dabi put Hawks through (the battle with Hood, and taking out a hero of Hawks’s choice), we can analyse what Dabi was impressed with, and what he wasn’t.

First off, there’s not a lot that Dabi didn’t like about what Hawks did. The most he complained about was Hawks simply bringing along Endeavour to the Hood fight instead of someone else.

It appears that he also complains about Hawks not letting anyone die, but Dabi is always quick to point out when heroes are prioritising lives, and this will become important later.

Then, we have Dabi asking Hawks to take someone out who isn’t the no. 1. When Hawks brought him Jeanist’s body, Dabi was genuinely surprised, but pleasantly-so. 

Now, Jeanist’s death here serves multiple narrative purposes:

It shows us that Hawks won’t hesitate to kill for a mission (RIP Twice),

It shows Dabi that Hawks is capable of killing anyone, not just villains,

And lastly, it serves as blackmail for Dabi in his pursuit of bringing down false heroes.

(There’s also Bakugo’s whole thing with his hero name, but this isn’t about him.)

That last point is what granted Hawks access into the League, contrary to Hawks believing that the only reason he got in is because the merging of the League and the MLA suddenly made it easy to do so. 

Dabi wasn’t going to let Hawks in without making sure he had a backup in mind in case Hawks tripped up.

But, blackmail wasn’t the only thing that Dabi was looking for. If anything, it was just a bonus.

What the Hood battle and Jeanist’s death showed to Dabi were the two sides that Hawks possessed: a bird of prey that isn’t afraid to kill for a cause, and the innocent child who just wanted to help people. Dabi was searching for both of those qualities within Hawks, because they’re both qualities that Dabi himself has.

Dabi relates to Hawks

As previously mentioned, there’s no doubt that Dabi is aware of how Hawks was trained and forced into a life he didn’t want. He’s very aware of how much Hawks longs for freedom but still wants to help those in need, but what separates them from each other is that Dabi has achieved the freedom that Hawks wants and is pursuing his dream in a way that works.

Dabi kills for his cause, but that cause is ultimately to prevent the future suffering of innocent lives at the hands of false heroes. In his own twisted way, he too wants to save lives. He wants to stop the possibility of another him from being created. He is choosing to be the unfriendly reminder that something is very wrong with the current system, and it needs fixing ASAP.

And that is exactly why Dabi can see through Hawks’s lies, because he recognises that Hawks too is a victim of the same system.

Dabi’s plan for Hawks

With Hawks presenting himself in front of Dabi, it offered up a multitude of opportunities for him. Dabi not only had a new connection to Endeavour through Hawks, but here was a hero who was prepared to get his hands extremely dirty just for a way to bring down the League. 

Dabi’s prior knowledge of Hawks and his past allowed him to constantly have the upper hand, but not in case Hawks attacked.

Through testing Hawks to see what qualities he possessed, Dabi was able to see if Hawks was worthy not for joining the League, but for undoing the brainwashing he’d been subjected to.

Dabi let Hawks into the League because he was giving him a chance, the same chance he gave to Tokoyami, to see hero society for what it really was and decide to do something about it. Dabi saw the potential in Hawks to be a true hero, to return to the boy he once was and save people for the sake of saving them. He saw Hawks’s potential to kill false heroes and that he wasn’t afraid to do it, and the idea of someone thinking the same way as Dabi, of understanding him and his goals wholly, would have absolutely been enticing to him.

Dabi claims to not care about the League, but even if that were true, Dabi recognises that the other League members are important to each other, especially when it comes to Twice and how eager he is to make friends. Dabi introducing Hawks to the League was his chance to show Hawks that they’re all human, and gain sympathy for them and what they stand for. It would have been the ultimate power move on Dabi’s part for Hawks to turn on the heroes and go villain, undoing what hero society did to him, providing him the freedom he always wanted and ultimately proving Dabi and his ideals right.

But, unfortunately, that wasn’t how things went.

How Dabi’s plan backfired

When Hawks first joined the PLF, it was obvious that Dabi was sticking close to him, both to keep an eye on him and to be genuinely friendly and accepting.

It’s rare to see a smile like this on Dabi when he’s around heroes, and he never smiles around the League, but for Hawks specifically, Dabi is always smiling. I think it’s safe to say that Dabi did genuinely enjoy Hawks’s company and that he was the only one Dabi actually liked, which is probably what led to him being comfortable with leaving Hawks to his own devices for the next few months, especially when he started a budding friendship with Twice.

Dabi must have been confident that Twice would be the one to break through the last of Hawks’s walls, because if we were seeing genuine smiles from Hawks, then Dabi must have seen them too.

However, it’s clear that Dabi severely underestimated Hawks’s capability to kill anyone. 

Hawks leaked the information to the heroes, an attack was launched, and Dabi immediately knew why.

And he was, understandably, incredibly pissed.

Upon confronting Hawks and hearing how he was about to kill Twice, Dabi used what he’d learned about Hawks during the Hood fight to his advantage and triggered Hawks’s rescue response, prompting him to subconsciously save Twice from Dabi’s flames, because Dabi knows deep down that a hero is who Hawks really is. What he was most likely hoping was for Hawks to maintain that response, but he instead made a mistake and directly caused Hawks to go back into mission-mode.

And it’s just a downward spiral from there, with all of Dabi’s last-ditch efforts falling flat. In one last desperate attempt to reach through to Hawks, he called out his name. His real name.

Dabi’s final chance to bring Hawks to his senses was to try and reconnect him with his past self of whom the HPSC had carefully erased, and it almost worked. Dabi let Hawks know that he knew everything about him, everything that he once was, but just like with Tokoyami, Dabi learnt the hard way that Hawks was beyond saving.

With Twice’s death, Dabi completely lost it, scolded Hawks for not focusing on him, and dropped one last bomb on Hawks before ending yet another false hero.

Until, yet again, that too backfired due to Dabi’s hope that he could save an innocent mind from the hero system’s brainwashing, and Hawks escaped with his life.

We get a glimpse of Dabi’s defeated expression, the knowledge that he can’t cry, and that he just lost two friends within the span of just a few minutes.

What next?

Honestly, if there’s one thing that is going to break Hawks, it’s knowing the truth about Endeavour. My hope is that Dabi is going to have a chance to make his reveal public to the entire nation, and exposing Enji Todoroki for the abuser he is will really shake things up.

At the moment, it’s still not clear exactly what Dabi told Hawks in his redacted bubble, but it was obviously something relating to his identity. Only time will tell what Hawks knows once he regains consciousness.

[theravennestgifs]

Dousy Noir AU - The Shadow ↳ “Who knows what evil lurks in the hearts of men? The Shadow knows!”

Daisy Johnson: socialite by day, vigilante by night.

There was no crook in this world who could escape the cast of the Shadow. Daisy knew what havoc the human heart could wreak on the innocent and she won’t rest until every villain plaguing her city was put away for good. With the coppers so inept and the judges on the take, only the Shadow could keep the City of Angels safe. It was solitary work, painful even, but that was something she’d made peace with a long time ago.

Until she’d met Daniel Sousa.

When Daisy first met Daniel, she’d thought him too much of a square to understand her, to handle the knowledge of her secret life. He proved his mettle every time. When the night got rough and the cases got rougher, she wouldn’t wish for anyone else by her side.

Her mind could part any veil and read anyone’s thoughts yet only Daniel saw her in return. She lived in the darkness, breathed in the stench of the evil underbelly of L.A., but Daniel was the brightness that always pierced through.

And everyone knows a Shadow can’t exist without the light...

---

Daniel had never dreamed of meeting the Shadow, that mysterious vigilante hell bent on cleaning up the streets of Los Angeles one criminal at a time. Nor had he ever thought the Shadow would confide her true identity to him. It was a secret he would take to his grave, if Daisy Johnson wished.

He loved both sides of her: the high society woman who liked to take him out on the town and the hardened crime fighter who couldn’t help trying to end suffering. They were both inexorably her.

Five years on and though he sometimes grew sick with worry for her safety, he wouldn’t change anything about coming to know this magnetic woman with her strange, unearthly powers. No one else could see the Shadow when she stalked the night...but he could. It was a privilege he held close to his heart.

He’d do anything to help her battle the evils of this broken world until the day he drew his last breath...

[docgold13]

365 DC Comics Paper Cut-Out Villains - One Villain, Every Day, All Year…

July 30th - Captain Stingaree Karl Courtney was born one of four quadruplets yet never seemed to bond with or feel connected to his twin bothers. Instead he was fascinated with historical tales of piracy on the high seas. He ended up sublimating his sense of alienation from his family by becoming a modern day swashbuckling pirate, plaguing the waters of Gotham Harbor. Taking up the name ‘Captain Stingaree’ he battled Batman on a number of occasions and has additionally gone up against The Flash, Black Canaray and Captain Comet. He later joined the ranks of The secret Society of Super Villains and sometime thereafter teamed up with Captain Cold and Captain Boomerang, waging a battle against other ‘captains’ to prove themselves the true lords of the air, land and sea. Captain Stingaree has been romantically involved with his colleague The Caviler; a relationship they have kept secret fearing that their fellow villains might be bigoted over the matter. Captain Stingaree first appeared in the pages of Detective Comics #460 (1976).

[littlesparklight]

You know so much things about mythology! I learn a lot from your blog and I'm grateful for that!! My favorite god is Apolo (among others, I just think he's cool) as I'm new in this I don't know all his myths but recently I read that he was basically a mean, egocentric god who killed lots of humans and other beings. Is it true?

Is that why he's represented as a villain in western fiction?

Anyways, I didn't trust this info and came here to ask!

Hey, thank you! And I’m glad I can help. :)

As for your question - I mean, in one way it’s absolutely true. But it’s true in that you can say that about basically any god (and most of the humans as well, mortal offspring of gods or not) in Greek mythology, and so it doesn’t really mean anything, aside from usually showing someone likes to be ungenerous in their interpretation of the deity they’re currently saying that about.

The Greek gods do a lot of things that look wrong to our eyes (and, to some degree, since the myths originate in an older stratum of the society, the later Ancient Greeks also problematized/wrestled with this, in plays as well as philosophy), but you have to remember that they’re usually acting in response to certain cultural views. Hubris wasn’t just a mythological crime, it was a real world, actual one - the hubris in myth just displays the gods actually (being able to) responding to these acts committed against them. Overweening pride and vanity was considered unseemly, and if you go so far as to not just compare, but put yourself above, the gods, who in this case are the ultimate arbiters? Of course you’re going to get godsmacked. (It doesn’t mean we, over here, need to consider it reasonable, but you honestly do need to accept that the gods are usually not doing anything wrong in the way they respond.)

Hence you have Artemis and Apollo murdering Niobe’s [x] amount of children (the number varied, but always an equal amount of girls and boys, and sometimes one or two survived, one of each) in response to her hubris. You have Apollo chasing Daphne until her mother Gaia takes her back within the earth and lets the laurel grow in the place the girl disappeared, or her father - or another god - answering her plea and turning her into a laurel. You have Apollo turning a man giving a girl trying to escape him a boat ride into a fish and the boat to stone, etc.

You also have Apollo defending cities or people he considers his, in very direct and personal manner (Troy; one of the two opposing sides who fell to fighting after the Calydonian boar hunt), you have Apollo turn a woman who would rather jump into the ocean to avoid him into a nymph to make sure she doesn’t drown, and then he leaves her be. You have Apollo answering his priest’s prayer and setting a plague on the Achaeans, etc.

He can be as generous as he can be cruel; that’s just the nature of the beast.

(Also, I suggest, if you’d like to learn more without going to buy various books or adaptations, go to theoi.com and to the section that has various texts, and see if you can deal with the language in Apollodorus’ Library/The Bibliotheca - it will have a lot of myths woven in! I’d also suggest trying Hesoid’s Theogony, which can also be found free (old editions and translations) on the web.)