#AND ONE PERSON IN EVERY ARC IS A HOLDER (THEY HAVE THE HEART IN THEIR BODY THAT GIVES THEM UNBELIEVABLE STRENGTH AND POWER)

[kittyplushy]

would you believe me if i said i hyperfixated on these two toxic old men yaoi for a whole year

[explodo-smash]

End of manga sees Izuku create his own 'vestige realm' (theory)

[Originally written on Twitter by @wolvesandvisions]

This theory was something I'd kept close to my chest for some years now that I think may actually have the potential of coming to fruition.

I believe by the end of the manga Izuku is going to have created his own 'vestige world'. Alongside letting go of OFA, the “cursed” power, we'll see the birth of a new society. This will indicate the birth of truly making his power, his heroism, his own.

What we’re witnessing in the manga at the moment is the complete destruction of OFA as we know it. In a metaphorical sense and in the visual sense that Yoichi and the other holder’s prison is literally falling apart thanks to Shigaraki.

Now something I noticed, is that this visual of a park we kept seeing All Might at, I think may be the same one in the manga Chapter 96 (2016), redrawn in the anime, and referenced to again in an art by Umakoshi at Comiket (2019).

It keeps coming up. The chapter 96 version of this page reads as translated: “I wish that we could always sit and bask under the soft light filtering through the trees…☆Inherited spirit and pride!”

Izuku and Katsuki have absolutely inherited the spirit and pride of All Might, they are both the start of this new era. However, Izuku is the one with the burdens and wills of 9 people on his shoulder right now. At the end of the day… OFA is cursed, it can't stay the way it is.

Whether he’s quirkless by the end, or gets some crazy new power, the removal of OFA is also the removal of the curse/burden.

He needs to be able to be a hero on his own terms, without the beck and call of other people’s expectations in his ears. That’s why I think symbolically him truly “making the power his own” will entail him creating something entirely new with it.

@kikibats' language when I shared with her actually surmised it well:

“The part that’s OFA and AFO connected crumbles away, but Izuku’s own realm stays.”

And Chapter 412 just happened to give a ton of supporting information for this potential.

1) The idea that Izuku sees a correlation in ‘being without a personality’ and not having a human heart. His ability to overcome his feelings of worthlessness.

[X]

Choosing to believe in himself and others beyond that assertion IS his power.

2) Another thanks to @kaname_clan and @kikibats who helped me get a greater understanding of this; what we may be witnessing with Star and Stripes - and these odd lines - are Izuku “going beyond singularity”.

Which from my current understanding is the function of generational quirks becoming “too strong” or going beyond what the average human can take on the body.

Izuku appears to be on the verge of death, a big theme in this final arc of the manga has been everyone getting their quirk awakening. So far, every character but him has gotten one. He obviously got one in the most literal sense, but all of OFA’s various quirks aren’t his.

OFA, bless his heart, is like a series of hand-me-downs that in all his brilliance he made work for him. However...in a series about generational trauma, responsibility, and heroism, I think it's really his turn to overcome all of this.

I think the release of OFA will allow him to have a “quirk” awakening. The “awakening” of his personality, individuality, his heroism. And I do think this may visualize itself in his origins manifesting in that same park under the tree.

This is just what I'm thinking! Being hit with that visual of the park metaphorically or literally since 2016 has my eyes wide open...so we'll see!

[flightfoot]

Hey, do you have any good recommendations for Lukadrigaminette or Julerose fics? Mostly canon-compliant. No fantasy or western AUs, but stuff like Adrien never going to school is fine.

Yeah sure, I've got some stuff for you!

The Quartet's Duet by timeandspace_lord

In which Kagami and Luka attempt to get two idiots to fall in love. Instead, four idiots realize they were already in love. Based a lot on Determination and Wishmaker specifically. ~~~ It was only a matter of time, he told himself. Sooner or later they’d stumble into the same secret he had and realize they were made for each other. And if they needed a helping hand to get there, a conductor for the symphony of their lives together, he was more than happy to take on that role. Kagami nodded firmly. She’d known that Marinette was Adrien’s true target from the beginning, but it had taken longer for her to get over her own jealousy and realize that the other girl was also the correct target. Now that she no longer had blinders on, it was obvious the two were meant to be together. If she could help them realize it, so much the better.

---

Hold Me By Both Hands by @angelofthequeers

“I know he said never to take you back,” Plagg mutters. “But he’d change his tune if he knew.” He looks Adrien straight in the eye and, more serious than Adrien’s ever seen him before, says, “There’s someone you gotta meet. He’s been looking for that book for ages.” How differently might the events of season 2 have gone if Adrien had also known of Master Fu from the start?

Honestly, I think this is one of the best ML fics EVER, and I've read a LOT of ML fics. It's a re-imagining of seasons 2 and 3, with Lila sticking around the whole time, lots of discussion and growth of all the major players in the fic, and some truly amazing character arcs. It features what I consider the BEST Chloe redemption arc to date, with looking at where she started in the early seasons and having her actually figure out reasons why she wants to be better, and what that looks like. If you've watched The Good Place, it's like that.

I wrote a 26,000 word essay analyzing the various subplots in the fic, that's how intricate it is.

---

holding onto the memory of you by @fruitdragon1a

For MLB Femslash February 24! Day 10: Juleka/Rose 'hold', 'dress' Juleka and Rose are on the métro when something happens to Rose.

---

You’ll be the prince and I’ll be the princess by @mexicancat-girl

With Team Miraculous now full-time holders, Ladybug has them patrolling in pairs like her and Chat Noir. New partners Pigella and Purple Tigress get along phenomenally, their easy banter and similar wavelengths making working with each other a joy in and out of combat. But sometimes Tigress is surprised just how close she is with her partner. Sometimes she tries not to feel too guilty thinking about it.

There’s some nice Julerose here! I love them kinda getting into a lovesquare with each other, though it’s not as much of a problem as it is in canon since it’s reciprocal in every relationship and they’re both down for a poly. It’s fun, and I love the “Luka attempting to woo some of his love interests” plot going on in the background XD.

---

Everything I need by @coffeebanana

When Ladybug asks Pigella to care for her injured teammate, she wants to refuse. She's not the best person for the job, and she's not sure if Purple Tigress even likes her. But Ladybug insists, so Pigella fights through her fear and tends to Tigress' injury. It doesn't make things any easier that Tigress keeps reminding her of Juleka.

---

Ink, Skin, and Hearts by EpicNerd

For Rose and Juleka, the topic of soulmates is surprisingly a difficult one.

---

I hope these catch your fancy (especially Hold Me By Both Hands, that fic is a must-read).

[carpisuns]

Now that you are no longer avoiding miraculous ladybug spoilers, can I say that it is absolutely bonkers the way the sentimonster theory started out with just Adrien, but then spread to Felix, and now apparently kagami??? And I've heard there might be another person who is one as well?? Like at this point I think we might as well say that every rich kid in paris (or vaguely related to paris) is probably a sentimonster. I bet it was a top secret Agreste collection back in the day, and all of Paris' wealthiest got a slice of it

OHOOEHEHEHE YES AND IM LIVING FOR IT!! honestly I never thought we would get confirmation of the senti theory that is this clear—like I thought it would be hinted but left open enough for the average child viewer to totally miss and for deniers to be able to deny if they want to. And I guess they could still deny? But man I didn’t expect it to become so central!! the felix eps were insane i was yelling !!

A while back I saw this theory that was basically what you said—that all the rich kids in Paris were sentis. Because of that fancy weird cult party from the episode Gabriel Agreste. Which was so fascinating to me back then and now it feels not unlikely?

It’s so interesting bc we know sentis are created from a specific emotion. It would seem appropriate that Emily created adrien out of love, and that’s why he’s such a kind boy who gives undeserving people second chances and who loves people with all his heart. Im not sure what emotion felix would be?? he’s a pretty complex character but his sense of personal justice is strong, wanting to free himself first and then the other sentikids, and using morally questionable means to reach his mission. So maybe something along those lines. And for kagami, idk, is perfection an emotion? Desire for perfection? That idea is brought up more and more surrounding her and her mother is very concerned with kagami’s perfection.

This gets even more interesting to me when you consider Chloe. Admittedly, she makes less sense as a senti bc the other sentikids have a missing parent (presumably the one who wielded the broken peacock and then eventually died from it??). But im just considering the concept of Audrey making Chloe from her own emotions….which seem to consist solely of selfishness and superiority. So if Chloe was made with such ugly emotions, no wonder she is the way she is. And no wonder that every time she seemed to make a little progress, she backslid into her old behavior. Bc any display of self-awareness and kindness and genuine care for someone else goes against her emotional core—her very essence. Is it even possible for a senti to change their emotional core? that would be an insane display of self-control and sheer force of will that would challenge the very concept of sentis as creatures who are made to be commanded. if it’s possible for a senti to break the bounds of their emotional core, is it also possible to break the bond between them and their amok holder and disobey a direct order? Could they even break their link to their amok entirely? This is all crazy talk bc it doesn’t even make sense in context and I doubt Chloe would end up having that big of a role anyway lol but the implications are interesting to think about! It’s even interesting to think about XY and the possibility of him being a senti—emotional core of greed, maybe? or, like, shallowness? lol. his dad definitely controls him and his image pretty carefully so. Hmm!

anyway insane musings aside I am really enjoying this arc with the senti focus!! felix’s Argo fit is so cool. his villain song. Girl help!!! when he had to kill his sentimoon and cried…oh that got me. That was his SISTER !! and FELIGAMI HELLO???? FELIGAMI PRACTICALLY CANON AFTER 2 EPISODES??? i did NOT have that on my bingo card lol but you know what?? Hell yeah!!!!!! Kagami said if Adrien doesn’t love me I’ll simply fall for his more intense and moody twin who rapidly and rightfully became obsessed with me

[cosmicjoke]

So with this constant back and forth regarding Levi's motivations for fighting, and the constant questioning of whether he actually "cared about humanity" or not, I think maybe a better way to describe what Levi was fighting for, is to say Levi was fighting for people.

When we talk about the Survey Corps’ cause, and we say they were fighting for humanity, it naturally implies a generalized and abstract concept of “the greater good”. Some sort of nebulous, detached idea of altruism. It denotes a concept.

The thing with Levi, however, is that his specific commitment to this fight has always been one of personal and even intimate attachment. It's why he takes every death around him so hard. He can't separate out the individual people around him from the concept of "humanity". I don’t think Levi views the fight he's engaged in, in such abstract or unknowable terms like "freeing the masses", but rather as a fight for individual freedom and agency and individualistic value. He motivates himself to keep fighting, for example, through the sacrifices made by his comrades, through his desire to honor their lives and deaths by realizing for them the thing they lived and died for.

Levi is a holder of dreams.

He dedicates his life to helping the dreams of others come true, even as he holds no real or tangible dream for himself. This has been true of Levi since before joining the SC, with Furlan and Isabel, and giving up his own, known life in the Underground in order to give them the life they dreamed of. It’s important to remember this isn’t what Levi himself wanted. Levi wanted to stay in the Underground. But he gave it up for his two, greatest friends. He gave his life to their cause. People often talk about Erwin giving Levi his "purpose" by turning him toward the fight for humanity. But I think Erwin's role in Levi's new found purpose upon voluntarily staying with the SC is often overstated. Erwin didn't engender in Levi the desire to help others, he didn't create that sense of obligation in Levi. It was always just there. What Erwin did was he set out a clear path for Levi to follow in order to fulfill that sense of obligation. But reading through "No Regrets", one will take note of Levi's concern for others, and his efforts throughout to help others, even those who have treated him poorly. I think this extends to Levi’s reason for fighting in the SC afterward. Erwin tells Levi not to let Furlan’s and Isabel’s deaths be in vain; that he can give meaning to their deaths by fighting for humanity. But Levi’s reason for fighting has always seemed much more personal and grounded than fighting for some faceless, nameless "higher purpose". Levi observes those around him, what it is they’re fighting for, and he adopts their cause as his own, for them. Just like he did with Furlan and Isabel, it isn’t what Levi wants for himself that matters, or even what Levi particularly believes in, but rather, what the people around him believe in and strive for.

I talk a lot about how I don’t think Levi ever particularly believed in the Survey Corps’ cause. What I mean by that is, because of the life Levi has lived, the deprivation and struggle and violence of his life, he was never prone to idealistic fantasy or naive belief. I don’t think he ever felt any kind of pride or accomplishment in serving the SC or its cause. He never saluted or uttered the phrase “dedicate your heart” until the very end, with Hange and then, later, to the specter of his fallen comrades. I don’t think Levi ever fully believed the goal of the SC was entirely attainable, this fantastical utopia of a world where people were truly free and unafraid. He always knew true peace was a fantasy. His hard life made that kind of idealism impossible for him to embrace. He even says, in the final arc, that it’s what they fought for, his fallen comrades, a stupidly idealistic world. It was their dream, their belief, not Levi’s.

But what I do think Levi believed in was the people around him, and their worth, and their right as human beings to live. And so Levi fought, I think, not for the “greater good”, so to speak, with an “end justifies the means” sort of mindset, in which that nebulous goal was his focus, but rather, it was the people who fought beside him, and people in general, that drove him. People’s lives, people’s hopes and dreams, people's agency and right to choose. People's very existence, not as a featureless, monolithic mass, but as individuals. Real people with their own personalities and their own aspirations and their own desires and beliefs. He wanted to dignify those lives and prove their importance by upholding the thing they had deemed worthy of their sacrifice. If he could give them that, if he could make those dreams come true, then it would be like he proved to the cruel and indiscriminate world that those people mattered. So it's not the dream itself, but the people who dreamed it that matter to him.

It’s why we see Levi holding that dying soldiers hand and promising him that his sacrifice won’t be in vain, acknowledging that soldiers life and the worth of it to his face. It's why Levi makes certain his appreciation and admiration is known to those who fight alongside him, by thanking them and acknowledging their contributions. It’s why Levi chooses humanity over practicality and lets Erwin rest. It’s why he wants so much to keep his vow to Erwin and every soldier that died that day in Shinganshina. It's why Levi goes so far out of his way to help the people of Trost by brokering a deal with Dimo Reeves instead of just strong arming him into compliance. It's why he reacted so badly to finding out that titans were really people, and why he hesitated and wondered to himself if the comrades who had been turned to titans before his very eyes were still in there, somewhere. It's why he risked his life and nearly lost it to save Jean, and then Connie, during the final battle against Eren.

Levi never loses sight of the people within the cause. He never lets the cause be bigger than the people. It's all about the people to him. It's not an idea. It's not a theory or a concept. It's not an idyllic future or fantastical notion of "the greater good". It's just... people. Individual people who make up the whole of humanity.

[tamibae]

A long post related our celestial queen's abilities🥰

Lucy Heartfilia

Celestial Magic :

Lucy Heartfilia is the strongest celestial mage to ever live. She has amazing skills in celestial magic and a great bond with her spirits. She has proved from time to time that holder type magic is also a strong magic which can turn tables on enemies.

So let's take a look on her abilities, shall we?

Celestial Spirits having contact with Lucy Heartfilia :

Golden Key Spirits :

Leo(Lion)~

Leo uses Regulus light. He's the leader of the zodiacs and also the most efficient combatant among them. He has the ability to open his own gate when his summoner is in trouble. He can efficiently respond to camoflauge attacks.

Virgo(Maid)~

Virgo is arguably the second strongest spirit among the zodiacs with incredible Earth magic(Spica lock, spica hole, chains attack, diving undergroud, pitfall etc). She is an efficient combatant and has a good control over speed. She can also appear on her own when needed.

Fact : Leo and Virgo take more power to keep their gates open than other zodiacs.

Aquarius(Mermaid)~

Aquarius is an incredibly strong mermaid spirit with amazing water powers. Maybe because she's so strong, she needs a condition(water) to summon her. She takes also takes more mp to keep her gate open like Leo and Virgo because of her powers.

Taurus(Cow)~

Taurus is very good at physical strength however, his magic doesn't allow him to perform any element based attack like Leo/Virgo/Aquarius. His axe is a weapon with heavy force.

Aries(Ram)~

Aries performs wool based magic. Her wool is powerful enough to stop any spell that requires incantation like Fairy Glitter, Urano Metria, Grand Chariot, Fairy Sphere, Fairy Law etc. Her wool also works great against powerful water attacks and it can help tangle the enemy in wool to buy some time.

Capricorn(Goat)~

Capricorn can cancel any kind of eye magic with his glasses and he's an efficient combatant. He's very good in close range combat.

Sagittarius(Shooter)~

Sagittarius is the master archer with incredible shooting skills. He's a great help in long range attacks.

Scorpio(Scorpion)~

Scorpio has the ability to produce huge sand cyclones. His sand wall is an efficient defense skill.

Gemini(Twins)~

These twins can copy any mage present at the moment along with their magic abilities but the said mage has to be on the same level or lower than the summoner.

Cancer(Crab)~

Cancer is a spirit with incredible speed and sharpness(his scissors). He can cross a huge distance within seconds and cut down people's hair or objects like that.

Silver Key Spirits :

Horologium~

One of the most useful spirits, it comes to rescue the summoner whenever their lives are on line.

Pyxis~

Pyxis has a strong sense of directions. Even when the normal compasses don't work, Pyxis can definitely be useful. It's stated by Lucy that Celestial spirits have stronger sense than humans.

Lyra~

This spirit has a beautiful singing voice and she can touch and bring out the feelings of any heart with the help of her melodious voice.

Plue~

It is a very cute celestial spirit with a good smell sense.

Crux~

Crux is basically a knowledge box and has all the info regarding the celestial word and other celestial mages along with their Powers and history. He comes in handy a lot with his power of knowledge.

Spells Lucy Heartfilia has in her arsenal :

Urano Metria~>

When the user recites the incantation, the 88 constellations of the sky come down as spheres and bestow their power upon the caster. This person then aims at their intended target and releases the energy gathered into a tremendous attack. This is the ultimate magic of the stars.

StarDress :

Stardress is a new concept to celestial magic. Spell in which the user incorporates the power of a Celestial Spirit into their body by placing the key of the Spirit in question on their chest. The power manifests itself in the form of dress which is similar to Requip. The user adopts the powers and appearance of the spirit they choose and also adopts a portion of their powers, being able to make use of their mp. This power also allows the user to make use of spells of their own that may require more than one person due to the tremendous amount of mp required to cast it.

Fact : Lucy is the first celestial mage to ever access the power from the zodiac gate spirits. Even her mother and her ancestor Anna who were considered strong celestial mages couldn't do this technique. Lucy is also the only celestial mage to be invited to the celestial world by the CSK himself.

Let's take a look at Lucy's StarDresses, shall we now?

StarDresses Lucy Heartfilia can access :

Leo Form~

This dress gives it's summoner the ability to use Regulus light magic, and she can use attacks like Regulus Kick and Regulus Punch which is very useful for mid-range and close combat.

Virgo Form~

This star dress gives the ability to use earth magic like Pitfall, summoner can use diver magic. It also provides a good amount of raw power and it's incredibly versatile form. This stardress can also access Aqua Metria water version.

Aquarius Form~

Summoner can use Aqua Metria(both Earth version which makes the ground swell like huge waves and water version which creates a big wave of water. It also gives the ability to do a very strong defense spell Water Barrier.

Sagittarius Form~

One of the most powerful stardresses which gives the ability to do long range attacks. It acts very useful when there are huge number of opponents. It has a spell called Star Shot which provides an unlimited supply of shots and marksmanship ability.

Aries Form~

It's wool can stop attacks that need incantation like Fairy Glitter, Grand Chariot, Fairy Sphere, Urano Metria, Fairy Law etc.

Capricorn Form~

This form gives the user a pair of glasses that cancels all the eye magics possible. It may also be useful in close combat because that's one of Capricorn's abilities.

Gemini Form~

This one helps in transformation, to turn anyone into anything like fishes regardless of their power level being more than the summoner. But of course, it may have some conditions for the transformation process.

Cancer Form~

It equips the summoner with dual blades similar to that of Cancer and enhanced speed. Both of these factors being huge advantages in battle.

Scorpio Form~

Gives summoner the ability to use sand magic like Scorpio. It cages the opponent in a whirlpool of sand, giving summoner the ability to move freely across it, this form helps to land swift kicks in that huge sandstorm. It also provides enhanced speed.

Taurus Form~

This increases the summoner's brute strength by a certain level giving a lot of raw power. It also provides with a strong whip which can do attacks like Earth Wave.

StarDress Mix :

The summoner can also combine their star dresses into one which manifests itself in the form of a dress and a crossed keys tattoo at the back of their hand with each key representing the Celestial Spirit gate keys of the StarDress forms that are being merged together.

StarDress Mix Lucy Heartfilia can access :

Lion Maiden~

This form gives the summoner access to Leo and Virgo's powers and cast a strong spell with Regulus and Spica power.

Aqua Stream~

This form gives the summoner powers of Aquarius and Scorpio. It can one-shot a Metro Golem with a powerful spell.

Lucy Heartfilia as a Celestial Spirit Mage can do:

Fairy Sphere-

One of the three greatest spells of Fairy Tail guild. Lucy was able to cast it with the help of magic power of the entire continent in the Alveraze Empire Arc. She is the only one so far after master Mavis, who was able to provoke this spell trapping Achnologia inside.

Gottfried-

In Celestial Spirit Arc, it was performed by Lucy, Yukino and Princess Hisui to break the Celestial Globe when nobody was even able to scratch it. It requires the casters to sit down and hold hands while one casts the spell, it reflects great pain upon the casters but is incredibly strong.

Unison Raid-

Lucy and Juvia were able to do it in their first attempt during the Tower Of Heaven Arc. It requires two powerful wizards with a very strong bond/mutual understanding and still they were able to do it. It was because of the fact that both of the magics that Lucy and Juvia uses were very compatible with each other. Later, Lucy and Wendy also use a Unison Raid against Hades in Tenrou Island Arc.

Re-writing Demonic Scripts-

She can re-write demonic scripts. She used it to rewrite the book of E.N.D. miraculously separating Natsu from the book during his battle with Zeref. Even Zeref was shocked and find it hard to believe that a mere human could rewrite a demonic script even after enduring a huge amount of pain.

Anti Nightmare Spell-

With the help of the infinity clock, she was able to use this spell saving the lives of 100 other celestial wizards in the Key To The Starry Sky Arc.

Forced Gate Closure-

This is not something every celestial mage can do. It's actually a very big deal in celestial world. Comes in handy when your spirits are out of control, like when Sherry controlled Taurus in the Galuna Island Arc or when a demon consumed both Aries and Taurus, Lucy forcefully closed their gates saving all of them.

Simultaneous Summoning-

Lucy can open upto 5 zodiac gates within a single day.

Multiple Summoning-

Lucy is able to summon multiple spirits at a time, which is actually a forbidden technique because it puts summoner's life on risk but after the unleash of her second origin during GMG Arc she was able to do it nearly effortlessly and then finally summoning three at a time during Tartaros Arc (Leo, Virgo and Aquarius).

Fact : Leo, Virgo and Aquarius take more mp than other zodiacs because of how powerful they are.

Summoning The CSK-

She had to sacrifice Aquarius's key to summon the celestial spirit king during the Tartaros Arc. She is the only mage who could do that because as per Aquarius, only celestial mages powerful enough to open 3 strongest gates at once can summon the CSK.

Zodiac Clamation-

A spell used by Lucy and Yukino to call upon the entire zodiac in the Eclipse Arc, it helped them in closing the Eclipse gate when 7 dragons invaded. Lucy contributed to opening 10 zodiac gates at once.

Opening All Of The Spirit Gates At Once-

Lucy is capable of opening all of the spirit gates keys she has in earthland for quite a few seconds which is nearly impossible and a forbidden technuque due to it's outcome. The summoner can die of magic deficiency. Lucy did that very early in the series. She again did that in the sequel in Elentir(although it was because Elentir's magic flow) but this time, she opened 10 zodiac gates at once and held onto that for enough time. No celestial wizard has been ever done that except Lucy.

Whip Specialist-

Lucy is very efficient in using a whip. She has countered a good number of people with it and defeated Edolas Byro with only a magical whip Virgo gave her(Fleuve d'étoiles).

So this was an updated version of Lucy's abilities. I'm really proud of ma gurl, look how much she has improved since the first time she was introduced.

[gale-gentlepenguin]

ML Analysis: The Miraculous. Marvelous or Ridiculous.

So I have been asked to make an analysis on the well known Magical Jewelry of the show. The miraculous. (No I will not be talking about the Shanghai special magical gems, I won't even be mentioning anything revealed after the NY special. This is solely knowledge on season 3 and prior.)

This will be a VERY long post in which I will be discussing the merits and demerits of the magical items in question.

Now for this analysis I will be doing my best to solely focus on the miraculous themselves, this is not an analysis on the Guardians or other miraculous holders. This is about the magical gems. I will be giving some background information on certain things. But I am going to focus on the miraculous.

I think in order to organize this post I will be splitting it up as follows.

A Miraculous Lore

Kwami: Personal Pals or Pain in the Butt

Potential and Drawbacks

Power Balance: The delicate dance

Final thoughts

So lets get to it

_____________________________________________________________

A Miraculous Lore

To briefly explain, the 'Miraculous' are magical jewelry created by a powerful mage which allows the powers of Kwami to be harnessed and controlled by anyone who wields it and uses it to transform.

Now when it comes to magical items, its important that these items have sort of connection to the fictional world they are in. This connection acts as a means of world building. Now there are 3 main factors to keep in mind when connecting the mystical item of power to the world itself, the history, mystery, and Impact on the present. In this section I will be talking about how the miraculous are addressed in the series, from their historical significance as well as their mysterious powers that are yet to be truly revealed.

Now history is the talk of the events of the past, and in the world of miraculous ladybug, the miraculous have a rather interesting connection to world events. In the show, we learn that the miraculous were active in ancient china, in Egypt, in greek mythology (which makes the greek myths more of history) and even events as recent as the American revolution were impacted by the miraculous. Now these reveals are information provided in the show itself, there are also confirmations from the writers regarding other points in history where the miraculous were active, such as when Joan of Arc was fighting in the 100 year war. Now this aspect works well with the second trait of world building, mystery, but it also leaves a lot of gaps for the viewer, which is where the next part of the history connection comes in, the order of the guardians. The guardians of the miraculous work as the connecting point, giving the viewer the explanation on how the miraculous became a part of human history. The guardians connection lays the ground work for the miraculous lore as it allows us to understand that an ancient order dedicated to protecting the miraculous knew when to step in and help history along. Overall, the aspect of history when connected to the miraculous seems to work well for the world building, at least so long as we focus on the miraculous themselves.

The mystery is the aspect of the unknown. What exactly are the secrets hidden about the miraculous. Now the part of the mystery is that the purpose of the miraculous and how the link between the god like beings that the Kwami are is still left up in the air. With the comics, we know that the Kwami are each based on an abstract concept like Creation, destruction and so on. We also find out that a wizard made the miraculous... for some reason. The mystery of the miraculous allows for rapid progress and power ups in the story. In the beginning we knew very little of the limitations and potential the miraculous had. We knew, Ladybug and Chat noir had 5 minutes after using their unique power and that the bad man wanted their miraculous for evil. As the mystery unveils, we find out that there are more miraculous, and that using certain miraculous together can allow for god-like power. We also learned about potions, techniques, and other such things that make the miraculous more enigmatic. What is the full potential of the miraculous? What more is there to this mystery? The miraculous brings the more interesting parts of ML to light because we as the viewer are invested in what more these jewelry sets can do.

The impact on the present. As the show's plot revolves around the two heroes that utilize the miraculous, it is easy to see how the miraculous are very crucial to the plot. The main villain wants the magical items because he wants to make his wish, the heroes need the power to fend off his villains that he creates and eventually take the miraculous back from him. Meanwhile the order that protected the miraculous are once again active thanks to Ladybug and Chat noir purifying the akumatized Sentimonster Feast (which had massive impact on the progression of story ).

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Kwami: Personal Pals or Pain in the Butt

Kwamis, best described as divine, spirit-like beings who embody "abstract" concepts. They give certain powers to people with Miraculouses, transforming them into animal-themed super beings. Kwami are the beings that make the Miraculous, well miraculous.

The Kwami have a rather fascinating role in the story as they act as they add character to this relatively cool jewelry piece. It isn't just a magical item, the Kwami are companions to their wielders and need to be judged as such. Now these beings are crucial because they play multiple roles in the show. For this part of the analysis, I will be focusing mainly on the Kwami that have had the most screen time, mainly Tikki, Plagg, Wayzz and Nooru. The other Kwami, while having personalities, do not have permanent owners or have not been out long enough to establish themselves. Now these four Kwami are important because they can be examined if they follow the indicators of a companion or specifically fit the trope known as Mentor Mascot. For this I have created 2 criteria Distinct criteria that these Kwami must meet in order to be considered good companions. These criteria are Cute Confidant and Wiser Advisor.

The Cute Confidant is an aspect that addresses two key components in the mentor mascot companion field. The first is obviously, cuteness. The Kwami must be cute, small and have tiny habits that make you want a plushy of them. In this regard, all of the Kwami pass the test because all of them are tiny and have little habits that make them adorable to the viewer. From Wayzz and his little Match box bed, to Plagg's chaotic cat tendencies, to Tikki's cute little assistant routine, and even Nooru's tiny bits of exposition and concern. The kwami capture cuteness. The second component to this is the Confidant portion. The Kwami must be entities that the wielder wants to tell things to, things that they would not tell anyone else. In short, the Kwami need to be beings that the user can trust whole heartedly. Now Tikki and Wayzz have both shown to be the most obedient confidants in this regard. Both have the best experience keeping secrets and their users trust them completely. Plagg is a bit more chaotic and it is true that Adrien does tell him everything and that he would never spill that info, Plagg has gone behind Adrien's back more times then any of the other swami (like in Sand boy, and in Kwamibuster). Though while not trust breaking, Plagg has caused his partner a bit of trouble (which actually makes him a better mascot, but less a mentor). Nooru is sort of forced to obey Gabriel so while not a willing confidant, he does listen to him monologue a LOT. In short, the Kwami do make for Cute Confidants.

The Wiser Advisor aspect comes into play in one very simple way. How do the Kwami help their wielders outside of their powers. The Advising role of the mascot mentor is truly important as with nearly every single magical girl/ superhero show, the character has an identity to keep secret and sometimes the only one that can be talked to when there is a problem is their mascot mentor. In this department, Tikki is technically the best advice giver as Marinette is suppose to learn the most lessons due to her being the main character, but I think Plagg better exemplifies the personal aspect of the wiser advisor role. Plagg goes out of his way to try and do what he thinks is best for Adrien. Plagg is seen more like the devil on the shoulder by the fandom, but Plagg is acting more like the voice of self worth for Adrien. Plagg is acting with Adrien's interests at heart. If one looks at Syren or Chat Blanc, there are times when Plagg advises AGAINST something and is often right in that regard. Plagg has a larger grasp of knowing when something is wrong more than something is right. The Kwami are still inhuman and can't relate to everything their 'Chosen' goes through, which we see more in the recent season, with Tikki's explaination. In this regard the Kwami learn just as much from the humans as the humans do from them. Though really, Tikki is suppose to be the wiser advisor but the problem comes into play when her answers are... not very helpful. Tikki has shown to either tell the lesson of the day and get ignored or have no idea how to fix a situation. There is no middle ground with her. But in the end the Wiser Advisor role is conveyed by the kwami and that is important.

The Kwami provide a very crucial aspect to the miraculous, it adds a personality to the ancient relic. We want our heroes to protect the miraculous because we want the kwami to be safe and away from evil people like Hawkmoth. The kwami add so much more to this normally typical magical item. Their roles as the cute confidant and the Wiser advisor allows for them to be crucial in the growth of the heroes as they continue down the path of heroism. And while i think the writing for the kwami can fluctuate, I think its fair to conclude that they are personal pals rather than pains in the butt.

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Potential and Drawbacks

So in this section of the analysis I will be covering the Potential of the Miraculous as well as the drawbacks. Does this potential make sense? Or is it simply another deus ex Machina. As for the drawbacks. Whats the price of utilization? Is their a fee? What are the limits? Do these limits make sense? Are there too many limits or not enough limits? Now let us progress.

As mentioned in the mystery aspect of the miraculous. The Miraculous have Kwami that represent concepts and their power relates to said concept. When we as the viewer are introduced to the Miraculous, we only know that the miraculous have a unique power and that when the ladybug and Cat miraculous are both used can have a power that the villain wants. Now as the seasons pass we see that the specific power that the villain wants is to use the two miraculous to make a wish. This concept alone make the miraculous (or at the very least the ladybug and Cat miraculous) immensely powerful. The potential of having a wish makes the two miraculous priceless. In a way, this reveal shows the max potential that the miraculous are capable of, the ability to shape the world in anyway the user desires. But that is only the case when BOTH the ladybug and Cat miraculous are utilized, what about the other miraculous? What are they capable of alone? Well by themselves, the miraculous are pretty much straightforward. They enhance the abilities of the user to super human levels and then allow the user to utilize the unique power of the miraculous, such as destruction, time travel, etc.

Now in season 2 we learn that there are potions that can be consumed to allow the heroes to traverse different environments, such as the vaccum of space, the ocean, and frozen plains, what this does is allow for the user to have an edge in any environment which makes the miraculous highly adaptable. It is unknown if potions can be stacked on top of one another, but that is debatable on whether or not that would even be useful.

In Season 3, we learn that miraculous can be used together, using unification. This allows the user to use 2 miraculous at the same time. While it is unclear if it improves the already enhanced abilities of the wearer, it is confirmed that they can use the kwami powers involved in the unification. We even see Marinette find a work around to this by using the mouse miraculous to make copies of herself and then use 4 different powers! Showing that there is a way to work around the two person ability of unification. It is also feasible that using more than two active miraculous at once in one form is possible, but that is yet to be discover.

In Season 4, we are given a reveal that embodiment of the concept of the miraculous can result in more abilities, or at the very least can be inferred from Alya's discovery. Ladybug created a new powered up form of her lucky charm and could now create Akuma/Amok warding charms thanks to this power. This aspect of the miraculous is rather new and it is unknown how far this concept can be taken. But the potential demonstrated gives the implication that the limitation of powers on the miraculous is mental.

The miraculous still seem to have more tricks that have yet to be revealed, but the potential from environmental potions, to 100's of unification combinations, and potential to push past limits gives the miraculous a massive pool of potential that make it fascinating.

When it comes to magical items, many always like to know the drawbacks with the magical item involved. The miraculous is no different. Now this is where I find the miraculous is a little murky. At the start the most well known issue with the miraculous was that after the miraculous wielder used the special power of the Kwami, the user only had around 5 minutes before they were forced back. Now with Hawkmoth we never really knew if he was subjected to that rule, since there were times he was off screen. Did he simply have a work around? Was it because he knew something the heroes didnt? That was the biggest mystery until season 3 when its revealed that adults can use the power multiple times without having to de-transform. This explanation was and is still a gripe many people have with the series. The creators gave explanations outside of the show on why that is but it was usually dismissed and still left people angry. However there were still plenty of other drawbacks that the miraculous had.

A major drawback is that the Kwami's condition is related to the condition of the miraculous and vice versa. A broken/damaged miraculous results in the kwami also being damaged. We see this in season 3 with Duusu and the peacock miraculous. Using a damaged miraculous also has an impact on the wielder, slowly draining their life force (as seen with Nathalie) and it appears that overuse can kill the wielder. (which is what happened with Emilie). A Kwami is the reason the miraculous are powerful, without the kwami present, the miraculous is useless. So being too far from one's kwami would make transforming impossible. The kwami being affected by something would also affect the user. Like when Plagg couldnt see due to Chloé's jewlery it is implied if Adrien had transformed, He would have been blind. So the kwami needs to be taken care of, which is a drawback that makes sense.

Another Drawback of the miraculous is revealed in both Silencer and Miracle Queen. The transformation and special power are voice activated. In Silencer, when she had her voice stolen, Ladybug was unable to summon her lucky charm until Silencer used her voice to say the word Lucky charm. And in Miracle Queen, Chloé couldnt utilize the other miraculous because she didnt know the names of the kwami. Without the Kwami's name, the user cant activate the miraculous. It plays on the trope of a name giving the speaker power over the magical being. Using a name also gives a level of respect and it is an interesting drawback as well as a fail safe.

Another drawback that we learn about is that using too many miraculous at once can be dangerous. While this has only been shown in Kwamibuster, when Marinette wore at one point nearly every miraculous at once. Simply transforming caused her to feel a bit woozy. Though after that it did not seem to impact her. There has yet to be seen if abusing unify (like Shadowmoth) and Ladybug have been doing will result in similar effects. But it is something to look out for.

For the most part the potential of the miraculous is put on the user where it is the user figuring ways of utilizing the miraculous that make it more powerful while the drawbacks are mainly limited to the state of the Kwami. This allows for an interesting act of balance where caring for the miraculous would allow the user to evolve, which is something we are seeing in the show, and not taking care of the miraculous or abusing it results in damage, like we see with the villains. Its an interesting parallel that I do wish was explored more.

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Power Balance: The delicate dance

People dont really understand how important balancing power is when it comes to shows. The Hero must be strong enough to save the day, the villain must be a big enough threat for the hero to take seriously. Thats why superman has foes like Darkseid or Braniac. Why Goku fights Frieza, or why Sailor moon has to fight Galaxia.

The miraculous are very bizarre in terms of balance. The strongest miraculous are claimed to be the ladybug and Cat miraculous, the concepts of creation and destruction, Together they maybe the most powerful, but in reality, they are not the strongest. The strongest single miraculous is the Rabbit. A miraculous with the ability to travel through time, it is likely the closet miraculous to being the cat and Ladybug combined. It allows one to change the flow of time. Changing events that could have lead to disaster. And we know that time travel is not multiversal travel, that going to the past DOES impact the timeline. In fact thats the reason its so rarely used, the Rabbit miraculous is a last resort, and if something is a last resort, than its clearly the most powerful. There is also the snake miraculous which has nearly infinite uses regardless of age so long as it is within the 5 minute window. The Horse miraculous that can transport the user anywhere they have in mind, including sending someone into the vacuum of space.

The miraculous power balance also has issues when one considers the two main miraculous, the cat and the Ladybug. Both miraculous are considered crucial to giving someone maximum power and are illustrated like Yin and Yang. But in reality, the Ladybug miraculous is much more powerful than the cat miraculous in nearly every conceivable way. Ignoring the users and just taking their abilities at face value. The cat miraculous has one unique power while the ladybug miraculous has 3. The cat miraculous can destroy anything but the ladybug miraculous can fix any damage done with her miraculous cleansing. The cat miraculous has one piece of jewlery while the Ladybug has two, making it still possible to use with only one earring. Looking at the powers by themselves and not the wielders, one would believe one miraculous was superior to the other.

The power balance between the heroes and the villains seems to be the only one with some care and merit. The peacock and the Butterfly miraculous are at perfect odds with Ladybug and Chat noir. The peacock and the butterfly allow for any sort of power to be created and utilized by an individual or created monster, while the ladybug and cat miraculous are able to purify and fix the person possessed. This allows for a strong balance that means one side must try and out think the other in order to win. The one balance I do think the show captured correctly is the balance between the heroes and villains. Ladybug and Chat noir always managed to foil Shadowmoth's plans but shadowmoth gets more creative and does have small victories from time to time, but never actually wins the day. It is enough to keep the viewer on their toes and keeps the power balance from being too predictable.

The miraculous in terms of balance are... a mess, and I do think that the powers given to the miraculous in some cases were not well thought out. It is hard to say that the miraculous follow a proper balance of power or even dynamic. But the balance is hard to maintain when one is trying to have over a dozen different magical items, its natural that some would be more powerful than others.

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Final thoughts

The Miraculous are incredibly interesting magical items and its understandable how appealing they are to viewers. They arent just unobtanium or a generic magic powersource that villain can pursue. The miraculous have sentience and special unique characteristics that make them so much more. While the power balance is something I find problem with, the matters of lore and kwami help keep the user invested and I feel it makes the miraculous well... Miraculous. I find the miraculous fascinating and while at times ridiculous, the potential development has me marveling at their beauty.

(thanks for this commission and sorry it took months to make. Season 4 put a wrench in this and I needed to utilize what was learned to add to it)

[sarahjtv]

BNHA Chapter 320 Short Spoiler Analysis: The Power of Friendship

The battle between Deku Vs. Class A has begun!  Well, it’s technically a battle, but more so a “Catch-A-Deku” situation.  Everyone is trying to use their cool Super Moves and words of friendship to try to convince Deku to come back home.  They’re all reminding him all of times he helped them, so they’re trying to return the favor.  So far, I think half the class was featured here including Shoto who I thought would be saved til the end.  Maybe he will be featured again since he’s one of Deku’s closest friends.  What’s interesting is that the trio that was shown at the end of last week’s chapter, Bakugo, Ochako, and Iida, didn’t have their heart-to-hearts with Deku this week, so I bet you they’re being saved for the end.  Anyway, my left hand is still on the mend, so I’ll keep this one short this week.  I hope it heals soon.

The 2nd Color page is shown this week!  It’s of Froppy this time around!  I think it’s been a while since we’ve seen Froppy featured in a color page, so this is cool to see.  She looks really good here too.  Horikoshi’s art rarely disappoints.  Next week is going to be the 7th BNHA Anniversary color page and the 7th Popularity Poll announcement, so I’m excited for that.  Apparently we’re going to get a lot of BNHA things next week including things for the WHM movie, Team-Up Missions, and the WHM one-shot manga.

I love how at the beginning, Bakugo breaks the 4th wall here by commenting on how Deku’s “art style” underwent a complete change.  It’s both a good taunt on Bakugo’s part and some acknowledgment from Horikoshi-sensei on the change of Deku’s design in general since this arc began.

So, Bakugo did tell the rest of 1-A about Deku’s other Quirks which is good.  I thought that would be the case after remembering that Bakugo read All Might’s OFA archive book.  Bakugo would still look over the other Holder’s Quirks, so he would have knowledge on the 4th-6ths Holders.  Problem is that none of them know of the 2nd and 3rd’s Quirks, so dealing with Fa-Jin will be troublesome.  None of us know what the 2nd’s Quirk is yet though, but I have a feeling we’ll see it in this battle.

Quite a few new Super Moves debut in this chapter!  

Katsuki Bakugo: Shockwave Landmine: Looks like Bakugo creates a blast on the ground so that the blast blows away anything around it like Deku’s Smokescreen.  It’s a big blast too, so Bakugo’s got a lot of range with this thing.

Kiyoka Jiro: Heartbeat Wall: It’s hard to tell, but I think it’s a move where Jiro uses her sound waves to block or stop whatever comes her way.  It could be really effective to stop anyone who can hear I’m sure.

Fumikage Tokoyami: Ragnorok: “Womb”: It’s a like a capturing move that traps anyone within Dark Shadow.  It kind of looks like one of the moves Tokoyami uses in The Strongest Hero Game.  Unless someone has a light Quirk, I can see this move being very effective in capturing villains.

Really, everyone is doing their best to remind Deku of all the good times they had with them. They’re using the power of feels and friendship to bring their sacrificial idiot home.  I like to believe it’s working given how Deku is finally shown crying tears of sadness as he pushes his friends away.  God, please let this kid have a good cry.  How they’ll be able to catch Deku though I still have no idea.

Deku is able to overpower pretty much everyone this chapter.  Even Tokoyami, who is considered one of the strongest in the class, and Momo who created this insanely complex machine to try to put Deku to sleep (how the hell did she make that anyway???).  At the end he’s captured by Shoto’s Heaven-Piercing Ice Wall (which he’s standing on btw and looks so damn pretty 💙☺️), but I doubt that will last.  Deku’s probably going to break right through the ice next chapter.

Speaking of Shoto, since I’m such a simp for him 😔, he has the least amount of dialogue out of everyone having heart-to-hearts with Deku.  But what he says is significant: he basically asks Deku if he can still truly cry and for Deku to share the responsibility with his friends.  I think this is calling back to when Shoto reassured Deku that heroes are allowed to cry back in the Overhaul arc and when Deku meddled with Shoto’s life to save him.  Which is essentially the philosophy everyone’s running on.  Meddling in Deku’s mission is the only way to save him now.

Side note, but I love that Kaminari is the one to tell Deku to take a freaking bath 😂!  Like, we’ve all been telling Deku that, but it’s good to know that Horikoshi and his characters are thinking the same thing.  Now someone has to tell Deku to eat a good meal and take a long nap.  

Also, small detail, but Sato comes in at one point and reminds Deku that they won’t be able to make candied apples for Eri anymore if Deku doesn’t come back.  Deku tells Sato that Eri will be fine without him 😭.  No, Deku, you dumbass!  Eri needs her big bro in her life!  I can’t imagine how sad she must be if she already knows about Deku’s disappearance 😭❤️

I’m also glad to see pretty much every student get some kind of spotlight especially the ones who are more minor characters than the others.  Koda actually gets a mini-monoluge this chapter.  Also, Froppy’s got a lot of focus at the end along with the color page this chapter.  Which, I’m glad to see.  It’s been a long time since Tsuyu got some spotlight.  Really, all the girls need more spotlight.  I assume everyone else will get their shine the next few chapters.  

It’s small and I’m still trying to find the meaning of it, but there’s one panel after Deku escapes from Tokoyami showing him flying through the air in the background and you can see the All Might statue at the forefront.  I want to say this symbolizes Deku being All Might’s successor or something, but I’m not sure.  This one just stood out to me for some reason.  

But yeah, like I said, the last half of the class will probably be featured next chapter.  I think Bakugo will be the last person to talk to Deku since he’s the most important one here.  Remember: Bakugo knows Deku better than anyone.  He will be the turning point I’m positive.  Iida and Ochako will definitely have an impact on Deku, but Bakugo will truly HIT DIFFERENT!  I won’t be surprised if that last conversation leads up to Deku Vs. Kacchan Part 3.  I wouldn’t be mad if that will happen tbh.  Part 2 was about understanding Bakugo and letting his feelings out.  Part 3 could be Deku’s turn.  And of course you gotta have a trilogy to cap it off.  I’m really excited to see what happens next!

Me seeing all my adopted children come together to save my green broccoli boy 💚🥦:

[shihalyfie]

The different aspects of Miyako’s personality and character arc

Miyako is a character where there’s just a lot going on with her in general, and asking different people to summarize Miyako in one phrase could feasibly get you some very different answers -- “the computer nerd girl”, or “the one who keeps talking about boys”, or “the one who panics all of the time”, or whatnot. Given that there’s so much to unpack at once even from her base profile, ironing out the full extent of her character arc can get a bit tricky, and there’s a lot going on with it. So, given that: Who is Miyako, anyway?

Miyako’s background and personality

Miyako is a character that I think is best understood by understanding what kind of person she is, and the personality and mentality she goes into the story of 02 with.

An interesting background story behind Miyako’s creation is that she’s based off a real person -- more accurately, a certain assistant producer on the series (whose identity has remained undisclosed, presumably for privacy reasons) was used as a reference for her behavior and actions. Although Adventure and 02 have a philosophy of portraying realistic human behavior in general, this level of specificity is a unique designation to have, and series director Kakudou Hiroyuki has referred to this a few times over the years -- it seems she’s the only of the Tokyo Chosen Children to have such a concrete single-person reference, and it’s also the reason her blood type of AB and star sign Gemini were given in 02 episode 25 (the other kids don’t have mentioned birthdays or blood types to prevent personality restrictions via horoscoping, but a real person having Miyako’s personality, star sign, and blood type wouldn’t make that as much of an issue). Even Volcano Ota himself confirmed Miyako’s resemblance to her upon hearing it after the fact! Indeed, a lot of 02 fans (especially adults) have admitted that Miyako’s probably one of the most relatable people in the cast, namely because her gushing about things she likes and panicking at things that overwhelm her is...well, a bit too uncomfortably on-point at times.

(And especially since so much about Miyako’s character has to do with how happy she makes everyone around her, it’s not too hard to imagine that the staff was so fond of her real-life inspiration that they wanted to pay tribute to her in such a way...)

Still, Miyako is a fictional character, one with her own backstory and interactions in 02′s story, and said backstory is such: she comes from a family that runs a convenience store in Odaiba, and is the youngest of a family of four siblings. Running a convenience store on a small island means that Miyako has probably seen a lot of the island’s residents, and her family also has various levels of connections to the other kids’ families (her older sisters Momoe and Chizuru are friends of Daisuke’s sister Jun, and Chizuru is Yamato’s classmate). Moreover, she’s befriended her nine-year-old neighbor (one who otherwise has trouble socializing with his peers) to the point of regularly going over to do computer repairs for his family. She’s also worked in the computer club under Koushirou, and even before the series has started, she looks up to him and adores him in a way not entirely unlike how Daisuke looks up to Taichi -- and although it’s unclear whether or not she started after the beginning of 02, 02 episode 29 reveals that she helps Yamato with his band.

The pattern here is that Miyako is extremely sociable, and one who actively pokes her nose into nearly everything so she can help out. This makes her a very different sort of Mom Friend from Sora -- both of them are Crest of Love holders for good reason, but in Sora’s case, she was compulsively going out of her way to help other people to the point of exhaustion, and her character arc was about trying to find a way to detach herself from obligations and do something for herself. Miyako is the complete opposite -- she’s the kind of extrovert who actively enjoys poking her head into other people’s business, picking up a bunch of peripheral hobbies so she can do something useful for everyone and go I’M HELPING!! If you actually look closely at those hobbies of “computer programming and hacking”, “hardware tinkering”, and “sound engineering”, other than vaguely being related to computers, they are completely different skillsets, and every single one of them is one Miyako’s depicted employing in order to help someone else out. (Koushirou is never really depicted as having super amazingly high technical skill and most of his unique talent comes from being a thorough analyst, but in contrast, while Miyako is established as being good at even hacking in Diablomon Strikes Back, she doesn’t really seem to have a huge propensity for deep analytical thought.) It’s hard to tell if she has any personal preference for any of them as much as she basically turned herself into a jack-of-all-trades so she could do whatever job was necessary for someone else.

If we’re to believe the official 02 site, Miyako’s been a bit pampered by her family -- as the youngest of four siblings, she’s the “baby of the family”, who hasn’t had to live with a ton of responsibility for others. This means that, much like Mimi, she seems to have been raised surrounded by a ton of affection, which is why she herself is such an openly affectionate person who’s open-minded towards trying all sorts of things, and why she’s used to wanting to help others by actively throwing herself into situations -- but it also means that, being the youngest of a family who is now in the situation of being the oldest in a new group, she ends up in Jou’s situation of suddenly being faced with the pressure of the concept of proper responsibility for others.

As far as Miyako’s general personality goes, she is constantly overflowing with affection and cheer and a desire to dote on everyone -- but the flip side is that she’s also aggressive. She has zero sense of restraint. (If you ever get around to listening to the Japanese version of 02, Natsuki Rio’s performance is energetic and over-the-top in almost every way imaginable to the point that you get the impression of Miyako as someone who doesn’t easily run out of batteries -- at least, until things start getting really serious.) When she loves something, she’ll gush about it as if there were hearts floating around her (and, depending on the level of closeness, even jump in and physically hug them), and she has no qualms against physically manhandling if she feels she needs to, and if she dislikes something, she will make it very clear (including yelling very loudly about it). You could argue that she’s actually closer to the archetype of the brash shounen protagonist than Daisuke himself is!

In fact, Miyako and Daisuke have very similar temperaments -- pure-hearted, but also rough around the edges -- but can be distinguished by the fact that while Daisuke is actually deferential and somewhat lacking in assertion, Miyako is actually aggressive, and while Daisuke’s “honesty about his feelings” is mainly because he’s too simple-minded to be any good at hiding anything, Miyako’s honesty is because she has no brain-to-mouth filter, and everything she’s thinking comes out of her mouth before she can control it -- in other words, Miyako has a huge case of foot-in-mouth syndrome. She doesn’t want to be insensitive, but it keeps coming out of her mouth before she can control it -- and even worse, her emotions are prone to taking control of her, and she is very prone to getting overwhelmed and collapsing into a massive panic.

If you think about the two archetypes of “girl who takes care of everyone” and “aggressive action girl”, Miyako has a tendency towards both at once, and moreover there’s an extra nail in it -- most “action girls” in the latter category would be portrayed as badass, put-together characters with a cool personality, but Miyako is a mess. She’s prone to panicking, all over the place, and her tendency to get in-your-face is not exactly in the most dignified manner. And as a result, a huge part of her character arc (as we will be going more into detail about below) is that she’s aware of this and doesn’t like this about herself -- because she doesn’t want to be insensitive or rude, and in fact she wants to be someone who can better help and take care of others, but, in her mind, her own personality keeps getting in the way.

Miyako in 02

After fully becoming a Chosen Child in 02 episode 2, it only takes one more episode for Miyako to bring food for everyone, as if to say “Right! I’m going to be working with everyone now! All of you are now my new best friends!” (”Bringing food for people” is one of Miyako’s many ways of showing love, given that she returns from Kyoto in 02 episode 34 and immediately hands off souvenir yatsuhashi to Koushirou.) And with that, Miyako settles into the archetype of the group’s “mood maker” -- someone whose role is to keep everyone in emotionally high spirits by influencing everyone with cheer and energy. 02 episode 5 features the debut of her famous “Digital Gate, open! Chosen Children, let’s roll!” catchphrase -- this and her other famous “Bingo!” catchphrase establish her as the only of the Tokyo Chosen Children to have a catchphrase (at least, in the Japanese version). Because catchphrases are fun.

As much as everyone (especially Daisuke) is a bit blindsided by her behavior at first, they eventually come to embrace the positive effect she has on all of them -- Daisuke very genuinely asks her for “the usual cheer” in 02 episode 10, and, all the way in 02 episode 22, this is such an agreed-on and established role that they’ll still wait on her to do the honors even when they’re in a hurry. So in other words, it didn’t take long for Miyako to go out of her way to shower everyone with cheer, and it didn’t take long for everyone to answer to that cheer and appreciate her for it.

The flip side of this, however, is that Miyako doesn’t start off being very emotionally equipped to handle this -- right off the bat in 02 episode 2, she says that she’s not inclined for fighting, and in 02 episode 4, she refers to it as being “like an adventure game”. That is to say, she’s not at the point where she’s able to handle the full gravity of what she’s just involved herself with (Daisuke reminds her that she’d panicked earlier, but she just blows it off). She’s handling it so cheerfully now because the series is still in its early stages, when she can enter and exit the Digital World at will, and she’s capable of treating it like this.

So when the stakes do get higher, she’s the first one to take the stress hard. As mentioned before, she’s the youngest in her family, now recast as the oldest in this group -- but unlike Jou, who consciously knew this fact and took stress onto himself because of the responsibility this entailed, Miyako seems to repeatedly forget that she’s the oldest in this group, and the events of 02 episodes 9-10 (when Agumon is kidnapped) cause her to break down from stress and have to take a time-out. (Which everyone allows her to do, because this is not a series where people are pressured to fight if they’re not emotionally ready for it.) Miyako comes to terms with the fact that the stakes are going to keep escalating, and she can’t just gloss over everything with cheer -- and she does manage to pull herself enough to bring Yamato into the fray at the end of the episode, but this continues to be a recurring theme for the rest of her character arc.

While we’re discussing these early parts of the series, one thing I want to briefly address is the part where Miyako infamously calls a lot of people hot. (Although, not as many as the fanbase would love to make you think; it’s only four people in total.) This tends to get her pinned as some kind of flirt whose head is only filled with being hot for people, but while she’s certainly a bit on the shallow end at this point of the series -- dealing with that being what this character arc is about, after all -- this trait of hers tends to get exaggerated by a lot of people in the audience as if she’s completely lacking in common sense. Miyako’s ridiculous (and we love her for it), but she does have some degree of grip on herself! Context is important here -- she might show a crush on someone, but at no point in the series itself does Miyako show any indication of seriously thinking of full-on dating.

For Miyako, who’s accustomed to just blurting out the first thing that comes to mind, commenting on someone being hot is like commenting on the weather -- she means it as a compliment, but there’s no evidence she thinks she has a chance with any of them, let alone wanting to try dating. This is especially when you take into account her self-esteem issues that we learn about later in the series, and also...well, the fact she’s only twelve. (Remember: even Daisuke’s thing for Hikari comes out as a lot of unfocused affection, and it’s unlikely he’s seriously considered the concept of following that up with a serious relationship -- any serious prospects of romance or dating are not going to be on the table for these kids for a while.) Miyako has also been accused by some of being abysmally shallow for still complimenting Ken’s looks in 02 episode 9 (after it’s already apparent he’s the Kaiser), but although she certainly is a bit shallow at this point of the series, she’s not that lacking in common sense; Iori got in on it too in this scene, and both of them were doing it to tease Daisuke more than they seriously wanted to compliment the Kaiser all that much. So in essence, it’s just “Miyako has eyes” -- she still completely agrees he’s their enemy and she’s not going to judge him any better for his looks, but she also doesn’t see this as a reason to lie about the fact she thinks he’s visually good-looking, especially if it’s to tease Daisuke about it.

In any case, 02 episode 14 digs a lot more into Miyako’s stance on herself regarding others -- in 02 episode 6, Miyako met Mimi for the first time, and latched onto her for their similar dispositions and her looking up to Mimi for being beautiful, amazing, and cool (and she should, because she’s right). 02 episode 14 adds another layer to this, however, when Miyako spends the duration negatively comparing herself to Mimi. At first it starts off as simply just shallow jealousy for Michael giving Mimi more attention, but as the situation with Digitamamon escalates, Miyako spends a prolonged period of time trying to figure out Mimi’s behavior of pure-heartedly choosing to trust Digitamamon despite everything, against Miyako’s insistence that Digitamamon’s behavior proves that he was untrustworthy the whole time.

Mimi and Miyako’s stances are both on extremes here -- Mimi’s pacifistic tendencies are causing her to let her get beaten up by Digitamamon despite the fact that “appealing to people’s hearts” has never really been demonstrated as a good way to get Evil Rings off (to be fair, this is probably the first time they’ve made an attempt at this with a Digimon that can still talk coherently with it on), but Miyako’s acting as if this retroactively proves him to be untrustworthy even though she knows that the Evil Rings are tantamount to brainwashing. Nevertheless, Miyako acknowledges that her own stance was borne out of her being shallow and judgmental, especially since the discussion between Mimi and Digitamamon brings out a question about the meaning of the “true self”.

Miyako, at this point, is confronting everything that’s bad about herself -- that she’s shallow and not as much of a “good person” as Mimi is. But the Crest of Purity -- once meaning “lack of malice” back when it applied to Mimi in Adventure -- now has a secondary meaning of “not lying to oneself” (the dub translation of “Sincerity” is not actually that off in this sense), and it also means that Miyako is not going to get anywhere pretending or forcing herself to be someone she’s not. The secondary Digimental arc has a recurring theme of understanding that there are still things you need to learn and improve on in order to do better, and this is Miyako’s version of it -- she will have to acknowledge all of the bad parts of herself before she can get anywhere and become a kind person like Mimi is -- and, indeed, becoming less shallow and judgmental and not jumping to conclusions, and learning to reach out to more substantial cores of the problem, ends up becoming a major part of her character arc in the latter half of the series.

This episode also implies one more thing, even if she doesn’t realize it yet at this moment: the path to her becoming a less shallow and more considerate person is not going to involve trying to force herself to be like Mimi, but rather in a way that’s closer to her “true self”.

Miyako’s first major turning point is in 02 episode 18, an episode that’s said to have such a profound impact on her that even Natsuki Rio testified to having to alter her Miyako performance thereafter.

Back in 02 episode 10, Miyako first started to realize that this whole experience of fighting as a Chosen Child was a lot more stressful than it seemed at first, and reacted badly to it. Here, the ante gets upped even more -- the kids decide to make use of their summer break and organize a Digital World stakeout, and, eventually, Hikari accidentally becomes indirectly responsible for tipping Miyako over the deep end by making an implication that they need more “determination” to the point of refusing to leave until they’ve beaten the Kaiser. (Remember that Hikari can be terrifyingly assertive as long as it’s not something to do with herself.) For Miyako, who’s never had the same experience of being in the Digital World for a prolonged period of time the same way the Adventure group has, this is terrifying, and she tries to “get herself together” over the night -- only to completely overshoot it and go into the complete other extreme. As much as this ends up being one of Miyako’s peak hilarity moments, it’s most certainly representative of her being under a huge amount of pressure and stress, and it’s effectively her “peak worst” moment -- which results in Hawkmon ending up having to cover for her, and getting injured in the process, and Miyako immediately realizing how badly she’d messed up.

Miyako is thus forced to face a major consequence of her behavior: if she doesn’t manage to figure out a way to get herself under control, other people will be hurt, and as someone who wants to do her best for other people, that’s one of the worst possible outcomes for her. 

In addition, it’s also important to point out Hikari’s role in this. The Jogress arcs have yet to set in, but the series still gives you a little preview of what’s to come eventually, such as the insight we get about Daisuke and Ken’s initial attitudes towards each other in 02 episode 8, and Iori later personally witnessing (and being very disturbed by) Takeru losing his composure in 02 episode 19. In this case, we see a bit of what Miyako and Hikari’s opposing personalities can offer for each other (especially since the later 02 episode 31 more heavily involves Miyako returning the favor in the other direction) -- Hikari correctly identifies exactly what it was that set Miyako off, takes responsibility for it, and even decides to make sure Miyako and Hawkmon get proper alone time so that they can figure things out. In general, everyone in the 02 team is understanding of Miyako’s antics and doesn’t hold any of it against her because she’s doing her best, but right now, Hikari may be the only person in this group who can actually proactively do something about it, because Daisuke’s not assertive enough to step in, Takeru has a tendency to dodge things whenever they get awkward, and Iori’s holding himself back too much for the sake of manners (especially in the presence of Miyako, who’s the oldest one in this group). But while Hikari does have an emotional repression problem, she’s perfectly capable of holding herself together and putting her foot down when it comes to other people, and because of this, she’s the one who’s able to understand what exactly is going on with Miyako, and how to adjust the situation around her to make things easier for her.

Miyako and Hawkmon have a proper heart-to-heart, and we see more of Miyako’s self-hating tendencies going on here -- she refers exactly to her problems with impulse control, and even labels herself a “bad partner” as a result. But Hawkmon reassures her that she’s fine the way she is, and it ties into how a larger theme of her character arc will involve her learning to find better ways to channel the qualities she already has, rather than trying to force herself to be someone she’s not.

Once the Kaiser is defeated, the second half of the series is where we start to see Miyako’s growth start to really kick in. In 02 episode 24, there’s a short blink-and-you’ll-miss-it scene where Miyako suddenly takes Daisuke and puts him in charge of taking care of the Punimon. Why is this important? Because two episodes prior, Daisuke had been running around in circles like an idiot due to having been third wheeled by Takeru and Hikari, and the moment Daisuke started exhibiting similar signs this time, Miyako personally stepped in and gave him a job to do -- and her actions of keeping an eye on them and her conversation with Takeru and Hikari indicate that she did it exactly because she figured that he would like it. Or, in other words, Miyako correctly identified Daisuke’s need for validation and purpose, and became the first person to proactively do something to address it -- Hikari and Takeru had generally been dodging it awkwardly for the duration of the series, which had only really been making it worse, and, in the absence of another crisis to take care of or someone like Ken to fill the void in Daisuke’s life, Miyako was able to properly figure out exactly what he needed at the moment as a stopgap, and thus is starting to settle into her proper role of understanding what others need in terms of emotional support and actively working to address it.

Since the second half of 02 is dedicated to Ken slowly establishing his place in the group, 02 episode 25 is dedicated to Miyako tussling with her conflicted feelings on the situation -- she’s just as open-minded and pure-hearted as Daisuke is, but the one thing that’s bothering her is that she’s a little more doubtful than he is in regards to whether Ken’s heart is really in the right place with all of this. She says, outright, that she believes he’s learned his lesson -- in a way far more firm than Takeru, Hikari, and Iori are about it -- but that one thing about him having potentially killed Thunderballmon in cold blood doesn’t fit the optimistic image she’d like to have of him.

Daisuke is more practical-minded than she is and is more willing to accept that there might have been a good reason -- especially since he himself starts to consider in this very episode that killing an enemy may be necessary if it’s the only way to prevent more victims -- but Miyako is more emotionally oriented and just can’t accept the idea of doing this at all. Both the internal debate over accepting Ken and the internal debate over having to potentially do a kill tear her apart over the course of this episode, and Miyako finds herself constantly waffling back and forth between the two positions. It’s not just her expressing minor doubt; she actually agonizes over this for the duration of the night and the next day, to the point she even considers asking him about it (and eventually can’t bring herself to).

It’s also made a prominent point that Miyako’s prior attraction to Ken in 02 episode 8 was not the reason she wanted to be optimistic about him -- remember, back in 02 episode 14, she completely admitted that she judges people by appearances, but at this point she’s well past that! Miyako takes this entire issue of whether Ken should be considered a friend very seriously, and that’s why it torments her so much over the course of the episode.

Eventually, all is resolved (at least, for the time being) when it turns out that Ken has been dealing with non-sentient Dark Tower Digimon, and Miyako takes this as sufficient evidence that Ken has changed -- the morality debate about killing comes back in full force in 02 episode 43, and Ken himself ends up just as shaken about it, so the important part is that she understands that he’s trustworthy and wants to put faith in him. Attention is also given to Miyako deciding she’ll now call him by given name (”Ken-kun”) from now on -- even Daisuke himself won’t start calling him “Ken” regularly until 02 episode 39, but Miyako starts slowly inserting given-name basis for Ken into her vocabulary from this point on until she finally commits to it fully in 02 episode 30. This is a proactive and conscious act on Miyako’s part that she actively wants to get to know him better and consider him a close friend, and it’s because of this that she ends up one of the only people who never gets habituated into surname basis with him by the time everyone’s come to properly befriend him.

So, at this point: Within only one episode (and, in-universe, one day), Daisuke and Miyako landed on the same page with their ideological stance towards Ken. They’re both open-minded and forward-thinking, and have an interest in becoming his friend (the next person to show active and open goodwill towards him, Hikari, won’t do so for another 9 episodes). However, despite their surface temperaments being somewhat similar, they have some differences in their priorities and way of approaching things, and it means that each of them ends up reaching out to Ken in ways that the other isn’t as good at. Daisuke, being the very practical and simple-minded sort who doesn’t overthink things or get caught in arbitrary philosophy, is the one who most proactively reaches out to Ken and most famously connects with him the most due to Ken very badly needing guidance in how to move on forward and stop getting fixated on his past. Miyako, on the other hand, being very much the type to consciously think about things (to the point of sometimes thinking about too many things at once) and focus on “how do I most show my support for someone right now?”, puts her priorities on checking on Ken’s current emotional state and actively attempting to glean his feelings and position. 02 being a series about relationships and what people can provide for each other, this ends up reflecting on their roles in the group as a whole -- Daisuke becomes the person who can pull everyone forward in determining the best thing to do, whereas Miyako fills in the parts his rough-around-the-edges demeanor doesn’t quite cover in terms of supporting everyone emotionally and keeping them together.

And thus, Miyako resolves to “wait” until the day Ken will join them -- that is to say, she takes the stance that Ken deserves proper space and to come on his own terms. It’s an interesting inversion of the usual roles you’d expect from Daisuke and Miyako at this point -- and, again, since 02 is about relationships, “each character’s approach towards the new kid and how it impacts them” reflects a lot about their own characters. For Daisuke and Miyako, who were open-minded towards Ken early in the game, you can already see the impact on them -- the necessity of reaching out to Ken causes the normally deferential Daisuke to become more proactive and put his foot down, whereas the normally uncontrollably in-your-face Miyako comes to understand when something needs to be handled delicately and starts getting a better grasp on the concept of restraint.

Which means that Miyako’s actions regarding Ken in the following episodes are significantly more passive than Daisuke’s are, but it’s clear that she’s still supportive. Moreover, it’s also important to establish that she and Daisuke aren’t fighting about this or anything -- Miyako does want Ken to come around eventually, so she doesn’t stop the more proactive Daisuke from reaching out to Ken in an important way, but she instead exerts her position in ways such as joining in with the others reminding him that Ken might have gotten a bit emotionally overwhelmed by the Jogress (and thus that it’s understandable that he might need some time to parse this before pushing the issue further). The way Miyako words this statement so casually can easily be a distraction from the fact that she is completely correct -- as we see later, Ken did emotionally freak out the moment the incident was resolved and had to go home to think about this. Scatterbrained as Miyako may seem, as the series proceeds, it turns out that she has a natural propensity for empathy that means she’s capable of making perfectly correct readings of the situation, even without her thinking that hard about it.

Not that she’s correct all of the time, though. 02 episode 30 has her attempt to get Ken and Iori to hopefully be a little less tense around each other end in complete disaster (although to be fair to her, it’s not like she and Daisuke were particularly forceful about it, it’s just that their plan was so poorly set up that it was too easy to read the motive behind, and it’s ultimately thrown off because -- as Daisuke correctly points out -- the two are being really childish about it.) But in response, Miyako takes direct action and responsibility to fix the situation when Ken continues to refuse to help despite how badly the situation is escalating, and when she finally reaches him, she gets frustrated at the fact he’s being so stubborn, smacks him, and personally drags him back over. Miyako cared a lot about this, she had wanted Ken and Iori to get along for no reason of personal benefit to herself but more because she cared that much about the group’s dynamic and friendship, and she’d held herself back so much because she was worried about him, but here he’s taking all of that and still giving them all the cold shoulder when everyone is in grave danger, and all of that frustration causes her to break down at once.

And note Ken’s reaction -- he’d been holding off on the grounds that he was being a burden on everyone’s friendship, but he sees Miyako distraught and upset and calling him an idiot (i.e. his whole pretense of not hurting others has clearly not worked here), and his “idiot...?” comes out flustered and off-guard, and he shows no resentment towards her thereafter and comes quietly with no protest, even holding a hand to the place she’d smacked him as if mulling in agreement that he deserved that. So, again: Even when Miyako is coming to all of these conclusions in a haphazard manner, it doesn’t change the fact that her readings of these situations are often completely correct.

02 episode 31 is another landmark episode in which we get a lot of insight into Miyako’s current feelings regarding herself in comparison to others, and what she’s trying to achieve at this point in the series. Daisuke makes an offhand remark at the beginning of the episode about Hikari being more “kind” than Miyako (”kind” having a double meaning of “gentle” in Japanese, so Daisuke’s mainly referring to Miyako being such a rough and belligerent person). The way Miyako takes this statement indicates that Daisuke had accidentally just hit a very deep-seated complex within her -- Miyako had never liked the fact she was aggressive and belligerent and in-your-face (remember, back in 02 episode 14, she was constantly negatively comparing herself to Mimi for not being as good of a person as her, and now this has extended to Hikari, who “keeps so much inside”.). As the crisis in the episode escalates, Miyako continues to fall victim to her foot-in-mouth syndrome, saying things and instantly regretting it, because she sees herself as making the situation worse -- and especially when it comes to a situation also involving Ken, whom she’s actively trying to reach out to right now. Her frustration at the fact she can’t see what Ken and Hikari see is because, unable to understand what they’re talking about or what their feelings are, she’s basically a sitting duck who can’t do anything while things are getting worse for them.

Which ultimately results in Miyako completely losing her marbles and Hikari having to smack her out of it -- again, recall that in 02 episode 18, it was shown that Hikari is one of the few people who has enough assertiveness to be able to rein in Miyako’s behavior, and even outright admits that Miyako is a bit of a handful. Miyako, as it seems, had been carrying a complex that Hikari had been thinking of her badly for all of this -- but Hikari then proceeds to reveal the flip side of all of this: she’s also conversely jealous of Miyako for being able to express herself so clearly and easily, because she herself is the type who compulsively represses her own feelings about herself, which is why nobody had been able to properly reach out to her for the duration of Adventure and 02.

For someone who had spent so much time considering herself a “bad person” and a “worse person” in comparison to people like Mimi and Hikari, that someone considers her qualities outright enviable is a huge deal -- it’s not that Miyako’s an objectively worse person than all of the other people who aren’t as rough or in-your-face, but rather, that those qualities can bring out positive things in their own way. And, immediately after that, we see one of those things -- she makes Hikari laugh, thanks to her antics. Of course, it involves Miyako being a bit all over the place and making a lot of mistakes, but even she admits “I guess it is funny.”

And there’s another thing to this, too: Miyako continues to end up with foot-in-mouth as she casually refers to things like the Evil Ring and Ken being the Kaiser with zero fanfare, before realizing seconds after that she probably shouldn’t be doing that in front of him, but, once again, even without her realizing, her evaluation is not incorrect -- although the fact he’s extremely out of it doesn’t make that clear quite yet in this episode, Ken is not the kind of person who’s touchy about acknowledging that he was the Kaiser, and, by his own statement in 02 episode 23, his stance is that he wants to “accept everything about it”, take responsibility, and move on. So here we are with Miyako, who just casually tossed that statement out like it was no big deal, has accepted his past with no lingering grudge against him, and even made a casual evaluation about him presumably having the same resilience he had as the Kaiser, which, again, is completely accurate. All of this is exactly the kind of attitude that Ken needs to be surrounded by right now, and Miyako had just touched on this without even thinking that hard about it, and also is still making it clear she doesn’t want him to feel bad about it...

And so, the episode’s climax has Miyako finally attaining the solution to the question of reaching out to Hikari, the one that nobody had been able to successfully accomplish throughout Hikari’s childhood of never expressing herself properly and the majority of Adventure and 02: to get Hikari to stop being so passive and accepting her inevitable fate because she doesn’t want to burden others, someone as aggressive as her will need to reach her and yank her out, and hit all of the exact points about understanding that someone will be there for her and that she should not accept this defeatist mentality. Hikari is unusually, unhealthily passive, and Miyako, being outwardly aggressive and someone who never hesitates to be blunt about things, is the best person to yank her out of this; it was never a sign of her being a “bad person”, just something she needed to channel in the right direction.

At the end of the episode, we’re also reminded once again that this is a series about relationships, so this kind of growth is important to everyone’s relationships with others as well -- thanks to Miyako’s efforts, Hikari is finally able to speak honestly with Takeru in contrast to her way of leaving off in silence with him at the end of 02 episode 13, and Miyako herself is happy that she’s finally gotten to have a better understanding of both Hikari, whom she herself had been unsure about the position of earlier, and Ken, whom she’d been worried she hadn’t been reaching out to in the right way.

While Ken was out of it during said episode and unable to coherently respond, we do get confirmation that he himself has hopped on the train of respecting Miyako’s intent well enough that he doesn’t hold anything over her -- during 02 episode 33, a mere three episodes after she’d personally slapped him in the face and two episodes after he’d practically seen her at her emotional worst, he still takes it upon himself to personally deliver Poromon to Kyoto and trust her to handle the rest. This isn’t that particularly interesting by itself, but moreso in terms of the context this is in -- this is a point where Ken’s still at awkward arm’s length with a lot of the team (including even Daisuke, in some ways), and he’s seen Miyako do all of the above messy things only not too long ago, but he still is comfortable enough around her and trusting enough in her abilities that he’s okay with casually approaching her and saying “you got this.” So it’s working, all things considered!

We also learn that Miyako had trusted Koushirou with Poromon during her trip to Kyoto, which says a lot about the fact she trusts her senior that much -- and, on a meta level, seems there specifically to facilitate the existence of the above scene (it would have been very easy to save time by just having Poromon accompany Miyako from the get-go and ending Ken’s involvement in the episode at his conversation with Koushirou...).

The following episodes also meanwhile establish that Miyako’s relationship with Hikari has been improving a lot -- with Miyako now actually understanding what Hikari needs, she’s much more proactive in reaching out to Hikari, and it’s even said directly by Iori in 02 episode 36 that their relationship seems to have gotten much better now. And, once again, Miyako’s antics are depicted as making people laugh -- note her and Hawkmon’s over-the-top advertisement performance doing so for everyone in the vicinity.

Which is also reinforced, again, in 02 episode 38, when this even spreads to Ken himself, in a moment that’s said to be particularly unusual and portrayed as one of the first times Ken has been able to be truly carefree in a long time. Again, the point here is: Miyako’s “all-over-the-place” nature brings joy to other people, and that “she makes people laugh” is continually reinforced as a symbol of this over the course of the second half of the series.

Beyond that, the visit to Ken’s house kicks off with Miyako noticing the picture of Osamu and asking about it, to the point she’s shown leaning over and staring at it for quite a while -- Koushirou had allegedly informed her about it earlier, and a whole point is made that she’s the one very prominently wanting to understand more about Ken and his background.

Also, Miyako reminds us all that she still does think Ken is attractive, but it’s a huge contrast to her behavior from back in 02 episode 8, when she knew nothing about him except that he was some celebrity genius boy -- she got completely worked up about it, moped about it for a whole day, and even dragged the fixation into the next day when she started aggressively confronting Daisuke about it, but we’re here 30 episodes later with Miyako actually considering him an important friend that she respects the feelings of, and she simply casually tosses out the statement of him being cute in her usual “like it’s commenting on the weather” manner, with no extra weirdness about it.

We close up some of the threads of Miyako's character arcs when Miyako herself is forced to confront the possibility of fighting an enemy to the kill in 02 episode 44, and Silphymon is eventually forced to kill LadyDevimon to save Miyako's life. Miyako’s emotional reaction is given the most attention here, since she herself had fixated so much on the horror of potentially killing Golemon back in 02 episode 25 -- in fact, everything Miyako does in this episode is about her emotional empathy and empathy for others, in that she rails on LadyDevimon for being a “coward” who hurts other people. Eventually, it’s once again the assertive Hikari who’s able to get her back on her feet by putting it in a way she can understand -- they were not doing it out of a callous and cruel intent to kill, but to save the exact victims that Miyako herself wanted to prevent.

And, even to the very end of the series, Miyako continues to channel her proactivity into emotional awareness first and foremost -- 02 episode 46 has her take the lead in the Dark Seed roundtable, and it’s implied that she’s doing this mainly because she knows this is a very personal issue for Ken to have to witness. In contrast to the way she frantically started spitting out potentially insensitive things in front of Ken in 02 episode 31, here, she outright says that she doesn’t want to make him feel bad about this (and, fortunately, he understands perfectly well that she’s trying). Even all the way to the very end in 02 episode 50, she’s the one who first brings up the question of the issue, because of how emotionally invested she got into this and her high level of awareness as to how deeply this impacted Ken.

In 02 episode 49, BelialVamdemon presents everyone in the team with a potential deep-seated desire that none of them want to admit, and in the case of Miyako’s, it ends up being a rather tame thing in comparison to Iori and Takeru’s more severe family issues, Hikari’s desire for WORLD PEACE!!, and Ken’s complicated feelings about punishment and forgiveness. In Miyako’s dream world, she’s just eating cake, and it says a lot about the fact that were it not for the fact that she overthinks things and often gets easily stressed, she’s fundamentally fairly free of deep-seated issues in a way not entirely dissimilar to Daisuke’s simple and pure-hearted way of life.

The thing that causes Miyako’s issue is often misinterpreted to be about her selfishly wanting everything to herself, or the idea she’s fighting for attention with her siblings, but Hawkmon actually says what the real problem is in direct words: her crowded family is “noisy”. Or in other words -- Miyako, being the overly empathetic type and someone who easily succumbs to stress, is just really overwhelmed and stressed because of everything around her.

An interesting thing about Miyako’s “illusion” is that it’s the only one that in itself starts making its victim feel lonely and sad even before it’s taken away or dispelled -- Takeru and Iori had to have their happy images pulled away from them, Hikari had to have Tailmon clarify that everything is fake, and Ken had to have Wormmon personally chase the image of his brother away. But in the case of Miyako, all Hawkmon has to do is ask if she’s happy right now, and she’s quick to admit that she’s not. It’s just that everything was stressful and overwhelming and there was so much to deal with all of the time, and for once she wanted to be able to enjoy a little peace, but she loves her family and she loves everyone around her and she doesn’t want to be alone, and she’d rather have them back even if it’s stressful. Miyako’s love for others is so strong that even an illusion supposedly made to cater to her won’t make her happy if everyone’s gone.

Miyako also takes the moment to realize that for all Hawkmon’s been going out of his way to be steadfast and loyal to her, she hasn’t been doing enough to understand her own partner in turn, and there’s still a lot more she can do in terms of thinking of others.

Miyako after 02

As per Spring 2003, once Miyako graduates elementary school and moves to middle school, she continues trying to be helpful to her juniors -- she joins the computer club and once again ends up under Koushirou, and now outright makes music for Yamato’s band (some creative differences aside). It’s also interesting to note her attitude towards her other friends when she tries to recruit them into her music unit -- she snarks at everyone right up until she gets to Ken, who declines politely, and in exchange, she just can't bring herself to be mean to him and simply apologizes for asking too much. It’s ambiguous whether this is because she’s still trying to have a heightened level of consideration around him (this is still only four months after 02′s finish, after all), but it seems she’s still concerned about the idea of handling him overly roughly, and is able to exercise a proper level of restraint about him.

Which brings us all the way to Kizuna, a whole eight years later where we have to fill in a lot of blanks about what’s been happening in the meantime, but the official website establishes that she’s now pursuing a degree in computer programming at an engineering university, and is now on study abroad in Spain (implied to be Barcelona, given details in both the movie itself and the drama CD). Pretty ambitious stuff!...or at least that’s the first impression one would get, until it turns out that she’s getting her flighty personality enabled by the local culture. As we learn in the drama CD, she’s absolutely taking the time to milk this entire situation so she can play around -- and, in accordance with how she was established to be an important factor in bringing Hikari out of her shell, it’s rubbing off on Hikari, too.

In addition, Miyako is still working under Koushirou despite their educational careers having completely diverged, this time as his assistant in terms of managing the Chosen Child community. Interestingly, her specific job seems to be consultation, and people come to her for “advice and stuff” -- meaning that it’s very likely that a lot of new Chosen Children who are having a hard time adjusting to life with a partner are coming to her for practical and emotional advice, and she’s still continuing to channel her ability to be emotionally aware and supportive of others.

That is to say, until she gets a mysterious request from a certain Menoa Bellucci. We learn later that Menoa’s motive was to obtain the list of international Chosen Children, meaning that she most definitely was not approaching Miyako for emotional help, and with that, Miyako decides that she doesn’t want to do this and dumps it on her seniors...

...but then picks it back up with zero hesitation the moment her friends present her that exact same job, and not only is it just “zero hesitation”, Ken even comments on how “fast” she arrived to do so! (This was also before Iori came up with the plan to infiltrate Menoa’s office; there wasn’t any indication Miyako’s computer abilities would be particularly necessary at the time.) On top of that, the drama CD gives us full context as to why she was so willing to dump this on her seniors in the first place -- she had wanted to see her friends so badly that she practically invented D-3 gate exploitation so she could hang out with her friends despite technically being in another country, and even wanted to invite them to come visit her, and eventually they’d all made an organized plan to meet up in New York. In other words, her loyalty to her friends is still stronger than anything else -- remember, she’s the kind of person who was picking up tons of jobs specifically so she could help her friends in the first place.

On that note, Ken’s ability to be casual with everyone besides Daisuke has noticeably improved, and that’s especially prominent with Miyako, whom he proactively converses with in a way that wouldn’t have happened back in 02, and, likewise, in contrast to the sense of distance she’d still been maintaining with him back during the final arc of 02 and Spring 2003, she has no qualms about handling him as casually as she would anyone else.

Which eventually leads us to...

This is a recurring theme on this blog, but every so often I have to draw the distinction between creative concepts “in meta” (i.e. the way the audience will read it, in relation to franchise standards and other real-life factors) and said concepts “in-universe” (i.e. with audience factors completely removed, whether there’s a presumable logical reason for these events happening in-universe, and whether this is reasonable behavior to expect out of the characters). This blog is largely dedicated to the latter, but the reason why I have to keep drawing this distinction in the first place is that I get the impression that the staff behind Adventure and 02 really did not pay much mind to the former part as part of their dedication to the latter. And, I mean, part of the reason I respect the writing of Adventure and 02 so much is how uncompromising they were in terms of not really pandering to what a fanbase might expect, which allowed the story to retain a lot of creative integrity that it wouldn’t have otherwise.

But every so often you get something like this that makes me want to just bang my head on the table and scream, I swear, I get what you guys were going for, but I am begging you, please think a little harder about how people are going to read this!! In general, I do think there’s something that’s not very good about disregarding your audience completely, because if you’re trying to say important things and those things are going directly over your audience’s heads (this is a kids’ show, for goodness’s sake), you can’t call that good communication, and it’s not like you can blame the audience for getting blindsided or being upset, and this is before we get into what they just dropped on the global audience that was presumably full of young girls interested in STEM fields who were hoping to see them go all the way with that, or the feelings of those who are bothered that one character has to be singled out to be defined solely by her relationship to others, and I mean -- to be fair, with a character like Miyako and the tons of things going on with her, there was probably no outcome they could come up with that wouldn’t be reinforcing some negative stereotype (believe it or not, there are people who have conversely mentioned identifying deeply with Miyako’s personal story and the meaning of this ending to them, and have also expressed discomfort about some of the comments the fanbase has made over the years), but at the same time, holy hell, they really went for the one that immediately looks the worst on its face...

...That aside, I will reiterate that this is a blog and analysis meant for that latter category of “analyzing things in-universe”, and making good-faith assumptions that there was a reason for everything (and, I’ll be quite honest, reading everything the staff has said about the characters, including Miyako, there is no indication that they didn’t treat every single one of them with love and zero intention to curse any of them into a horrible fate). We can debate whether this was a good or bad choice in the context of real life, or how much they really should have thought this through more or considered alternative ways to do this, in another place and time (it’s been done by many other people, myself included, in the last 20 years, and it will most certainly continue after this, and probably should continue). It’s not like I’m necessarily giving my blessing to every single creative decision in Adventure or 02 in running this blog, it’s more of the attitude of “now that this decision was in the series, can we figure out what that was intended to mean?”, and that’s going to apply to this one too. And so, we’ll proceed with the analysis.

In any case, here’s the first thing to start with, which may surprise some people to learn: at no point in the epilogue is the word “housewife” ever used to refer to Miyako. The only words that Takeru uses to describe her are: that she is married to Ken and is a mother of three. Not only that, post-02 materials that have referred to the epilogue and Miyako’s part in it have also avoided using that word -- the Character Complete File and the Animation Chronicle only reiterate the same points of “married to Ken” and “mother of three children”, and practically go out of their way to avoid insinuating that being a stay-at-home housewife is the main focus of her life right now. It would have been so easy to say it outright if they’d wanted to, but they didn’t, and they consistently don’t, to the point the omission is almost suspicious. And, indeed, if you want to believe the Character Complete File, Miyako is not a full-time housewife and is simply not working at the time of the epilogue due to maternity leave because the third child had recently been born. So it’s completely within the realm of possibility that she’s still working! In that case, why is something that could easily be a big deal left ambiguous like this?

If you look at the way the epilogue presents its information, there’s a certain pattern: what information is emphasized and what information is given little attention or omitted has very little to do with “how curious the audience would be about it”, but rather “how relevant it is”; just because a certain piece of information is omitted doesn’t mean it necessarily isn’t true. For example, Sora; she’s married to Yamato, but despite how much the audience would probably consider that as vital information, it’s left for you to infer from the visuals and an oblique comment that Sora’s daughter is a “dependable older sister”, and even the question of whether Sora did succeed her mother in flower arrangement is left up in the air despite that also probably being a question the audience is curious about (and in fact, a few flower branches are clearly visible in the front, implying very heavily that, whatever happened, she’s at least still maintaining her roots with her family instead of violently cutting it all off). But we do learn about the fact that she went into fashion design, which is something that’s not an expectation that was placed by her family but rather something she presumably decided on herself. Hence, presumably why that’s the part emphasized, and moreso than her marriage to Yamato -- said marriage is of course an important part of her life, but it’s not as prominent as the fact that she has her own independent career, especially since her entire character arc was about doing things that she wanted for herself instead of doing things for others. That is to say, compared to their own individual ambitions, Sora and Yamato’s love life is “an important part, but not the important part.” This is especially when you add the context that Takeru is delivering abridged single-sentence “catch-up” descriptions of his friends on their behalf (possibly to the world, if this is part of his novel), and so, it begs the question: what would each of these characters want to be most remembered for accomplishing?

(And if you think I’m being tinfoil hat about this, remember that a constant theme with this blog I’m running is that “being annoyingly subtle and relying on ridiculously oblique messaging” like this permeates the entirety of 02 in general, and it’s definitely not the only time they’ve used this kind of technique to communicate details that are too consistent and on-the-nose to be passed off as coincidence. As far as assuming that this series follows rational storytelling logic goes, we are far past that point, and in ways that extend far beyond this epilogue.)

So we look back at Miyako, and the hobbies she’d indulged in and what purpose they were for, and her personality, and the fact that the main point of her character arc was about her complex that she would never be a good enough person who could properly emotionally reach out and take care of others -- in some ways, her arc was the opposite of Sora’s, in that while Sora’s was about not being as beholden to others, Miyako’s was about how to become someone who can better support others -- and once we apply the above question, there lies the answer to why the priority and emphasis given to her future in the epilogue is “Miyako is the kind of person who prioritizes taking care of and supporting her loved ones more than anything else.”

This is especially because (in an epilogue with not very many lines, so every bit of information becomes vital) the lines we see Miyako and her family exchange are representative of a lot of what that character arc was about. According to her son, Miyako is still her panicky and emotionally messy self, even when in the role of the matriarch of a large family who’s responsible for taking care of all of them. She did not ever become the ideal “gentle” and “mature” kind of person that she considered Mimi and Hikari to be and negatively compared herself to. However, her family responds by cheerfully laughing, which is -- most likely not coincidentally -- the same thing that was shown to be the positive flip side of Miyako’s over-the-top personality back in 02 episodes 31, 36, and 38, in that it brings joy and cheer to others.

If you do want to take the Character Complete File’s statement at face value, the fact that she’s on self-imposed maternity leave means that it’s very likely she wasn’t on a salaried job and was instead freelancing, or at least was involved with something that didn’t require constant commitment. Considering the fact she’s consistently portrayed as an impatient sort who gets bored easily, she probably would prefer something more flexible like freelancing or at least not being tied to a single thing; even looking back at her completely disparate hobbies back when she was a kid, when she was basically jack-of-all-trades-ing to fit whatever people needed her for, she never really came off as someone who could commit very easily to a single form of work, but what she did have commitment to was other people, especially her friends and family. If you (or, perhaps, Takeru) were to ask her during the time of the epilogue “what are you up to right now?”, it’s not really that hard to believe that gushing about her lovely family would come before everything else; not to say that everyone else here (especially her own husband) isn’t presumably devoted to their own families, but Miyako’s the type to have that much higher sense of pride in what she does for those she cares about than she would have particular attachment to any kind of work. Look at her behavior during Kizuna; she’s pursuing a degree in computer programming and thus is still aiming to be a busybody with a high level of skill, but when given a job by a stranger, she immediately dumps it off on her seniors so she can be with her friends, then happily accepts that same job again when the same friends present it back to her.

So, in other words, the conclusion is: the biggest priority and most important thing to Miyako in regards to her future is that she finally became someone who could properly support others around her, even in spite of her personality that would suggest otherwise.

In addition, the fact that she has three children might initially come off as a little in-your-face or overkill, but remember that Miyako came from a family with four siblings, and 02 episode 49 had her say outright that she does treasure that – or, in other words, being part of a big family surrounded by affection and love is something she considers to be a valuable part of her life (especially since the age gaps between the three children imply a reasonable likelihood of actual family planning, moreso than even Miyako’s own).

Incidentally, this is just a bit of a personal note, but one might notice that I’ve also never actually used the word “housewife” to refer to the epilogue’s depiction of Miyako in the course of writing for this blog, because of how little evidence we have that she is one – being on temporary maternity leave still being a very viable and, given the post-02 materials we now have, arguably heavily likely interpretation, it’s not like you’d necessarily call someone a housewife if their break from work is only temporary, even if they’re a freelancer. Given the above circumstances, perhaps something like “family matriarch” would be more accurate…

[starfallskitter]

THIS is Chloe’s redemption arc

Hi! I don’t usually do big media analysis things, but I like Miraculous Ladybug and I’m a writer and familiar with these tropes. I was thinking about Chloe’s character in season 4 and how everyone’s been so upset with what seems like a reversal of her character arc, so I wanted to unpack everything and explain what I believe is going on.

In short: Chloe getting worse, becoming mean again, is the only way she can, after the three seasons she’s had so far, get a satisfying redemption arc. 

Zoe is also very important to her arc; while it could perhaps have been done differently, Zoe’s introduction is perhaps the clearest way of developing Chloe’s character and giving her redemption. But I’ll get to that in a moment.

I recently rewatched the first half of season 1 and most of season 3, so I’ll probably draw from more recent memories in discussion here. Season 4 is, however, the main point of discussion in this post, so big spoiler warning if you aren’t up to date on Sole Crusher and Queen Banana at the very least.

So, character arcs can generally be shortened to a question of, ‘what does this character need to learn? And do they learn it?’, although typically there are bumps along the way, with characters learning the wrong lessons, making mistakes, backtracking, etc. Sometimes it’s a negative character arc where they learn a lie, or refuse to change.

In Chloe’s case, the thing she needs to learn is simple. She believes, in season 1 episode 1, that she is inherently better than other people. She still believes this throughout the entire show up to this point. She needs to learn that that’s not the case.

Success to Chloe is how much power you have, and she expects power. It’s reinforced for her at every turn. Her dad gets her everything she wants, and he’s the Mayor, so his power becomes hers. Her ‘best friend’ is a rich, famous supermodel, which is ultimate success to her, and at the start she’s his only friend, so he must consider her on his level (how he came into this situation doesn’t matter to her). She’s constantly followed by someone who lets her have complete power over her just to get a glimpse of Chloe’s wealth. Bullying and beauty are both sources of power to her as well. Power is success, she has a lot of power, she’s successful, she’s acheived all she wants to.

So, naturally, she loves Ladybug, the most powerful superhero in Paris. She wants to be accepted by Ladybug, and loved by Ladybug, because Ladybug has power, and Ladybug accepting her as her peer means Chloe is on her level. Everyone loves Ladybug, therefore Ladybug has more power than Hawkmoth, the real reason Chloe is on her side.

This doesn’t change much throughout season one. 

In Season 2, though, we meet her mother, who can be summed up as the main source of this thought pattern. Chloe idealises her, more even than Ladybug, and her approval as a powerful person who knows it feels like all Chloe needs. When Chloe gets the Bee Miraculous, it’s not because Ladybug thinks she’s a peer, but Chloe, somewhat desperately, believes that being a Miraculous holder will make her good enough in her mother’s eyes. From the wiki:

Chloé, however, is furious and angrily asks her mother why, out of all people, she would take Marinette to New York City instead of her own daughter. Audrey says that it's because Marinette is exceptional. Chloé retorts that she's exceptional, too, but Audrey says that the only thing exceptional about her is her mother. Hurt by this comment and wanting to prove her mother wrong, Chloé reveals that she has the Bee Miraculous in her possession and transforms into Queen Bee in front of everyone, including the press.

When she gets the Bee Miraculous, it’s not because she’s changed in any way, and it’s not a catalyst for change. The whole plot of Queen Wasp is that Chloe is trying to prove she’s exceptional, but her being exceptional is not what she needs to learn; in fact, it’s the opposite. She needs to learn that she is no more exceptional than anyone else. She doesn’t learn this here.

Again, from the wiki:

Marinette tells Audrey that Chloé is exceptional -- exceptionally mean. She lists all of Chloé's worst qualities, angering both her and Audrey but also making the two realize that they have a lot in common. When Marinette leaves, Audrey asks Chloé if she is really as bad as Marinette said, to which Chloé says that her only friend in school is Sabrina, and she enjoys giving her butler a hard time. Audrey takes back her earlier comment about Chloé not being exceptional, embraces her, and decides to stay in Paris with her.

This is just reaffirming the problem: Chloe’s belief that her power, coming from her cruelty and bullying, makes her special, so she deserves the power, etc. This is not a change in her character arc; this is still setting her up to change later on.

What this sets up is Chloe’s false character arc. It seems, on the outside, that what Chloe needs to learn is how to be nice, or good. That being kind is something she doesn’t know how to do, and she just needs to try. 

This is often a character arc that children’s show bullies have because it’s easy and simple to understand, but it’s not realistic. Bullies are usually not bullies just because they don’t know how to be nice; some are, perhaps, but the truly mean ones who do acts of cruelty because they can have a fundamentally twisted view of the world, like Chloe’s.

A lot of people think Chloe’s false redemption arc was her real one, and it got thrown out the window. Here’s why the false one is important for the real one.

For Chloe to learn that she’s not special, she has to get rid of the idea that being powerful in any way leads to happiness, or the power is equal to success.

In Season 3 we get continuance of the false arc. Importantly, we see her core behavior has not actually changed. At times, she acts heroically, but it’s not necessarily out of the goodness of her heart; and at the times she does this doesn’t necessarily change her character arc, either. She still has a heart. It’ll come out much more later. But she’s still pushing people around. There is no significant change in how she fundamentally treats Sabrina, or her butler, or Marinette, or her father. She doesn’t see them or relate to them any differently. She’s also using her superhero identity to reinforce the idea that she’s special; she remarks constantly about how she’s Queen Bee, she’s a hero, she’s better than everyone, you get the gist. Becoming Queen Bee has reinforced the primary lie (that she is special) that her character arc is going to change.

We see, in Miraculer, Mayura demanding Chloe join them, and Chloe refusing.

At first, it seems like Chloe’s doing well to refuse. Like she has a sense of justice. In truth, though, she’s mainly on Ladybug’s side because the heroes are usually seen as more powerful and cooler than the villains. There might be a sense of justice there, but that’s ultimately irrelevant to the core flaw that she needs to fix to become a better person.

And then, Heart Hunter and Miracle Queen. Ladybug doesn’t give her enough power, so she takes Hawkmoth’s side.

While Ladybug, Cat Noir and Ryuko fight Heart Hunter, Chloé becomes furious and throws her bee signal off of the roof, losing her hope. Hawk Moth comes and tries to convince Chloé to join him. Chloé is reluctant at first, because he is the one who akumatized her parents. Hawk Moth asks what Ladybug has done for her, since Chloé was the one who trusted Ladybug the most as a fan. Chloé finally agrees, but demands that Hawk Moth deakumatizes her parents first. Hawk Moth accepts these conditions.

This is the ultimate thing that reinforces the lie, that she is special and more powerful. The false character arc, that she just needs to learn to be nice, is thrown aside; she was nice to Ladybug, put herself on Ladybug’s side, and tried to work for justice, but it didn’t change that what she ultimately wanted, and felt was most important, was power, being special, status. The moment at the end of Heart Hunter is where she does her heel-turn, and now, what happens next?

Well, rememeber that she needs to learn she’s not special. As of now, she’s had the belief that she’s special reinforced, not weakened. It’s been reinforced as far as it can go. There is nothing she can do to believe she’s any more special than she believes she is. And now, being pissed at Ladybug, her false arc thrown aside, there’s no reason to try and act nice. It didn’t make her happy, after all.

So in Season 4, she doubles down on what she still believes matters: Power.

She’s worse to Sabrina, locking her in her closet, making her chase after the car, etc. She will only consider the best, most powerful friends like her: Zoe, her sister, has to be just as special, just as powerful.... and as we saw at the end of season 2, that means mean.

Which brings me to Zoe.

Zoe is important because she’s everything Chloe could’ve been if she’d already learned her lesson, for one. She’s successful at making friends because she cares about how nice someone is, not their status, which is what Chloe doesn’t get. She’s so frustated that Zoe makes friends at the end of Sole Crusher by just being nice. Chloe wants those friends, but everything in the show so far has taught her that power is important and it’s what will get her love and attention, and her power comes from, again, bullying and her dad.

And that’s also where Andre comes in. The other thing Zoe does is change Chloe’s biggest enabler- Andre. In Queen Banana, he refuses Chloe’s demands for the first time pretty much ever, and draws a hard line in the sand.

Suddenly, a little bit of Chloe’s power is taken away from her in that moment. She can’t understand how Zoe can be happier than her or why her father might tell her no. They’re incompatible with her worldview- that she is special, and powerful, and deserves things just for being special.

At this point, Chloe has to lose everything. She thinks that cruelty to others will make her happy; that demanding things gets her what she wants. It has, so far. So for her to change, that needs to not work. We’re seeing just the beginnings of that in Season 4 so far; she can’t demand anything from her father (although Queen Banana is full of demands she does get). Zoe didn’t find happiness through the method Chloe said she would in Sole Crusher (really, Sole Crusher lays out what Chloe’s been imagining the world is like the entire show. That’s it in a nutshell, really). Adrien told her she needed to be nicer and lowkey rejected her friendship at the end of Queen Banana. Zoe, the sister who is better off doing the opposite of what Chloe thought would make her happy and successful, took her symbol of power- the Bee Miraculous, her superhero identity- away from her. Chloe’s worldview is slowly unravelling as of Season 4.

So, what needs to happen next?

One: she will lose everything. Two: she’ll learn that power doesn’t make her happy. Three: she’ll realise that kindness and justice and equality, etc. are more important. Four: she’ll do something major to show that she understands this and has changed. Five: she’ll permanently stop putting herself above others.

I can’t project too far in the future, but what I can say is what is probably going to come next for the topic of her losing everything. Her father is going to say no more often; her mother will disappoint her; Zoe will continue to do well. Chloe may learn that Zoe is Vesperia, I’m not sure.

But the one main thing that I think, personally, Chloe needs to lose in some dramatic way is Sabrina. Sabrina is just about the last thing that has remained the same for Chloe so far. And I think that that change won’t come by Sabrina’s doing, necessarily. She’s not vengeful and doesn’t see or care about Chloe’s flaws.

But the thing is, it seems obvious by now that everyone in the class is getting a Miraculous. We’ve seen spoilers for Mylene’s and Juleka’s, and my personal opinion is that the four remaining unpaired Miraculous pair up to the three remaining classmates + the one other student who seems to recur (personal guesses: Ivan - Ox, Nathaniel - Rooster, Marc - Dog, Sabrina - Goat), but regardless, what I imagine would break Chloe’s existing worldview more than anything else, and leave it open to change, is Sabrina getting a Miraculous, and Chloe knowing it’s her.

Sabrina is Chloe’s trailing, forever-present symbol of power. She’s always got power over Sabrina. Sabrina being special in a way that Chloe no longer is, a way that got taken by her ‘lame’ sister who she views as less powerful than her, should put a lot into perspective for her.

In short: Chloe is going to have a bad time, and be a bad time, for most of this season, if not all of it. She’s got to learn that her worldview is wrong.

That’s how her character arc will end. That’s how we get a satisfying change, something meaningful happening to her, and her really changing from the bully she was. Miraculous is a lot more complicated than most kid’s shows and it didn’t simplify it down to ‘bully learns to be nice’- Chloe’s character arc is about changing the fundamental thing that made her so mean in the first place. It’s about learning that she is not at all exceptional, and that she is just like anyone else. And that she’ll prefer it that way.

[kaizokuou-ni-naru]

The Voyage So Far: Wano (Part Two)

east blue (1 | 2) || alabasta (1 | 2) || skypiea || water 7 || enies lobby || thriller bark || paramount war (1 | 2) || fishman island || punk hazard || dressrosa (1 | 2) || whole cake island || wano (1 | 2)

okay so the wano flashback is possibly my favorite in the whole series for a whole bunch of different reasons, and oden as a character is a big part of why. honestly, i think he’s great. he’s wildly entertaining and ridiculously likable, just like a folk hero should be.

i care about oden and the akazaya nine a lot. they have one of my favorite found family dynamics in the whole series, up there with the strawhats themselves- a bunch of thugs and castoffs who wound up gathering around this one wildly charismatic moron and deciding to be stronger and better for him. 

i think they really feel like a family, in these little moments we get of them just interacting and messing around, and it only makes later events- oden’s death, the twenty-year separation, kanjurou’s betrayal- hurt all the worse.

on god it is the funniest thing on earth to me that this is how oden and izou wound up on whitebeard’s ship. 

the roger pirates!! i really really like the roger pirates!! i love that there’s this entire predecessor crew who are both absolutely fucking fascinating from a lore perspective and who are just all individually really good characters with really fun relationships. the dynamics we get to see just in this brief part of the flashback are absolutely delightful. i think the fact that i would read a whole series just about the roger pirates is a testament to oda’s character writing. 

there’s a specific sort of tragedy to the roger pirates, and i think it really hits home in their last few pages in this flashback. by all appearances, they were a crew just as close-knit as the strawhats are. they cared about each other a lot- that ship was their home.

and then their captain died, and they just- fell apart. 

awhile back, in my sabaody post, i talked about how we get to know roger first as a story and then as a character by getting to meet characters who knew him personally. to the rest of the world, roger is a story, a name to curse or a height to aspire to. but for shanks and rayleigh and crocus and buggy and all the rest of the roger pirates, he was their captain. 

the whole wano flashback, possibly more than any of the others in the series, really feels to me like a story being told, a folk tale being passed down, which makes sense, since it’s canonically framed as oden’s diary entries. and i think that framing device just adds so much to the atmosphere of this entire section of story, the feeling of myth and legend to it. 

i honestly really like how oden’s death is handled. i have trouble articulating it, but it’s so much, so over the top, so heavily set up and foreshadowed- a legendary death for a legendary man, if that makes sense.

toki’s prophecy is one of my favorite motifs in this whole arc. wano is all about a country that’s been trapped and dying for years and years, holding out desperate hope for salvation. toki is the one who gave them that hope. she doesn’t try to tell them that everything will be okay, she says it will be dark and the darkness will be long, but the dawn will come, and even though she gave her life to do that, she did it smiling. 

without toki, the wano arc never would have happened, because there would be no future to fight for. 

this panel is the header on my favorite op discord server and sometimes i just scroll up and stare at it. it’s so good. 

this entire sequence, starting from luffy law and kidd’s entrance, is probably my favorite in wano arc. it’s the turning of the sides, the daybreak after the darkest hour- these three show up, and then jinbe, and denjirou reveals his true colors and it’s revealed all the rest of the samurai left before orochi blew the bridges, and it turns out they haven’t lost a single step to kanjurou’s treachery. it just feels so good to read, after the prior hopelessness of the akazaya and the tragedy of the flashback.

i really like how the akazaya nine are absolutely ready to roast each other at any and all times. that’s how you know they’re best friends. 

i think i mentioned it back in fishman island, but one of my favorite things is the strawhats just being absolutely cheerfully, chaotically destructive. every time we get to see them wreck havoc while nonchalantly bickering with each other it puts a huge smile on my face.

i think ulti and page one are very very funny and i like their dynamic a lot, it’s a laugh riot. i also like that oda lets luffy seriously fight a woman here!! i’m serious, we don’t see enough no-holds-barred fights between men and women (conventionally attractive women, specifically) in this series, so i’m pleasantly surprised when it does happen. 

i do appreciate wano’s ability to continuously raise the “holy shit!” quotient without it ever really feeling like a twist just for the sake of the audience. like, i don’t know that anybody saw kaidou killing orochi coming, but at the same time, it feels like it does make sense, given what we know about kaidou, for him to do this.

my heart goes out to momo, honestly. he’s only eight, and in that time he’s lost his home and family and his whole world when he was thrown twenty years into the future, and he has the weight of his whole country resting on his shoulders. he’s borne up admirably under that stress, starting from zou and building up to this point.

i LOVE kin’emon’s speech to kaidou about luffy SO much. kin’emon’s come a long way from being a mostly comedy relief character in punk hazard to here, where he’s shouting down an emperor. i really like this progression- kin’emon doesn’t change, exactly, but the side of his character that is revealed in wano is very likable and admirable. it goes back to something i’ve mentioned before, about how one piece’s characters are very rarely one-dimensional.

kaidou’s dragon form is extremely cool, and so are most of the panels where it appears- it’s extremely striking, especially in panels like this, where he’s silhouetted against the moon.

i love... the ripple effects of luffy just being himself that spread throughout the world of one piece, and i think this is one of the best examples. luffy befriended coby all the way back in chapter two, mostly by accident, and now, nine hundred and some chapters later, that’s what leads to drake joining the strawhats’ side. because drake is friends with coby who says luffy is trustworthy, so when drake is stuck with nobody else to turn to, he turns to luffy. 

moments like this really reinforce just how much the world and story of one piece is built on relationships between people, and i really like that. i like that instead of necessarily being built around abstract ideals or morals, characters’ actions are, more often than not, motivated by either specific personal goals or by their relationships with other characters. it feels much more true to life.

i like the loss of kiku’s arm, because it showcases exactly how serious the fight is on both sides. it both shows that kaidou is fighting to maim and kill and do whatever it takes to win, and that the akazaya are fully prepared to take whatever he throws at them. kiku gets back up smiling after losing her arm. neither side in this fight is even close to backing down, now or ever. 

i genuinely can’t believe how long it took me to talk about yamato, so let me just say: i love him so much. part of this, i’m sure, is my personal bias towards any and all kickass queer characters, but part of it is just- he’s so cool. he’s ten feet tall and carries a club about as big as he is and tanks explosions like they’re nothing while also bickering with luffy and falling out of ceilings and generally being like... stupidly lovable. 

i just like yamato a lot. 

a thousand chapters in, and every strawhat but robin has had a moment where they declare luffy is going to be the king of the pirates, but honestly, i think nami’s might be my favorite yet. nami has always been a person who acts at a distance, not one inclined to direct confrontation and putting herself in danger-

and yet, when it comes down to it, when faced with a choice between death and disavowing her captain’s dream, even when assured by usopp that she would be fully justified in lying for her life, nami chooses luffy. even in the most dire of circumstances, all of the strawhats know luffy is going to be the king of the pirates, and none of them would ever deny it.

i kind of alluded to this back in my dressrosa post, but i really like the development of law’s new dream being discovering the meaning of the will of d. it just feels like a very good and natural progression for his character, given he’s the only holder of the will of d who we’ve been shown is consciously aware of it and what it might mean. and in general, i like seeing him having something else to work towards after doflamingo’s defeat.

i’ll end this by just saying i am so desperately curious to know what is in that book, and what yamato knows about the will of d, about the dawn of the world, about laugh tale. 

guess we’ll find out, huh?

thanks for reading through to the end!! i had a lot of fun putting these posts together, and writing them up was a really cool way to be able to compile my thoughts headed into chapter 1000 and beyond. i can’t wait to see where oda takes us next. 

[morihaus]

Folklore

Two apprentices make their way to the shore of the Isle of the Wise, basket and blanket in tow, already chattering away with one another. Although the College of the Sapiarchs has a reputation its rigorous and cutthroat academic atmosphere, even its most studious pupils are encouraged to take reprieves from their works, if not for their own benefit then for the benefit of the hardworking staff, those who have earned their own breaks from instructing and professing, as well as those who have important duties and research of their own to attend to.

Runalenwe and Pannolaire each possess their own cutthroat reputations, so it is with some surprise that their peers observe them taking these personal allowances of unstructured time not to get a leg up on their competition, but to get out from the halls of learning and into the natural splendor of the wild. They always take their breaks together, ostensibly to keep an eye on their most spirited and contentious academic rival, but also in the spirit of camaraderie; even as they have butted heads over their decades-long apprenticeships, they have found themselves rather transfixed on one another, interested, entertained, some might even say 'enamored.' It's true that they might consider themselves lovers, but they were not young or carefree, rather their love was ennobling and constructive, a means to an end- they would say- and all the fun they have along the way is merely incidental.

Runalenwe reaches what she considers a good place to rest, a nice shady spot under a tree, waves lapping at the shore before them. She unfurls the bright sheet they've brought at, inviting Pannolaire to take her seat before her, to which the other woman smiles and sets herself down very prim and proper. As Runalenwe joins her, she sets their woven basket down beside them, and continues on with their line of dialogue.

"Quite the ambitious project, a catalogue of Tamriel's famed magical artifacts," Pannolaire says. "Was her 12-page dissertation on the Flask of Lillandril not enough?" Her dark crest of brown hair seems to shimmer with life in the sun's light, as does the dress of decorative feathers and scales that she's donned instead of her apprentice's garb. Her companion thinks she cuts a figure rather like a bird of paradise, head held high against her collar of colorful plumage.

"Oh, I'd be fascinated to hear how many she can turn up." Runalenwe replies as she gets comfortable, propping herself up with an elbow against the blanket. "The research will be interesting- and her reports are always wonderfully detailed to be sure. The problem is by just 20 years time, I'm sure we'll be made aware of several new artifacts, or new qualities to the ones we already know, and all her work will be made obsolete. That's the problem with such presumptuous 'catalogues', better to channel your focus on just one thing. She clearly wishes she could be Sapiarch of just about every discipline!" She laughs, a few strands of her curly straw-colored hair swinging free of her top-bun. It's a noble laugh, haughty and mocking, yet it touches Pannolaire just the same as the warm bubbling laugh that came out of her honestly, most often when they were alone.

Pannolaire unpacks the food she'd brought, laying out the small spread as they continue to speak. Rolls of bread, fresh fruit, aged wine, and shellfish. "Which single artifact would you focus on?" Pannolaire glances up as she hands her a warm roll. "Some destructive staff? A weather worker?"

She chuckles, taking a small bite and clearing her mouth before responding. "Oh, Pannolaire, I've more interests than just shocking the daylights out of things! It's funny you should ask, actually."

"It is?" Pannolaire says.

"Yes, and I'll tell you why." Runalenwe grins.

Pannolaire smiles as well, cracking into a shellfish with practiced grace. "Please do."

"You are, I'm sure, familiar with the Ring of Phynaster? Artifact created by the ascended Aldmeri sorcerer Phynaster, great explorer and adventurer, a hero of the High King Aurthelel's court?" Pannolaire nods, not speaking for modesty as she samples some fruit. "It provides the wearer with protection against magics and poisons- it's popularly believed to have been created to facilitate in Phynaster's daring yet dangerous lifestyle, and even to have aided in his mythical long stride. But this story has been confused with time- it is misunderstood by so many of the scholars of Tamriel, those who forget that Phynaster was once one of us, a mortal, with mortal wants, mortal acquaintances."

Pannolaire watches Runalenwe as she orates, every word uttered with such a poise to belie rehearsal, and yet her character is so spontaneous, like an arc of lightning from a hand, or the first crackle of thunder. These qualities make her quite the speaker to spectate, and so she hangs on her every word.

"Phynaster himself was quite a cautious sort- his stride wasn't simply long, it was measured, well-conceived through careful calculation. His safety and longevity was more or less the product of a wise and careful mind. He did not forge his famed ring for his own sake, but for the sake of a lover." Runalenwe's lips curve into even more of a satisfied smile, the kind that tells Pannolaire she's hanging knowledge over her head right now, a coy mocking gesture. She shoots her a look as though to say 'don't leave me in suspense', and the other apprentice continues on. "A certain firebrand, another mage of Aurthelel's court, the oldest and most venerable court of Alinor, composed of only the most respected ancestors; Phynaster, Syrabane, Ruilil, Peregrine- even noble Trinimac brushed shoulders with her and counted her as his peer, as well as his comrade in arms. She was Eeartora the Tempest, queen of the skies, her words commanded storms and her spells sundered coral citadels to the depths of the sea, all to be forgotten as her own legend grew. It was she who caught the first Alinor Sunbird and brought it, unscathed, to the feet of King Aurthelel, and it was she who first mounted a great gryphon and rode it, as Welkynar, into battle."

Her audience of one helps herself to some shellfish as the other sings the praises of this noble and venerated ancestor. Runalenwe considers herself a woman of action, but Pannolaire finds her waxing lyrical on the matters of magic, of magicians, and most anything having to do with her noble clan of wizards. "That certainly sounds like the type of woman who could benefit from such a ring." Pannolaire remarks, smiling and discarding the now emptied remains of her morsel, golden eyes locked on her companion.

"Indeed!" Runalenwe agrees heartily, laughing softly to herself. "And that is what he must have thought, for with her in mind he endeavored to create the powerful artifact that we know today. She was its first holder, and she would go on to bequeath it to her descendants, before ascending to join with her lover in Aetherius..." Her smile lingers, Pannolaire can feel the purposeful pause she is taking and raises a hand to her lips as she chuckles for her lover's theatrics. "Eeartora's line would follow in her wake, living as war mages, welkynars, and studious heroes of their eras. What's more," She raises her chin proudly at this, the rays of sunlight giving a glow to her tan skin. "Her line leads directly to yours truly."

"Ah, I see... no wonder you were going out of your way to flatter her to such a degree." Pannolaire remarks, smirking behind her gloved hand.

Runalenwe scoffs, but smiles. "I can't be shamed for honoring my ancestors, can I?" And with that, she reaches down and helps herself to some fruit, satisfied with her piece.

Her lover gives her a moment's rest, then says something with no other goal than to prod at her ego. "I'm not sure I believe you. I mean, such a famed and legendary ancestor- I've known whole hosts of wizards who give her worship."

Runalenwe, true to form, almost chokes on her apple. "You don't believe me!?" She asks with raised brows, somewhat aware of the game they now play, somewhat genuinely scandalized.

"I'm not sure if I believe you." She corrects her.

"I'll have you know there are extensive genealogical records in my family's tomb!"

Again, Pannolaire laughs behind her hand, and her lover's eyes trace the glimpse of her lips. "Well then, you must take me there on our next sabbatical."

This time, Runalenwe's laugh is brash and untempered, her grin wrinkles her freckled face and her shoulders bob up and down. "Sabbatical! Oh, how rich- what are we, twelfth years???"

Pannolaire laughs along with her, laying beside her, sharing this bright and tranquil day all to themselves. Their hearts are light- they race when they stack their projects up against one another's, when they give presentations knowing that the other is watching, whenever they hold formal dialogue with their peers and mentors watching. How odd it is that their hearts race now, alone together, wearing no uniform and beheld to no observation, no assessment, free to be as they are. Runalenwe's hand finds its place in Pannolaire's, and after an interlude of silence and pecking at their meal, one speaks back up.

"...I'm no good with enchanting, but," Pannolaire says, dark lids drooping as her eyes wander out to sea. "I'm a fool for such romantic gestures... I would love to make you something, something just for you." With these words she shuffles up against Runalenwe's side, leaning against the other woman.

Runalenwe raises her arm to wrap around Pannolaire's waist, pulling her closer still. She leans in to press her head against the other's. "How sweet." Her forehead lies against her temple, her lips hover about her ear as she speaks softly. "What would you make for me, Pann?"

Pannolaire thinks on her skill sets, shifting about with a small bubble of nervousness. She lets herself fall closer against Runalenwe's soft embrace, letting out a long sigh. "A book on etiquette, perhaps."

The other woman chuckles. "I'm classically trained, love."

"In Aldmeri, sure. But would you know how to say 'good day' to a Nord?" Pannolaire retorts.

She laughs again, and for lack of a response presses her lips against her cheek. Pannolaire laughs too, forgetting the lunch they'd packed and shifting about to bury her face in the crook of her lover's neck, leaving a couple of black marks where she plants her kisses. Arms wrapped around her, Runalenwe replies. "Do they have those- good days- in that frigid country of theirs? Honestly, I'd be shocked if they see the sun."

Pannolaire pulls away only to smile and laugh at her peer. "Of course they see the sun!" The two chuckle on that point for a moment, before she settles in once again. "Well, actually, there is an interesting phenomenon that occurs at extreme northern latitudes- sunless days- they only happen at select parts of the year though..."

Runalenwe, content to hold her lover's body as she goes into a long tangent about novel astronomical phenomena and the Nordic holidays that coincide with them, closes her eyes and smiles. Her hand slowly traces Pannolaire's side, gentle and unobtrusive, as not to distract her from her speech.

She easily goes on for nearly half an hour, and it's only Runalenwe's reminder of the cooling food that makes her take pause, before the two resume their dialogue. They continue on like this until the sun dips down, embraced by the sea.

[miraculouscontent]

Didn’t Need Burrow (May 23rd-25th)

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: Astruc admitted Sabine was based on an ex and Marinette is what he imagined their daughter to be like. He later admits Audrey was based on an ex and Chloe is what he imagined their daughter would be like. Despite moving on, he still bitter and created two teen girls as "payback" against his exes.

The whole “virtual daughter” thing still squicks me out.

Also, I don’t actually take “Didn’t Need Burrows” referring specifically to the staff/fandom since that’s outside of the show, but I also definitely think about them all the time and like sticking them in here.

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: Building off of the "Adrien knows about Marinette's crush on him and tells Plagg about it" Burrow, Plagg will point out to Adrien that this is a bad idea and what he is doing is wrong and that Adrien is leading Marinette on so as to stroke his own ego. He will not be listened to, and the show portray him as in the wrong, despite him being right, because anybody who stands up for Marinette's agency deserves to be shut down. In the meantime, Adrien will be allowed to continue

Bonus if Plagg will be considered “wrong” because Adrien not leading Marinette on would lead to him being sAd because Marinette isn’t fawning over him anymore (as if he doesn’t have a million fans).

Anonymous asked:

Don't Need a Burrow: Zoe will be presented not only as "Chloe if she was good person", but also as "Marinette if she wasn't constantly making mistakes"

Anonymous asked:

Don't Need a Burrow: Zoe will be basically  Marinette if "Marinette's Mistake of the Week" formula never existed.

Sounds about right.

Amazing what can happen when the show doesn’t have a gun to your head telling you to make mistakes in every episode.

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: The show delves into a shitty harem as the writers forget that Adrien is not the main character. Who knows, maybe Zoe will join the harem.

The only reason I feel like Zoe wouldn’t be a part of Adrien’s harem is so she can ship the love square.

Anonymous asked:

Don't Need a Burrow: There will be Animaestro-type episode where Marinette "makes alliance" with (read: is manipulated by) Chloe or Lila against Zoe. In the end she is only one punished, while her "partner in crime"  (or rather person who manipulated her) walks away completely scot-free.

To the surprise of no one. Can’t have the antagonists be punished, because that would make sense.

Anonymous asked:

Don't Need a Burrow: (narrative-wise) Agreste's family drama and Bourgeois's sisters drama will overshadow whatever Marinette character arc will be in season 4.

I’m taking this a step further and saying that Marinette in generall will keep having her plots/”arcs” overshadowed by everyone else.

Anonymous asked:

Don't Need a Burrow: Marinette will be akumatized. She will be easily defeated due to "bond" between Chat Noir and Temporary Ladybug Zoe. This will be presented like Ladybug's constant refuse to "bond" with Chat Noir was reason why their fights with Akumatized Villains are so hard. (bonus: This episode will be followed by a group of fans that would state that Zoe should replace Marinette as Ladybug Miraculous Holder and not Chloe as Bee Miraculous Holder.)

Uggggh, I’m always waiting for the “love square magical bond” garbage.

Also, the bonus reminds me of the fact that I don’t understand people who hate on both Marinette and Luka but continue to ship the love square. Like, wouldn’t they want to ship Adrien with someone “””worthy””” of him??

Anonymous asked:

Don't Need a Burrow: If Marinette akumatization has Miracle Queen-type set-up, Chat Noir will quickly defeat her and whatever all other Miraculous Holders alone (or optionally supported by Temporary Ladybug Zoe). This will be presented by narrattive as proof of why Chat Noir is Brawn in Ladybug-Chat Noir duo. (Bonus: After that episode Adrien stans will make mass of "I hope this will shut up everyone who think that Chat Noir is useless/weaker than Ladybug/etc." type posts)

At this point, I’ve just grown numb to Chat suddenly being able to do things that don’t make sense for him.

Anonymous asked:

Don't Need a Burrow: Temporary Ladybug Zoe

Okay but is she keeping the black highlights or do they turn red. These are important questions.

Anonymous asked:

Don't Need a Burrow: Kagami will be changed (ret-conned) into  Adrienette (or other Love Square's part) shipper after "Lies"

Something similar is already on the card so that’s fun. :’3

Anonymous asked:

Don't Need a Burrow: Zoe, not Marinette, will be wearing that dress from the Season 4 Concept Art.

*eye twitch*

Anonymous asked:

Don't Need a Burrow: Rena Rogue will be appearing even when she isn't needed to defeat Akuma of the Week. This will be probably used to justify Chat Noir's increasing resent up towards Ladybug and (probably) consequent reversal of Love Square.

anything: *happens*

Chat Noir: bad Ladybug

Anonymous asked:

Don't Need a Burrow: Ending: Marinette will willingly sacrifice herself to wake up from coma/ressurect Emilie. Both Adrien and Gabriel will be happy that Emilie is back. Adrien will have his happy relationship/ending with Zoe whom personality is (or was ret-conned into) "Marinette in anything but name". (Bonus points: if everyone behave like Marinette never existed after Emilie revival)

I’m sad.

Anonymous asked:

Don't Need a Burrow: If Akuma of the Week isn't Reflekta/Mr Pigeon/Gigantitan/etc,.Pig Miraculous"s "Gift" power will basically fail and only make current Akumatized Villain angrier and more determined to achieve his goal, basically restarting whole fight against Akuma.

PIGELLA NO

Anonymous asked:

Don't Need a Burrow: Lila will never react to Zoe becoming more popular than her

I imagine Zoe isn’t the same age as Chloe since they’re not twins, so Zoe at least won’t be in Bustier’s class.

Now, if they make her a Lila slave, then we’ll see.

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow to know that Marinette is going to hate Zoe for being related to Chloe and this will be limited to her or she'll be the only one scolded for it (likely by Adrien), because you can't hate someone for who they're related to (which actually is a good lesson but ml will probably f it up somehow).

I feel like the writers just look at a character and go, “okay, how can we engineer them in a way for Marinette to mess up around them?

Anonymous asked:

Didn't need Burrow - Chat will find out Rena Rouge knows her identity and becomes angry bc "You and me against the world, m'lady." This will cause one episode of Adrienette becoming closer and Ladynoir drifting apart before Chat magically forgives her like it was no big deal after she makes a huge gesture to get him back.

You’d think they’d have worn out the reset button by now...

Anonymous asked:

Didn't need burrow: one of two things will happen, either Adrien will try to help Luka get back together with Marinette (basically the same plot as Mr. pigeon 72) or the relationship will not be brought up ever again and Mari and Luka don't really directly interact with each other anymore

“Bonus” if Adrien is “taught a lesson” that he shouldn’t meddle, and it’s only because he chose to meddle in Lukanette. “Double bonus” if his attempts actually get Lukanette back together but this is presented as a bad thing (for some reason)..

Anonymous asked:

Don't Need a Burrow: Zoe will be(e)come pernament Bee Miraculous Holder.

This won’t be added because I think we already got official confirmation on this?

Oh, or do you mean “permanent” as in her keeping the miraculous eventually?

edit: yes, that’s what they meant (also, A+ pun)

Anonymous asked:

Don't Need a Burrow: Every Miraculous Holder introduced in Season 4 will be will lose right to their Miraculous, except Zoe/Vesperia.

lol me just imagining them struggling over either making models or trying to not use those miraculouses anymore.

Anonymous asked:

Didn't Need Burrow: Luka will be forced to say Adrien and Marinette are perfect for each other in "Optigami".

Wow, show, why don’t you just prove more that you’re purposefully pointing out that you’re giving Marinette a grand total of One “Obvious” Option.

Anonymous asked:

Unsure if this one has been sent yet but | Didn't Need Burrow: Alya is going to continue Marinette to pursue Adrien even after Marinette broke down and said she doesn't have time for love right now.

We have some similar ones I think.

“Marinette’s feelings towards moving on are invalidated/ignored by one of her “friends” to push for the Love Square“

Anonymous asked:

Don't Need a Burrow: Sandboy 2.0: Ladybug's nightmare will be about Chat Noir abandoning/hating her

I was dumb enough to raise an eyebrow at this like, “Would they really reuse akum--oh wait.”

Anonymous asked:

I'm gonna try and go for a good Didn't Need Burrow: WHen Sole Crusher gets Marinette we'll either get a lovely King Kong moment between them, or Chat Noir will come in and save her (and it'll possibly be a moment of reverse love square).

If they have Marinette doing the cliche “crushing because they got saved” I’m gonna throw hands.

Anonymous asked:

Don't need to burrow:

Marinette will never have a heart to heart with Luka revealing she's Ladybug or even explain the reason for their breakup.

Just gonna slap a big asterisk on this because it’s like:

*despite Luka being an obvious choice and they could’ve worked out the issue but the show is afraid of the side ship they’ve created working out better than the love square itself

Anonymous asked:

Don't need to Burrow: For Optigami, the episode will barely or never acknowledge Luka's and Marinette's relationship/breakup. It will be ignored and we won't have any cute Lukanette moments. As long as Adrien is in the picture, Luka will be always sidelined.

Honestly that last one is basically one of the commandments of this show.

Anonymous asked:

Don't Need a Burrow: Lila will now only appear in cameos (probably without even any voice lines).

show writers, shoving Lila under a rug: Leela Ransai?? Never heard of him.

Anonymous asked:

Don't Need a Burrow: Since Lukanette is over, Luka can be ret-conned from show. Everyone will behave like he never existed at all (and Lukanette never hapenned).

We at least know that Luka now appears in a later episode, but this could easily be worded as “Luka can be retconned away from being Marinette’s love interest and everyone will act like he and Marinette aren’t that close or never made soft eyes at each other.”

Except I wouldn’t count on Lukanette being retconned because that would stop the show from being allowed to make Marinette feel bad and guilty and possibly cause another akuma over it, plus possibly Luka “rejecting” his feelings for her and thus making her feel worse that he sees her in a lesser light.

Anonymous asked:

Don't Need a Burrow: There will be an episode that will break "Mr Pigeon" episode record of  "Don't Need a Burrow" and close calls.

Not gonna lie, I would be legitimately impressed if that happened. I’m just wondering what predictions would be mashed together to make it as such.

Anonymous asked:

Didn’t Need Burrow to know that Zoey (I heard somewhere that that’s how her name is going to be in America, it might be wrong), is going to get involved in the love square somehow.

Bonus:

Or she will replace Kagami’s role as Marinette’s friendly rival, and when her heart gets broken Marinette will be the one to blame, for no reason, like always. Or she will have an interest in Marinette, since it seems they are going to be close friends, only for Marinette to put her in the friend zone, and she gets akumatized. People will blame Marinette for giving false hopes to the girl, even though, she never acted different than how a friend would act.

All girls exist to comment/have an opinion on the love square, obviously, and they’re antagonists/villains if they have a negative opinion on it.

Anonymous asked:

Don't Need a Burrow: Writers will use Alya bashing concept of Alya proposing Lila as potential new Miraculous Holder. Marinette will obviously refuse, but due to fact that Lila is suddenly ret-conned into being good person this is Marinette's Mistake of the Week. She will repair it by making Lila pernament Miraulous Holder

Waiting for the one episode long Lila redemption...

Anonymous asked:

Don't Need a Burrow: Sabrina will be redeemed. She will change from Chloe's servant... to Zoe's servant.

and it’s fine of course because Zoe and Sabrina are best friends and Sabrina is doing this all happily and willingly.

Anonymous asked:

Don't Need a Burrow: Alya will be changed into basically Marinette's Guardianship mentor

Somehow, this is one of the ones I hate the most because it seems accurate so far.

[crownarg-the-watchers]

Into the Dark

In every direction the walls of the tunnel echoed with a thundering whisper, the sound of wind ripping through trees like a storm and the crackle of boots trodding on dead leaves in autumn. The crash of waves into cliffs, that pulling, reaching water that strangles the rocks; the crack of earth in drought as the very ground splits open in thirst. Red light flashed erratically in the dark, sparking out like a lightbulb before it bursts, like a blacksmith’s fire throwing burning particles of metal into the air.

The only being who could hear the noise walked on, limped on, stumbled on. He had walked far into the long abandoned mines, past what had been maintained and kept safe, past areas that used to be kept safe and now held nothing more than broken rails, empty torch holders, and carts still full of coal. Walked into caves the miners never touched, trying to find a way down, through the earth, through the stone, through the bedrock. The structure was unsteady around him, groaned disconcertingly, in a way that suggested it would collapse on him at any moment, and he drowned it out with rushing static as he walked on. It was no matter if the walls buried him, if the ceiling crushed him – he would still find a way to continue forwards.

Usually he was always the one to leave, before people noticed he never aged, before people dug in too deep. Before anyone suspected he was anything they couldn’t trust he would go, ask his last questions and be gone before sunrise. He had not watched countless people grieve him – no. They were far from uncountable. The Observer knew each of them by heart, their names and their stories, who they had been before, and who they had been after. Could summon up their voices like summoning wind on a mountain, something cold and numbing and familiar that makes his bones itch, could hear them asking him not to leave and knowing that he will anyways. It was odd, being the one who had been discarded, rather than the other way around.

Dave who had vanished without a word, who always vanished and always came back until he didn’t, who had been the Observer’s only friend who understood. You don’t befriend mortals, they both knew, because they always die, and you don’t. And if you go down the path of craving death, you don’t come back. Mortals can – it’s a long and difficult journey, but they can love life because one day they won’t have it anymore. The Observer knew how to pick mortals without loving them, and Dave vanished before he got too attached to anyone. He imagined holding his best friend’s hand, showing him how interesting mortals could be – and supposed Dave must’ve gotten too attached to him, as well.

To his left, the wall crumbled and fell into the darkness with a deafening groan and sigh, like the earth was shifting into a more comfortable position on it’s sofa. Again, he thought about being between the stones as they fell, to fall with them or to be crushed where he stood. Did he crave death? No, but he craved the fall, from the clear blue sky into the sparkling void, to land with a splash among the starry depths, just to know what it would be like. Was death to fall, or was death weightlessness, or was it to become everything around you – not to be lighter than air, but the same weight, the same density, until you float somewhere in the middle like a cluster of water droplets in a cloud. Perhaps death was to be scattered in the sky like the constellations – he didn’t know, and he would never find out.

Syd didn’t leave you, lied a small voice, the voice of an old radio flipping through stations without lingering on any specific one. It was his own deafening white noise that whispered sweet untruths in his ear. For surely if she wanted to return by now she would have, she would have woken up by her own volition just as Mona had, would have clawed her way back to the surface with stubborn determination, with the passion that she breathed like oxygen. Would have – and he flinched as he thought this but nonetheless it must be true – by all means she should have surfaced when he spoke to Baroness, when he showed her the journal.

His head pounded, like someone was driving a nail through his temple, like being torn apart and put back together with no anesthetic. The constant deafening noise and the flashing lights probably didn’t help, nor the half dozen things he was trying to see at once. He was lost, desperately so, trying to get to a destination unknown from a place yet more unknown. He knew how to go back the way he came, in theory how to clamber up those walls and return to the light and safe familiarity, but it felt undoable. His lungs were rock dust and soot, his feet stone that carried him downhill, his knee a beacon of pain that kept him unsteady. If he wanted to he could leave this place, but he continued on as if it wasn’t even an option, sticking with what he had started.

Llyr had genuinely not left him. Arc had stumbled, had fallen into the dark. When the rocks had crumbled and plummeted downwards so had they, because they were mortal and far from being air they were stone, unsteady and shifting like the very walls of this cave. In the spirit of poetry, in the spirit of the metaphor his guppy had fallen rather than died, and he walked after them, walked into the dark. When he said he knew where cat was, had he lied? He knew, he knew arc had fallen beyond his vision, that arc had plummeted into the darkness, that in the spirit of poetry arc had not died but rather fallen. None of what he said had been a lie. He always let people make their assumptions about what he meant, but he had only ever spoken what he believed to be true. If he had ever been wrong, it was a mistake, not a lie.

He stumbled as the pain hit him again, and reached out to steady himself against the wall. It his never been “nurture” that made the person – no. A statue is not made when the artist caresses softly the stone. The marble must be chipped away with precise force, carved in a particular way – too far and it will crack and shatter, too little and the rock will remain the same. No person is not made through suffering, not the one easily molded like clay, not the one who must be melted and recast like bronze. The material is nature, the person you will always be in your core, and it is your trials that give you shape beyond the stone you began as. With too much pressure one becomes a million shards, with too little one stays a rough rock that scrapes the knees of playing children. The Observer stumbled again as his leg nearly gave out beneath him, twisted his face into a pained scowl, and continued walking.

The records room was invisible to him still, unseeable. Within is the one person he was leaving, temporarily, the one person he cared about whom he could not imagine asking him to stay. There was no universe in which Ethan wasn’t furious at him, and there was no universe where the Observer deserved his forgiveness. He didn’t deserve it, he kew, and so he had already made up his mind to not seek it – because he knew that if he asked, Ethan would forgive him anyways. He wouldn’t apologize because he didn’t regret what he said, and if he went back he wouldn’t change a single thing that he had done. Though he didn’t like that Ethan was hurt, there wasn’t any use apologizing for something he didn’t regret, and there was no reason Ethan should forgive him, so he wouldn’t bother. Not for saying what he said, not for leaving.

For days he’d been without food, nor water, nor rest. He only continued walking in the direction gravity said was down, hitting the occasional dead end, the occasional rockslide. His head ached to the rhythm of the wind, ripping through trees, and the crunch of autumn leaves underfoot. The sound of waves against the walls of these very tunnels, the cracking noise of dry earth. His knee caused him to stumble, his exhaustion caused him to slow, but he walked on because what else was there to do when discarded? What else is there to do, but walk away again, leave another town, another home, another life behind. Don’t love mortals – he knows – because they will always leave you first.

[blee-bleep]

Though I disagree vehemently about your take I'm also very curious of your arguments for why you think Akko is such a bad character?

Anon, you have no idea what you just fucking asked of me. Time for a review! This is going to be hella’ long. 

Vanilla Character that insists that she has personality

So the one thing I’m going to start off with is; The Relatable/Vanilla Protagonist Syndrome. This is the syndrome that is used for most main characters in order to have a clean-slate character that is basically the audience in order to promote the world-building in the series by having them absolutely no clue of what is the world around them. That is what Akko exactly is, and that is what Trigger abuses her out of. 

Little Witch Academia is an anime that focuses solely on world-building, so much so that they’re willing to pile over their characters in order to show what magic can do. 

(And apparently for Trigger, world-building also means learning who the author of a 200-yo Twilight spinoff book is and who was Holbrooke’s dad)

But the point is, the anime is a pile of boring trash fire that focuses on world-building, even from its original exposition of the OVA. It uses the pattern of ‘theme/problem of the week’ in half of the series with arcs going nowhere for a while and suddenly rushes an epiphany in the last few episodes. *cough ep 15*

The point with world-building serialization is that it needs a way to be promoted, and what way for it to promote is to get Akko to fuck around with it. As her job as the protag, that’s exactly what she does for more than half of the series. She’s like a stretchy character that is carried by the plot with gross insistence from the show that she has character (which is being stubborn and clumsy that is written off as ‘passionate’).

What’s worse is Trigger has all these ideas yet none of them are polished to its fullest (like the political divide between witches and modern government) or is overlapped by some bullshit to add because Japan. (seriously, a hunting-themed episode with cool lore, and yet a third of the episode is all about robots and building it? What the fuck?)

See, that’s why I think Akko is a horribly written character, not her character itself (if that were the case then I would’ve ditched the show the first episode) but because how she’s executed with it for the show. She’s constantly pulled by different bullshit the show comes up and makes her pull the answers the episode needs out of thin fucking air just because the writers said ‘fuck you’ to development and that they need to end the problem at some point right?

If characters can’t be tied correctly to the worldbuilding then there’s a chance that the character themselves would break, because it just can’t often work with what you’ve already placed in the previous episodes you’ve set up in the first place. Arcs overlap with each other and LWA doesn’t do shit for that until it needs a banging climax. 

Akko is constantly renewed and she learns nothing from what she learned (or at least hints of it), except for the metamorphosis bullshit and Shiny Rod. Which brings me to my next point on why Akko is such a horrible character.

Shiny Rod is a Leech

This thing is basically the plot device that Akko is so tied to. If there’s ever an episode where it solely focuses on Akko herself, it’s often related to either Shiny Rod or Chariot du Nord, which is the shittiest way to limit a character with so much exposition with everything the series has thrown at her. The only other way the series doesn’t do this to her is Diana in episode 12, but it isn’t even focused on her, it’s focused on the cabbage and her Draco Malfoy syndrome.

Anyways, were an episode be connected to Akko in some way, it’s always limiting to her duty as the holder of the Shiny Rod and the occasional situation from Chariot. Not from her friends, who she clearly relates to and has more history with, but with the Shiny Rod and Chariot.

The series lazily signs this as Akko’s resolution to her character by the last episode (FUCK THAT) and does nothing else with her relationship with other characters outside of Diana and Chariot. Honestly, you’d expect that after going through Sucy’s mind and visiting Lotte’s hometown, she would’ve grown as a better character and more than being a two-dimensional ‘chosen-one’ character who only gets an episode if it focuses on the plot-device that pulled her in the magical world in the first place. 

But no, Trigger is still insisting pies, weird shops, and other boring stuff needs to be shown for the series to make it interesting, and dumps the idea to the next. An arc is never properly made for all the shit they let Akko go through because the series is so fast-paced in the wrong places. And when it does focus on what is important (more important than finding about Nightfall’s author), it’s usually done spontaneously thus eliminating the suppose suspense that the single important thing is supposed to do *I HATE EPISODE 15 WHAT THE FUCK*

The point is, Akko is just a ‘believing heart’. A holder of Shiny Rod, who managed to get under Chariot without her knowing. It’s like she’s Midoriya (My Hero Academia) but much watered down and if you take that away from her, she has nothing, when out of all the stuff she could’ve had.

What LWA’s writers hadn’t realized is that what they actually wrote for Akko is what could’ve been her focus but Trigger insists for the world-building theme is that Akko’s arc should only come in the climax and the filler episodes are for her friends because you know, it won’t be more interesting that way and now they have a main protagonist that’s actually interesting beyond their design and suppose-personality. 

Thus I’m next to my last bullshit:

Akko, the Wasted Potential™

I recently rewatched Citrus lately, and though the show is much narrow than LWA’s world of magic, I realized what actually makes it better than it in ways that the latter fails. And it’s their protagonist.

I know you guys will trash about Yuzu being a simp and all, and I absolutely agree with that, but what makes Yuzu better than Akko is not because she’s more down-to-earth, but she has a three-dimensional mindset, a mindset which is the very thing kept away from Akko. 

While Yuzu may not have been pushed into a world of magic by the neck and gets dragged by the plot as violently as Akko (and the two very different themes of the two shows of course), but if you pull those away, their passion are nearly built the same. What differs them both is that Yuzu actually acts out what she needs to do and builds a steady relationship with the other characters around her, even if it’s very subtle and small. (Like, Harumin being her wicked hot sidekick? God yes, top-tier Gyaru)

Akko, on the other hand, literally goes into one of her best friend’s mind in a poison-induced coma and gets shoved into her other best friend’s culture by visiting her hometown. You might think she’d grow from that and realize what it takes to be a better character, right? WRONG.

Of course, Trigger uses these things as filler episodes and nothing more. It doesn’t reflect on Akko’s character because she’s not allowed to think like it should. Though the show would insist she has personality, it does the opposite when Akko’s only character is only used as ‘believing heart’ for the Shiny Rod and nothing much else, because the only times when they do get her a new attitude is dropped off right after.

It would’ve been cool if they dropped the world-building theme for a bit and focus on how they should make the characters much more interesting than having their personalities as the root problems of episodes. 

When I first watched LWA, I had so much more expectation for the characters themselves, especially Amanda O’Neill after her introduction in episode 3. But came episode 5 and then she… didn’t really matter that much despite being in half of the episode. And she didn’t have another one not until 11 episodes later. Imagine making and hyping up such a unique character and barely giving her screentime of three episodes! That’s one of the grossest things you can do in baiting lesbians, Trigger! 

And it doesn’t stop at Amanda; it applies to almost every other character. Chariot is the pink-print disappointment of a hyped character that didn’t have enough time. She’s a plot-device character that everyone was anticipating but she’s barely given the after of a shitty episode 14 (that has another completely different problem altogether). Episode 15 was literally the worst you could’ve done to make a twist because a) the development leading to that revelation was undercooked, and especially shitty because the show basically used Croix as a plot device, b) it’s done nearly towards the end of the series so the timing for her hype was weirdly placed, and c) Chariot’s personality from that episode is being used repeatedly just to let Akko become a sitting duck. 

So yeah, Trigger was so focused on the concept of world-building and making magic look as interesting as possible that the idea that maybe the characters would flat-out look bleak was not in their cone of vision. Akko was fundamentally a boring protagonist because she keeps getting pulled apart and has not ingrained anything in that, and to rub salt into the wound, she becomes so used to it that when Croix set her up with the Wagandea trap, Chariot has to intervene and at the cost of her flight powers, which does not help their characters one bit.

Akko is a shitty protagonist Trigger shredded apart just for their sake of world-building and she has learned nothing from what the show has thrown at her because the writers didn’t think she needed it, because, in the first place, it’s not about her. It’s about the Shiny Rod and completing Chariot’s story (which is half-assed in its own way). Lord knows how they botched her to the point she’s blank. She’s nothing more than a ‘believing heart’ and if Trigger just keeps there, that’s forever what she is. And that, in itself, is why I think Akko is a horrible character.

[writingalaxies]

ANYWAY MY NAME IS LYN AND I’M GONNA GO ON A RANT ABOUT IZUKU FRICKIN MIDORIYA BC I LOVE HIM AND IT’S HIS BDAY AND I FEEL LIKE INFODUMPING

Okay so I’ve been having SO MANY FEELINGS? about Izuku since this arc freaking started. Honestly, it’s really easy to see Deku’s complete and utter spiral into how he’s behaving now since the freaking Nighteye Agency Arc. After everything that happened with Chisaki, everything that happened to Eri, to Mirio, to Sir Nighteye - there’s absolutely no surprise in him behaving how he is now. Izuku is isolating himself in an attempt to further protect those around him. Ever since he’s been able to talk to the previous holders of OFA, he’s had responsibility after responsibility dumped on his shoulders -- hell, even All Might has been putting a ton of responsibility on him. So with all this World Saving Heroic Idealisms and Responsibility dumped on his shoulders day after day, followed, then, by the people around him - attempting to help him - getting hurt in irreparable ways?

Nighteye died. Mirio lost his quirk. And while they managed to save Eri - it took so long to actually be able to save her from Chisaki’s shadow, from the horrid things he put her through. These are all severely traumatic things that happened because they decided to believe and help Izuku in this fight.

They, of course, were not wrong about this, about their belief in him and his ability to save as many people as he sets his mind to. But Izuku, a being built on the idea that everything is inherently on your shoulders, you must save the world, is, of course, going to internalize the pain others are going through in his proximity. Because what kind of hero could he be, if he cannot even save the people around him??

Flash, then, to Bakugou in the war arc. When he hit Izuku out of the way in order to save him and ended up injured in just the very same way All Might was all those years ago that now make it so that AM can’t even fully function as a person - who knows the repercussions of that that Bakugou is going to have to face. And, in that moment, the one who had always wanted to WIN was now the one who was doing the SAVING, yknow the part that Izuku had always prioritized in terms of being a hero.

So now, Izuku is isolating, pushing anyone and everyone away in hopes of actually saving them. He has not, in any way, forgotten how important his friends and loved ones are. His family and friends are the most important thing to him, and Izuku has come to realize that if it’s obvious that they’re important to him, then their lives are just going to be used in the game against him. And he cannot handle that. 

Izuku is, intrinsically, just like his mother - soft-hearted. He cannot handle losing his loved ones, losing the people he cares about. Every single person in 1-A, All Might, his mom, any other Pro he has worked with in proximity, like Endeavor. They are people he wants, desperately, to protect and if he can separate himself from them then they have a much bigger chance at survival than they would if they were closer to him. 

Izuku’s descent into what he, essentially, is now, started years ago, I’m not sure on the exact chapter, but it’s when he decides that he’s no longer going to cry. Crying is just a release of emotions - does not have to be sadness, doesn’t even have to be anger, it can be elation (when he was crying and thanking AM on the beach, asking if he was blessed to be given OFA). Any extreme emotion that needs a sudden release can be released by crying. So when Izuku finally decides to stop crying? That’s when he stopped being so forward about how he was feeling, when he started to put a six-foot wall between himself and how others would perceive how he’s feeling. Just because he stopped outwardly crying, doesn’t mean that he stopped feeling any emotion he ever felt less intensely. It just means he stopped expressing it in the same way. 

I expected Izuku to descent into this version of himself. The isolationist, the one who wants so desperately to protect everyone that he possibly can that he’ll do so at the expense of himself and his own wellbeing. Izuku doesn’t, and hasn’t ever, prioritized himself - thus why he was always so okay with being the one who got hurt. He used his own body as a battering ram in order to get through to Todoroki during the Sports Festival and then used the knowledge that Todoroki wasn’t actually the one who hurt him to push him even further. He looked worse than Todoroki did, but that doesn’t mean that Todoroki was winning. (He did win the fight, obviously, but in the battle of wills? Izuku won out. And that’s the whole reason why Todoroki can use his fire now without all the anger behind it.)

Needless to say, I love the way Horikoshi is taking this arc and developing Izuku and his character - these have been character beats that have been present form the very beginning and they’re being perpetuated even now in chapter 320, so like go you Hori. It shows just how warped Izuku and his character has developed after all of the horrendous amounts of Trauma he’s been put through, along with all of the kids in 1-A.