#AND YET THESE TWO???? OH MY GOD!

[usertoxicyaoi]

reading your tags on his man 2 posts is my new favorite hobby!!! 🥰❤

hiiii my love!!! fhdbcicbf NO LISTEN i've rewatched all 5 episodes so far like ATLEAST 3 times already and youd think id be used to it by now everytime junsung and sungho come on screen BUT NOPE. gosh i LOVE them they just feel so well paced and so right and so .... organic that i just ... do not feel with anyone else on the show rn?? like sungho LIKES the fact that junsung is so direct and straightforward with him despite him also liking seunwoo but sungho's mature enough to realise that junsung is serious about him and he has to consider both junsung and seunwoo and give junsung a chance too and date him bc maybe he might actually end up LIKING LIKING him (despite the fact that they both ALWAYS say how polar opposites they both are from each other) and he respects his efforts and gives something back to him too like its not one sided or tugging junsung along where hes said again and again "oh should i ask him on a date?" "he makes me feel new things when im with him." "oh so thats how he feels about me? i'm happy inside." like!

if this was all one sided from just junsung and sungho was tugging him along id have NOPED out of there dead fast. BUT. it isnt the case!!!!! theres something mutual here to work with!!!!! "if you had woken up earlier we could have gone on a date!!!" LIKE. SUNGHO WANTS TO GO ON A DATE WITH JUNSUNG!!!!!!!!!!!

and junsung!!!!!!! oh my precious boy!!!!! our brave brave boy!!!!!!! hes just SO heart on his sleeve for sungho but in such a direct yet laid back way?? he isnt forcing or pressurising sungho into anything! he just lays his feelings out every night to sungho so that he KNOWS on the phonecall convo they have and then just steps back and gives sungho the time and space he needs to work through it! he does all these heartfelt little actions for sungho like make ramen for him or bring him diet coke that sungho just CASUALLY mentioned in passing once or gift him cookies in such a casual way and lets sungho decipher the meaning from it!!! and i love that so much!!!! like hes being so so brave despite knowing sungho also has feelings for seunwoo!!! and yet junsung is still keeping himself in sungho's eyeline and sight and on his mind but not being so in his face about it!!! and now SUNGHO HAS TO GIVE SOMETHING BACK. even SUNGHO at the end of ep 5 realises that he has to act on his feelings for junsung and indulge in them and give them two a chance to see where this goes between them!!!!

ANYWAY. I CANT WAAAAIT for whats to come for them im MORE than certain we are DEFINITELY going to get a date between them and WHATEVER the hell this ribbon tying thing is!!!!:

IS HAUNTING ME. LIKE. HELLO??????? WHAT ARE YOU TWO DOING!!!!

[lotus-pear]

"i haven't worked you like a dog yet, as promised"

[babacontainsmultitudes]

RIP Will Campos the only person who was murdered this episode.

[dreamerdrop]

Garashir just ticks like. Every box in every way, in thousands of different ways, all at once.

The moral ambiguity. The trauma. The angst. The shared sense of humour. The age gap. The constantly switching power dynamics between two people who refuse to be open with anyone, including themselves. The inherent "I know I don't always know you but I trust you and I'll do this for you" that comes with all of that.

The refusal to walk away, the mutual fascination and obsession, the willingness to bend their own sense of self to try and see the other more clearly.

They are both so traumatised and so lonely and have so much difficulty connecting to others, but they form such an immediate easy connection that goes beyond being friends or not friends. They are both so terrified of someone seeing them for exactly who they are because they think that person is grotesque and unlovable, but they're not.

Neither of them is the monster they think they are, and they see that in each other but not in themselves. Even when they aren't together, even when they aren't around, their character arcs are so wrapped up in what they've brought to one another.

Julian becoming darker, letting go of so much idealism out of fear of losing those he loves, and Garak stepping up, slowly becoming a person he thought he could never be, someone who is kind and heroic, even if he'll still do horrible things, he will do them because he's doing it to help someone who needs that help, for the greater good. Garak demonstrating through the person he becomes that Julian was never, never wrong for trusting him, for believing in him, for forgiving him.

Garak becoming someone through the war who validates all the idealism that the war made Julian try to kill off inside himself, that he thankfully never really could.

They're both self-sacrificing to a fault, Julian revels in it, wraps himself in it as a defence from all his self-loathing and pain, and Garak tries so hard to deny it to himself, to pretend he would never put anyone ahead of himself, ahead of Cardassia, but he does, again and again. He is far more selfless than he gives himself credit for, and likewise, Julian deserves far more selfishness than he allows himself to indulge in.

The shared pride and hubris giving way to the broken foundations they were both raised upon, moulded into someone they hated by parents who let them down, by a universe that couldn't see them beyond labels and histories and crimes. So closely guarded with names chosen for themselves, peppering hints of themselves without ever giving enough away to anyone who won't work for it.

But they do work for it, for each other. They see those little hints, they piece them together for each other because it matters, it matters if it's for them.

They're mirror images and opposites and so different and so similar, and they wouldn't be who they are without each other, pulling them along into becoming someone new.

I don't care if they were in love or not, it's such a tiny speck in the giant abstract mess that is their entire relationship. Lovers, friends, family, a spy and his mark, a doctor and his patient, a friendly acquaintance, a distant former comrade, it doesn't matter.

They're just... everything.

[rasoyas]

started as pose practice, ended in 🥺🫶

[evelynpr]

Might be a hot take as a bkdk and tgck truther here, but I find izuocha endlessly fascinating, beautiful, but also tearfully tragic.

I see their love for each other as something representative of their innocence and naivety when they only knew so little about who they were, and what was to come.

I think the main barrier of their relationship is that its rooted in how they see each other very idealistically, specifically that they're attached to the image of their Best Heroic Selves, and not the deeply selfish, destructive, freaky, and egotistical parts of them. To each other, they need to keep fulfilling that image or else that same person they looked up to would almost die in front of them, and that would be too cruel. Although that hero is still there, that same person they looked up to is not the same now because of...well...everything.

Izuku had barely even talked to girls when he first met her. She was Izuku's first ever real friend (Sorry Kats, everyone and him knows he was terrible), so he saved her in that entrance exam even if it was so dangerous. She gave a new meaning to his derogatory nickname just by being a friend that believed in him. After that, she saved him several more times (Blackwhip and Megaphone are the biggest samples iirc). It makes perfect sense that she is Deku's hero.

Ochako hardly knew what it meant to be a hero when she first got into UA. Just by reaching out to some kid tripping, she made a new friend who would then save her in that exam, then save him again in return. This boy then became someone who was always working so hard to save everyone in trouble, and she realized she wanted to be just like him too. "I want to save people"

But...Deku changes. The weight of One for All is on his shoulders and he needs someone to carry this burden with him. He continues to want to save other people at the expense of himself, still not letting his true selfishness and ego ever show- and it only grows more and more unbearable.

Then...Ochako fell in love with Himiko. Truly, relentlessly, selfishly and devotedly in love with a girl who then dies giving her blood to her- the greatest expression of love Himiko could ever give.

Not that they can't love each other because of this happening (and...so many other things oh god), I'm honestly not sure how to explain it- But them ending up together after losing that innocence and naivety? After Ochako will forever grieve the girl who showed her love in its most beautiful and ugly form? After Izuku changed so fundamentally as a person that the butterflies of a nice girl talking to you doesn't exist anymore? After that simple image of being a hero and being in love has completely changed for them both?

Even so, I believe they still love each other. There is no label I know of that can properly describe them though. They are each other's image of being a hero when it comes to saving people. Aside from Shoto, no one else can grasp the grief of the person you tried to save dying in your hands. They would no doubt try to cope with these losses together, and just try to get better together...but so much has changed. They've changed. The world changed. What are they now? Who are they now?

"What happened...to us?"

[pseudophan]

i'm so extremely irrationally annoyed by people not knowing what various terms mean and using them incorrectly like i feel like that's such an asshole thing to care about but oh my god stop

[elvisqueso]

Character Parallels: Diving off of an absurd height immediately after introduction.

[volivolition]

part of that "raising a kid au" i was working on, this is almost definitely not how skill checks work and i don't even know if i'll include this, but for now i think it's. so funny kjkgj

[babyaiker]

It’s 3:30am but I have another rant idea. As a writer myself, when I go into fiction I tend to ask why a lot. Like, what importance does this scene have, why did this event happen and how did it affect the characters. Writing isn’t real life, and every event HAS purpose, and that to me is fun to analyze ^^

So anyway

Overthinking the purpose of the different character deaths in Red Dead Redemption 2

I know I’ve talked about spoilers a fair bit without warning, but I’m not holding any punches, so

SPOILER WARNING!!

Get ready for a long rant folks, and apologies for any spelling errors I missed,

First and foremost, rdr2 is a prequel. But more importantly, rdr2 is a prequel that depicts the explicit fall of the Van Der Linde Gang. Every death serves to cement that fact, as the game strategically will take out certain characters to both break down the gang’s stability, and the players emotions.

The first thing the game does to permanently shift the tone is to kill the comic relief characters. Both Sean and Kieran, while both complex in their own rights, serve specific, almost “gimmicky” roles in the gang (funny Irishman and whipping boy). These more comical purposes unfortunately don’t fit the game’s tone in the later chapters. And while I could go on about how interesting it would have been to see these two characters dramatically change over the course of the later chapters, their deaths are what the writers used to establish the beginning of the end.

The next duo the writing team had to take out of course had to be the smart, leveled headed characters, back to back no less. While Sean and Kieran’s deaths served to change the tone for the player, Hosea and Lenny’s deaths are what changed the tone for the gang. There’s a reason the fandom jokes that if Hosea had lived, he wouldn’t have let what happened happen. Both of these characters in their own right served as important emotional pillars for the gang, especially Dutch and Arthur. They were both rational and incredibly resourceful, two traits that made them a liability to the destined fate of the gang.

Hosea’s death also now introduces us to the section where a lot of characters die because they narratively HAVE TO. Like I said, rdr2 is a prequel, and you don’t want any loose ends popping up in rdr1 cause a character was introduced and not properly wrapped up. Lenny Kieran and Sean, while had their own purposes behind their deaths, didn’t have to die BECAUSE the story was a prequel. It’s easy to rationalize that if they had lived, their lives wouldn’t have affected the plot of rdr1. Hosea however, due to his personal connection to Dutch, HAD to die. He would have absolutely been brought up in rdr1 had he survived, as he was that important to Dutch and the gang.

That goes the same for Molly and Grimshaw. Both of these characters in my opinion would have been loose ends in the first game had they survived. Their deaths did serve other purposes though,

Molly for one served as both the gang and the audience’s sign that things were never going to be ok again. She’s the first death to happen within camp by the hands of another camp member, foreshadowing at its finest.

As for Grimshaw, standing as the last gang member in camp to stand by Arthur and John, had her fate sealed the moment she lifted her gun. By now the tone and the stakes were set, everything was falling apart, and nothing can save it. Grimshaw’s death doesn’t serve to set a tone or change anything for the characters, she’s just a victim of the gang’s fall, getting shot like a dog as reward for her years of loyalty.

And of course, we now get to Arthur,

For those who played the first game, it’s safe to imagine that when going into the next game, there’s a lingering feeling that Arthur isn’t going to make it out of this. The pinnacle of rdr2 tying its loose ends if you will.

And yet you bond with Arthur. You experience the world with him, meet new people with him, you bond with the gang and your family with him. You bathe him, you feed him, you make sure he’s rested, you make him do chores, you do little errands for others with him. You watch him grow scared and doubtful, you watch his eyes grow red, his skin go pale, his cough worsen. And because of the nature of a prequel, you know this can only end one way.

Sure, maybe the writers could write him out quietly, make it so that John would have no reason to ever mention his brother. But untouched grief works well too to keep a man quiet about his loved ones.

Despite everything, despite most players knowing Arthur doesn’t get to stick around, to live a long life, to get out of this ok, we still fall in love with him, and become completely undone at the end of the game.

And Micah’s death in the epilogue, of course, just feels good. It ties up a loose end for the first game, and it gives the player all the freedom in the world to pump his ass full of lead. It’s your reward for 40 hours of cowgirl simulator hell.

And also shout out to Strauss for not ratting despite getting kicked out and tortured, secret og right there,,

—————

Alright it’s now 5am as I finished writing this, but I have 3 more deaths I wanna quickly comment on. Davey, Jenny, and Mac, right?

Due to how sparely these three are mention outside of how they mildly affected other characters, I view their deaths as essentially worldbuilding. Characters WILL die in unfortunate and unfair ways, especially if it involves the Pinkertons. Characters don’t always get to go out with a bang, you are not immune to succumbing to the elements in this game, nor are you immune to the consequences of your actions.

—————

But of course, you can write a story however you want. I can see myself being easily convinced that any of these deaths weren’t required, as it’s all really just up to how well you can write it. I wholeheartedly think that the story could’ve been benefited by the presence of Sean and or Kieran for one. Whether it be watching Sean breakdown over the stress of the gang falling apart, or watching Kieran finally become a trusted member of the gang and break out of his shell more. And hell, I think there’s something interesting in the idea that Hosea survives, but is unable to help quell Dutch’s paranoia anymore.

There’s room to argue that each death wasn’t required, but in the end, they did die, and there were good reasons behind it. Yes, even as a fan who regularly forgets Kieran died due to the amount of “he lived” AU’s bouncing around in their head, his death was cool as fuck, and both thematically and narratively made sense. It’s beautifully tragic and deeply depressing, and the religious themes only make it that more interesting. Saw him pop up in a Twitter thread of “most graphic video game deaths” and felt genuine pride-

[sillyfudgemonkeys]

God can you imagine? If Rangi and Kyoshi really were BOTH oblivious about their own feelings this entire time???? Can you imagine the talks Hei-Ran and Kelsang probably tried to have???? TT0TT

Hei-Ran: I've noticed you've been.....running a lot more lately. Rangi: Yeah. Hei-Ran, trying to solve what strange mating ritual her daughter is performing: Is there someone you.... like? Romantically or....otherwise? Rangi: No? Why would you think that? Hei-Ran: I....I don't....know just.... What are your thoughts on Kyoshi? Completely unrelated. Rangi: She's a good friend. Would probably die for her. Might explode if she holds my hand. That's normal with friends, right? Hei-Ran, trying not to cry: I see. Kelsang: Kyoshi do you like anyone? Kyoshi: Me?! NO! Never! Who is this "anyone" you speak of? Hahahaha Yun didn't say anything to you, did he? Kelsang, really confused: Yun???? No- I just. Um. Rangi- Kyoshi, grabbing Kelsang by the shoulders: RANGI SAID SOMETHING?! Kelsang: She said you were running late! Um, what do you think she meant? Kyoshi: I DON'T KNOW! I think I need to clean, yes, this'll keep my aching heart from hurting! *runs off* Kelsang: So her heart aches when she's thinking of Rangi???? TT0TT Kyoshi we need a talk please come baaaaack!

[gingermintpepper]

I would really like to read one piece of writing, amateur or not, that features Apollo and Zeus having a positive relationship. One. Any one. It could be 30 words long for all I care. I just need confirmation that one other writer actively producing content in the Greek Mythology sector doesn't think of Apollo as Zeus' toy, sexual or otherwise, or of Zeus purposefully surpressing Apollo because he doesn't want him to surpass his power, or of Apollo only being obedient to his father over all else because of fear and physical abuse, or of any other reason possibly invented except some sort of mutual understanding and respect.

It should not be this difficult to find content where they do not hate each other.

[zylphiacrowley]

And the Land Would Tremble...

<previous - next>

[hanzajesthanza]

a book with geralt 😃

a book with geralt without ciri 😐

a book with geralt without yennefer 😔

a book with geralt without dandelion 💀

[aboxofcereales]

I think there should be some magnificent writing done of the looming moral dilemma of Elspeth Rook Mercar, the Breaker of Bonds, the firm believer in heroic nonsense, falling for a Lucanis Dellamorte, whose calling is death, the First Talon of the Crows. Because no matter how big and soft his heart is, he’s still unavoidably will lead the organization who helped to save Thedas, yes, but also is intertwined with many of the horrors that the Shadow Dragons oppose. And yet, still she will always choose Treviso, instead of Minrathous.

[valhallavalgrace]

Leo, what has been your favorite “to-the-death” activity thus far? I feel there has to be a workshop-to-the-death somewhere in that hotel.

LEO: I think maybe Magnus was right about talking about the past… I’m not sure I’m ready to do that yet, but thinking about it and doing things that remind me of my old life, it feels like progress. prev ask (also about activities!)