#Also I loved The Whale's character so much like what the FUCK

[0verzealouz]

Your reminder that “Three Assassins”, the book before Bullet Train, exists. 

[redeyye]

(with a wholly negative view of this movie) im not going to post about the whale im not going to post about the whale im not g

[the-bloody-sadist]

in case no one else has asked, please list your top 10 BL manga/manwha? 👀

i am. very interested in what other media you enjoy, especially BL

Combining these two bc I didn't wanna leave the second out!

(I wasn't a big fan of Blood Bank personally but I'm so glad it helped you with your world building Lil Whale!!)

I'm hoping some of these are unheard of for you guys because THERE ARE SO MANY BL/YAOI AND I READ THEM CONSTANTLY BUT NOT SO MANY ARE FANTASTIC AND MIND-BLOWING AND SPECTACULAR AND DEEPLY PSYCHOLOGICAL! I'm pretty sure I'll end up listing WAY more than 10, mainly because I want to highlight ones I feel like a lot of people haven't read. ALSO because I read so fucking many of them that I've collected a stash and NOW IS MY CHANCE TO YELL ABOUT THEM.

Just a disclaimer, these are not in any sort of order, as they're all about the same level in my head, just grouped. I'll list the "big name" BLs that I adore after these! First up are the ones that either have a quiet fandom or aren't well known! Since there'll be so many, I'm not going to say much about them, just know that usually no BL/Yaoi is perfect to me, since there are many bad psychology tropes here and there or unnecessary cruelties that aren't exactly realistic etc., but overall, I like the way that the story and characters are handled and/or love the art.

Here's the top five of my top ten that's not a top ten bc there are so many (I just said I wouldn't group them but I lied my ass off apparently):

Jealousy [Scarlet Beriko]: This is one of those that emotionally hits so hard that it will stick with me forever and I will usually tear up just a tiny bit when I think back to the moments that made this one so beautiful. A lot of times a story with major hurt, angst, and tragedy won't wrap up with enough to make me scream and cheer at the end. But THIS ONE DID. And I stopped reading for a while when a big event happened because I thought it would end horribly and I'd have to suffer three weeks of fiction-induced depression for a man who wasn't even real. BUT NAY. The themes you get in this one revolve around loneliness (huge draw for me, it always hits), mafia-connected characters and the rivalries from that, self-destructive prostitution, and characters who have difficulty receiving love without freaking out. Are those even themes idk. OH WELL. YOU GET THE POINT. I want this one on my shelf. You might've heard of it, but the fandom is silent so I never did. T_T OH ALSO THE ART ON THIS ONE IS GORGEOUS I FUCKING LOVE IT.

Hitori to Hitori no 3650nichi [Hitomi]: First of all, favorite manga artist. FAVORITE MANGA ARTIST. I'm never exactly sure if the artist is also the writer or if the writer is never the artist or...BUT IT DOESN'T MATTER. Anyway! I listed this particular title because it was the first that I found by this person - but then I discovered it was a part of a bigger series, and there are like I DON'T KNOW FIVE DIFFERENT MANGA?? OR SOMETHING??? Related to this one. I don't know which order, I just know that I read them all in a frenzy. THE CHARACTERS. OH! OH THE CHARACTERS! Oh my gods, it's so good. LMFAO. The arcs these characters have are fantastic, and I loved the fact that the abuser in one is shown to be the victim of abuse in a prequel story, and that his anger issues and other elements of his personality came about to affect him and destroy him. Just...I don't recall the details, READ IT. That's all. Spectacular depictions of nuanced trauma within abusive relationships.

The Beast Must Die [Lee Hyeon Sook]: This remains one of my favorite depictions IN ANY MEDIA of a psychopath, because it's SO accurate and I'm SO fucking proud of the author for doing their research and OH MY GODS YOU GUYS IT'S ABOUT TO GET A DRAMA CD LET'S FUCKING GO! This story is so good. It's so evil. It's so psycho-thriller. It's so WELL DONE. It features a dark academia-ish secret society within a college setting who hunt people for sport, sometimes. LIKE. Come on. And the psychopath (dark hair) IS THE MAIN LOVE INTEREST! You could literally hear the summary and go "oh this is for Sadist". And I don't get a lot of those that deliver this well. SOMETIMES the art makes me twist my head a little but YOU KNOW WHAT I DO NOT CARE OKAY? It's just SO good. There's murder, there's kidnapping, and - most importantly - a main character who doesn't just DEAL with whatever the psychopath does. He's smart, he fights back, he learns to understand psychopathy to determine if he should remain with the love interest...it's fantastic. That's all. I will stop. *BANGS THE WALL*

Aporia [Seontae]: ALL HAIL THE HEALTHY BDSM RELATIONSHIPS THAT STILL HOLD TENSION AND EMOTIONAL WEIGHT AND SPEAK TO ME!!!!!!! HELLO!!!!! This is my favorite BDSM-themed story. Everything is consensual, but is everything safe??? Not when it comes to the main character's emotions and tendency to sacrifice his wellbeing for a partner. BUT NOT TO WORRY, HIS SADISTIC LOVE INTEREST IS CONSIDERATE AND ATTENTIVE AND CARES ABOUT HIS FEELINGS!! This is, perhaps, one of my favorite depictions of a REAL sadist. A real one as in a realistic, irl BDSM-relationship sadist. Someone who is just as worried about taking care of his partner as he is about hurting him JUUUUST right. ANYWAY! THAT'S ALL! READ IT! HE'S LITERALLY ME!

Royal Servant [MasterGin, Chungnyun]: Okay, we were talking about healthy BDSM in the previous one, now let's talk about TOXIC BDSM-THEMES THAT I LOVE. Lmao. DO YOU LIKE MASTER/SLAVE DYNAMICS? DO YOU LIKE STORIES WHERE THE ARC LEADS TO THE ABUSIVE MASTER EVENTUALLY LEARNING TO NOT BE ABUSIVE AND LOVE THE SLAVE? YEAH ME TOO. I DON'T NEED TO DESCRIBE THIS ANY FURTHER. AUTHOR OF ANGEL BUDDY, THIS IS THE ONE THAT I KNEW HER FOR FIRST.

A bunch of other good ones you may or may not have heard of (I won't describe every one of these unless I have something particular to say, so enjoy the pictures from them that I snatched):

Love me in the Wilderness [Wang Tao]

Neon Sign Amber [Ogeretsu Tanaka]

Zetsubou ni Nake [Shinou Ryo]: Guys. This story is UNIQUE AS HELL. I had to say something about it. The premise is that a man who was raped turns around and goes back after his rapist and rapes him back, and then they fall in love. IT'S....the amount of times my jaw dropped was insane on this one. SOMEHOW IT'S WRITTEN SO WELL. SOMEHOW THEY NAILED THE STRANGE REALISM OF IT AND HAD ME TEARING UP OVER THE INTENSITY OF THE RAPE SCENES. VERY WELL-PACED, VERY TRAUMATIC IN A GOOD WAY. HIGHLY RECOMMEND. The way they come to love each other after this crazy foundation of mutual rape is IMPRESSIVE. Kudos to the writer.

Love or Hate [Yeongha]: This is a very well-known one but there's like zero fandom so I think it fits here. Also a lot of hate going around for it? Which I never understood, fuck those guys. This remains one of the most beautifully-written that I've ever read, and I mean that purely in like...the ACTUAL writing on the page. I'm talking poetry, purple prose. I just recall being blown away by that, and no manga before or since has ever reached its level. For once I felt like the writer was also a novelist because of the way that they put things, and had a clear voice in the style. Did the main boy end up with someone I didn't want him to end up with at the end? Yes. But I felt like it fit pretty well, and it was sort of a tragedy, and it was supposed to hit you painfully in the gut. A lot of people were mad at the main character for that and I don't really think it's fair. In any case! A beautiful story with complex characters and intriguing dilemmas. Highly recommend it.

Shangri La no Tori (Birds of Shangri La) [Ranmaru Zariya]

Two in Six Billion [Denzou]

The Pizza Delivery Man and The Gold Palace [Upi]: Great story and character-building so far! I will say that once it became porn, it dove a little too heavily into it for me. Like I only needed one scene of the porn, I was enjoying the panic attack scenes much more. BUT YEAH, IT'S ONGOING, SO WE'LL SEE WHERE IT GOES! But the panic attack scenes were the reason I read it and yes, I did tear up.

Sleeping Dead and Living Dead [Asada Nemui]: I RECENTLY FOUND THIS ONE AND ADOOOOOOREEE IT SO MUCH. I DO NOT CARE THAT IT'S AN OLD SCIENTIST AND HIS ZOMBIE PATIENT. NORMALLY THAT WOULD HOLD NO SWAY OVER ME, BUT OH GODS, THE ART IS SO PRETTY AND THE STORY IS SO GOOD. I LOVE THE LITTLE ZOMBIE MAN! I LOVE THE LITTLE ROMANCE THEY'VE GOT!

Private Lessons [ANCO, Mongya]: It's cuuuuute what can I saayyyyy it has BDSM and threesomes and I liked it. Very entertaining. Scratches the BDSM itch and the little SUB WAS SO CUTE. Anyway.

Kingyo no Ubugoe [Gontaku Nido]

From Points of Three [White Eared]: Threesome dynamics!!

Silent Lover [Qiang Tang, Bai Li Jun Xi]: I STOPPED THIS ONE AT A CERTAIN POINT BECAUSE IT DIPPED INTO WEIRD M-PREG AND STUFF I CANNOT READ. But BEFORE all that, I was deeply ingrained in this one. It has a main character who can't speak (a particular weakness of mine) and he's OH SO CUTE and he's given as a sex slave basically to the emperor (emperor? idk he's a kingly man, something like that), and the emperor is evil but learns to be soft and yet it takes a LONG TIME SO I WAS BAWLING HYSTERICALLY OVER SOME OF THE HEARTWRENCHINGLY PAINFUL SCENES IN THIS FOR THE POOR YUU-ER. A good read until it decided to go the omegaverse-by-magic-potions route. I didn't stay to figure out where it actually ended up.

Yoru wa Tomodachi [Ido Gihou]

Toumei na Ai no Utsuwa [Hitomi]

Re:Birth [Misuaki Asou]: The singular omegaverse story in existence that I actually liked. Hopefully that says a lot. Mostly because it's about the omegaverse elements NOT being present for the main character and him trying to fake it because he's lonely and afraid that his partner (an alpha *shakes off the disgusting label because who the fuck thought alpha was a cool word*) will leave him if he finds out he's just a regular guy (aka beta I guess? ABO is weird idc).

Sahara no Kuro Washi [Soutome Emu]: MASTER SLAVE MASTER SLAVE---

Haru ni Kaeru [Kunieda Saika]

Incorrigible [Bbong]

Well Done! [ANCO, Mongya]

Nemuri Otoko to Koi Otoko [Zariya Ranmaru]

Even If You Don't Love Me [Pando]: It dropped off SUPER hard (it's ongoing still) but damn was it good in the beginning. I am sick and tired of where it's at currently but the psychological manipulation and the horror of a certain twist in the storyline was CRUSHING to me. I only wish that it would have gone a better way after it happened, because it slowly destroyed itself and became like a lot of tropey rape stories. The asshole just keeps being an asshole and it's not really where the story seemed to want to go with that. But otherwise, it started off strong and I'll give it kudos for that.

Bigger titles I'm pretty sure everyone has heard of that I enjoy:

Saezuru Tori wa Habatakanai [Yoneda Kou]: Is it a little unrealistic that literally everyone in this story is gay apparently and wants to fuck one man apparently and/or rape him? Yes, absolutely. Does that matter once you're in the story and it's so good and all these unrealistic cruelties make a really strong bond between the main love interest and this self-destructive masochist who's probably not really a masochist but only interested in hurting himself because he doesn't know how else to handle his trauma from childhood? Ummmm yeah. Anyway! This one had a lot of inspiration and a lot of tears and a lot of obsession from me. I re-read it all the time, I watch the movie over and over, I listen to the audio drama and cry at my favorite scenes. Do I care in the end that it's a little unrealistic at times? No but I do laugh sometimes when I'm about to share it with a new person. Because BL is just like that generally and you've got to put up with a little of those tropes to find your favorite stories. THIS IS ONE OF THE TOP FAVORITES OF ALL TIME FOR ME BTW, IT'S ONLY SO LOW DOWN HERE BECAUSE PRETTY MUCH EVERYONE IN YAOI KNOWS ABOUT THIS ONE ALREADY, AND WE'RE ALL AWARE OF HOW GOOD IT IS.

ENNEAD [Mojito]: I will say that this is basically the best manga/comic/manhua...what's the Chinese word idk ANYTHING OF THIS MEDIA TYPE that I have ever read. It's not done, and people have been complaining that it's starting to fall into the common BL tropes but you know what I do NOT care. Mojito is a genius, Mojito is a master storyteller, Mojito is beautiful, Mojito is strong - I just love Mojito and this work. So much. The action, the horror of rape, the deep-set character conflicts and dilemmas and internal turmoils. Everything, nailed it. Nailed it. And not to mention it's set in FUCKING EGYPTIAN MYTHOLOGY AND THEY'RE ALL GODS AND THEY HAVE SUCH COOL BATTLES AND COSTUMES AND DUDE???? I'm so hooked. That's all.

Killing Stalking [Koogi]: OBVIOUSLY. I don't really need to say anything about this one except that yeah, some of the psychology is a little off and some of it is just super shallow. But I loved the characters and that's what mattered in the end. I fell in love with Sangwoo too and it ripped my heart out when I read the ending. I was depressed for like two weeks and it was the first story that had ever affected me that way, but I was also younger and this was one of my first yaoi/BLs and yeah. GREAT story though, fantastic storytelling, very lovable characters. Sangwoo was handled so much better than most "asshole/kidnapper/rapist" characters and I will never stop appreciating that, because a lot of writers tend to forget that your villains have to have redeeming qualities if you want us to like them (????). Jinx, I'm fucking coming for you. Suck my dick. KOOGI FTW.

Missing Love/A Married Man [In Hyerin]: Some of the DESCRIPTIONS of how trauma works especially of the sexual nature in this story are SO. SO. GOOD. However, I am beginning to grow VERY ANNOYED at where it decided to go with the most current updates of the story. The author did enough trauma to the main boy, now it's getting so incredibly excessive that it's overdoing it and the author's kinks are showing through. LIKE I GET IT. Okay? I do. But this one became too much and I need him to return to the actual story arc of going through that trauma so he can HEAL with the right person taking care of him.

MadK [Ryo Sumiyoshi]: I am into NONE of the kinks that would lead to me picking up this manga. I hate demons, I'm not a monsterfucker, I can't do extreme guro, and yet I SAW CANNIBALISM. THAT WAS THE ONE THING THAT I THOUGHT I'D GIVE IT A TRY FOR. And then accidentally I got obsessed because the plot is AMAZING and the writing is SO GOOD and who cares if I hate demons and monsters ALL OF THEM ARE BADASS AND HOT (??) AND IT CEASES TO MATTER. Good on the writer for making them appeal by personality alone and expressions and whatever else you signed a deal with the devil to make me like because it worked. Also the guro is beautiful, so it doesn't even matter. Hannibal levels.

Warehouse [Killerwhale]

Painter of the Night [Byeonduck]

Viewfinder/Finder [Yamane Ayano]

Given [Kizu Natsuki, Gusari]

Nii-Chan [Harada] (and basically every other work by Harada)

Sadistic Beauty Side Story [Geumsan Lee, Woo Yeonhui]

Dine With a Vampire [Pangin, Pinko]

Angel Buddy [Mastergin, Chungnyun]

My Partner's Tastes and Fetishes [Deok Hwa]

Interview with a Murderer [KJK]

On or Off [A1]

Steel Under Silk [Snob]

The Pawn's Revenge [Evy]: It was going to be SO GOOD! And then it dropped off harder than a boulder from a balcony and I have absolutely no idea why the author took it the way that they took it, but go off I guess. It's boring as hell now but it started off with promise and I enjoyed the art and character designs. Too bad, I suppose.

Caste Heaven [Ogawa Chise]: An old classic with all the sticky sometimes icky mostly ridiculous BL tropes but hey, it's cute. It's sexy. It's fun. I don't care.

Wet Sand [Doyak]: We're still in the beginning stage of this one but I'm excited to see where it goes! Plus the art SLAPS ASS like nobody's business.

19 Days [Old Xian]: I hate comedy, I hate fluff, I hate buddies that never become lovers, but none of that mattered when I picked this one up. The duality of man. Bite-sized chapters and ACTUALLY AN EVENTUAL ROMANCE that none of us thought we'd ever get.

Legs That Won't Walk [Black Apricot]: Although this one dropped off hard for me and I'm really just following it to see if it picks up again and does something interesting (it probably won't) I did enjoy it in the beginning. I just get tired of the "asshole just keeps being an asshole and nothing else but woobified slut keeps coming back to him??" without the strong and realistic undercurrent of Reasons Why Someone Would Come Back such as manipulation or threats or unhealthy attachment. Perhaps it was sorta there in the beginning with them but now I'm just like why are we still continuing this story.

Pearl Boy [Inking, Zoy]: *Awkwardly scratches neck* It's not the best okay? It's not. It's really not. I don't like half of the things that occur in this one, but the ART, bro. THE ART, BRO? That's what got me into it and what kept me into it, PLUS I do like little Jooha. I stayed for Jooha, too. Dooshik drives me a little batty most of the time and looks ugly for half the story to me, but when he's badass, he's pretty badass, so I can forgive him. I really don't know why he has such drastically changing appearances because I thought he was someone completely different for a bit LMAO. In any case, I have to admit I like the uhhhhh danger that Jooha gets himself into and the crazy things that make no sense but you know what he gets hurt and then there's comfort and rescue and they cry and I cease to care that it makes no sense. (Sorta, I don't actually cease to care I just laugh awkwardly and go okay sure that's how it works because it's so hard to find stories that don't do this LOL I'm beating a dead horse) BUT WHY DOES HE CUM PEARLS? WILL WE EVER KNOW? WHO THE HELL THOUGHT OF THAT AND WITHOUT A SUPPORTING MAGIC SYSTEM IN THE WORLD TO MAKE THAT MAKE SENSE? IT WENT DOWNHILL SO FAST AND THE ENDING IS TERRIBLE BTW. THE VILLAIN SUCKS.

That's it. I can't talk to much or I'll run out of words but HOPE YOU GUYS FIND SOME NEW READS!!

[bestanimatedmovie]

Choose your favorite!

Vote in the other polls!

What fans say:

Kung Fu Panda:

Honestly iconic. The progression of story, the message, the acting.

The way this movie balances tone is nothing less than astonishing to me. It's funny and lighthearted but also intense and dramatic and neither ever take away from the other. Every joke and emotional beat lands excellently. Not to mention. The fight scenes SLAP. And so does the score!!

It's just GOOD. I love how all of them were insanely genuine. Po genuinely wanted to be a Kung Fu master. The Furious Five genuinely wanted to be the very best like no one ever was. And Tai Lung genuinely wanted to kick the shit out of anyone that even looked at that dragon scroll. But seriously one of the best movies.

Treasure Planet:

The setting and focal relationship!

WHALES IN SPACE. Second best treasure island adaptation (#1 is muppets). The song The Song!!

Where do I begin with this movie? It blends CG and hand drawn animation beautifully. All of the backgrounds are gorgeous. There are so many cool alien designs. The score is absolutely perfect. The amount of detail put into the design and worldbuilding shines through. All of the characters are so much fun to watch, especially Long John Silver and Captain Amelia. This movie takes at least partial responsibility for my love of space/sky pirates. Also it was actively sabotaged by Disney so I need to vouch for it at every chance.

Space pirates in a classic novel. It's gorgeously animated with a blend of 2d and 3d. Also, LONG JOHN SILVER HAS A 3D HAND thats hecking impressive for a main character to be a blend of the two in 2002. Did I mention the twink protagonist and malewife for the rich halfwit son? The aliens are beautifully unique, and a mantis guy floats off into space. from a pirate ship. because they aren't just space pirates, they're aliens and cyborgs on pirate ships going through space. Which fucking rocks.

It's a genuinely creative adaptation of Treasure Island that has so much heart and incredible animation. It helped pioneer 3D animationa nd it was the first feature animated film to utilize both 2 and 3 D animation

The animation is so good, and the way that the antogonist isn't black and white, he genuinely cares for the protagonist <3

Pirate ships in space!

Watched this on loop as a kid, gave me solace for not growing up with a dad

It fucks

The ☆A n i m a t i o n☆!! And captain Amelia

It's so fun looking, cool character design. It's funny, it's emotional. I love it so very much please aaaaaaa

How this movie looks is absolutely amazing. A space-steampunk pirate story with fantastic visuals and (mostly) great characters. The vibes this movie has are off the charts. Jim is the bad-boy-good-heart kid, the doctor is a silly-goofy-but-oddly-competent support and Silver is a complex father-figure-who's-made-mistakes. Also MORT the cute little jelly that won me over in 0.5 seconds flat. I am also a slut for a good soundtrack and this one SLAPS. I will stand by my opinion that the Russian version of the song I'm Still Here did a better job of fitting the montage and the mood. That's a hill I will die on.

[ganondoodle]

Since you said it's ok to send you random ask, i've always found your "monsters" design to be really really gorgeous, and I wanted to know : in any form of media you've interacted with, what's PEAK monster design for you ?

i have been thinking about this ask alot bc ... i dont ... know? theres a problem with what counts as a monster really too, most are either some sort of anthro/furry or the horror gore type of monster that instills you more with disgust than awe

i guess theres some i really like but idk if thats what id call 'peak' (though its rarely JUST the design but their vibe and stuff too);

(its a lot of zelda.. sorry)

Eldra, Farodra and Naydra (engl Dinraal, Farosh(?)) though Eldra is def my fav one of them, i like how they are a little more less typical dragon- with the fur around the neck the floppy ears and kinda goofy face yet manage to be the most ethereal, awe inspiring creature i have ever seen in a game with how they act and are presented as (in BOTW!!! do not mention anythign sonau/zonai with stupid magic pebbles to me about them i will manifest worms into your tea)

Leunen (Lynels) (botw) -i could not find a better picture wtf, fav are white and silver ones) FINE they had some pretty neat new horn designs in totk- idk i just like them alot, rather simple if you think about it, horse lion plus horns- but its so well put together it just kinda scratches my brain in a good way (also how intelligent they clearly are, like the way they fight and act and also even their death animation is so??? huh?? you are just gonna treat them like any other mindless monste- *remmbers they treat ganondorf even even worse all things considered* .. nevermind you're good)

'Beast' Ganondorf (twilight princess) its my favorite beast ganon design (even if it technically is just kinda a man boar .. again) though if ww gan had a non puppet beast form that one would most definitely be my fav lol (i will not get over the fact that some descriptions call this a hideous beast EXCUSE ME???? WHERE???) (honorable mention here, darkbest ganon from botw, pig on fire but it looks cool as fuck)

Nimbusgarde (ww) .. (engl .. darknuts?) do i need to say anything? (i could throw alot of ww design here) not sure if it counts as monster but they are not human so ????

the pathless bosses- (here in order, Cernos, the Godslayer, and Kumo) all of them are rad as hell (except for the final version of the godslayer ... liek im sorry but it looks to boring compared to any other one lol) again not just the design but man do i love them

since i dont know what would count as a monster or no i could just list my fav characters here bfmjbfmjsbmj like radahn (elden ring) is just kinda a zombie, aurelion sol (league of legends) is a space dragon, the forest god in princess mononoke, Narisha (skyward sword- sky whale)- i could go on but this post is long already (honorable mention to Omus in nausicäa, weird bugs but also something divine, though it is much more how they are treated and the vibe etc)

in all honesty though i cant think of one that i would describe as perfect, what i want of a monster design is to be ... cool but also a little weird, big hulking monsters that have something off about them and something that makes them 'other', but also not, as much as i like bloodborne, just bloody gory messes of rotting flesh, AND not just as a monster to kill, i just crave a game or otherwiese piece of media where the cool monsters arent just there for you to kill- the perfect one i guess would be something kinda big scary weird and off but while non verbal clearly not a mindless beast?

and here is the thing; my own characters do not furfill that, my designs are really rather conservative, much to my dismay, anthro of a mix of animals, maybe an extra arm thrown in- Eadrya, one of my favorites, is really just a blueish furry (yes they have fur) and their demon form is a mix of seals and catfish with some extra arms, too many teeth and a mouth that goas wayy to far (if they want) - Shargon is a feather dude with extra arms and his demon form is really just a chinese type dragon crossed with a bird, throw some darts at the color wheel, done

together with my problem of my monster characters losing their 'otherness' vibe within the story rather fast bc the majority of my characters are non human and speak and you see them in all sorts of emotions and parts of life- they lose that divine, unknown vibe and i HATE that that happens, i want them more akin to the forest god in mononoke but thats not possible unless i start from scratch

and i really dont mean to make myself look bad to sound self depre- ... however you spell that; i really am rather dissatisfied with my own designs but mostly just roll with what i got bc i never seem to be able to actually achieve what i want

even my redesigns often really make things LESS interesting (unless maybe the og was just ... human, but they are blue eyed with golden hair and white so that makes them divine you seE-), the skyward sword dragons as i redesigned them made them much more classical dragon, in part intentional bc i was drawing a connection of them becoming the botw dragons at some point, but by all means the canon design is much more weird and unusual than what i did with them, you could apply the same to even demise, his canon design might seem a little uninspired but really what did i do? inject him with some classic satan spice like that makes it in any way less stereotypical evil demon ??? lol

im sorry this post devolved into whatever this is but i really am trying to answer sincerely, i am confused about it myself, what counts as a monster, what doesnt, there must be more that i really loved but why cant i think of them, why do i design characters like this when i really want something much more different, i dont know, i feel like my brain is in a cage, why do i keep making things less interesting in an effort to make it interesting, am i falling into the corporate trap of cool sells who am i what am i doing

(theres a zelda artist with a style so strikingly genuis in shape, color and just .. DESIGN that i want to chew my nails off bc i cannot design like them, their designs and redesigns are so different yet sensical and so full of crisp shapes i have never seen before it drives me nuts and i would want to give them a shoutout but i think they dont like me so aaaaarhekjbfhgdknbgdfklbg)

[silviakundera]

Love's Rebellion dropped express and now we know it's a happy ending, so it's safe to taste. I feel determined to give it a fair chance to engage me, because after watching many years of classic Doctor Who and Babylon 5, terrible CGI and low budget effects & sets can't deter me.

Love's Rebellion ep 1 watch comments

Strong character opening for the FL

We learn several key things about her within a few minutes, without an awkward info dump:

She's part of a martial sect but is the reclusive poisioner who doesn't fit in

Powerful enough that she's not intimidated by sword wielding martial siblings

Talks to magical creatures

Patient enough to spend multiple years cultivating her potion ingredients

Chaotic neutral - rescued a junior who came to fuck with her shit, instead of letting him die from poison, but in a very wacky way that terrorized him

ok so when I watch a xanxia I often try to place the tone, so I know what to expect 🤔

This is sorta wacky. The question for me is if this is more "Eternal Love of the Dream" & "Ashes to Love"... or "Back to the Brink". There's a level of unserious chaos that feels whimsical and fantastical to me, and I can vibe with that. But "Back to the Brink" crossed a line for me that felt like Disney channel movie, pre-teen level of pratfalls and goofy. That's very subjective and personal taste... It will likely take 3 or 4 episodes to determine if it's "for me"

ML's intro also pleased me. We get rumors on the street and then a mysterious sword carrying man who was reportedly "chased" by sects to a xanxia market area, spilling wine as a tribute to the dead and then calmy strolling off.

He narrates about himself that he was convicted to murdering fellow disciples and expelled from his sect, on the run

Gotta say, these intros are way better than a few I've seen in cdramas where characters explicitly tell each other paragraphs about a character's backstory in a way that feels artificial. People aren't standing and talking woodenly at each other, things are constantly happening on screen.

ML wants to prove his innocence. I bet the sect master did it. It's always the secretly corrupted shifu.

LMAO there's literally a group called the Evil Path Sect?? Reminds me of that viral tumblr post about joining the brotherhood of evil mutants 😂😭

FL surrounded by demons and gets a little anonymous assist from passersby ML. She's not meek and defenseless, nor is she high powered. Perhaps your average capable sect member

The whaling guitar during fight scenes is taking me out

FL found ML passed out on the road after anonymously saving her and has now kidnapped ML into forced treatment as a medicine tester

(I feel like I watched a drama where a ML wanted to keep FL around because they were obsessed w curing them of the same disease their mom died from. But in that one, it was super annoying that ML hid all this info from the FL. Maybe it was an OTT mini drama. I don't recall.)

This is all very straightforward and the FL doesn't hide her intentions at all. Since she's basically a strange hedge witch with an actual cauldron in a forest hut, the eccentric behavior fits

wtf FL is possessed by a bad cgi gremlin

It's a genie or something and ML wants to steal it because it is gonna help him get this magic manual.

ML really wants the Seven Sins Manual because somehow that's gonna solve his problems.

Why he believes that idk but I feel like the key to watching xanxia is not to think about the plot and mcguffin very much. Just go with it.

[jamiesfootball]

Today on the wheelodex of things I'd like to discuss regarding Mom City / the Finale-

It's fucking weird that Ted's mom didn't come to the match. I also understand it completely.

(And I don't just mean writing weird, although I do think the decision was in part made so that they wouldn't have to spend a whole character-centric episode's B-plot revolve around introducing a new character around. Which is another complaint on the overall pacing of s3, but i digress)

But I'm talking about the 'meeting someone's mom is like getting a manual on why they're nuts' of it all. Ted's mom:

Flew in from the states, without letting Ted know she was coming

Proceeded to stay at a hostel for a week, hanging around 'near' his place for ??? amount of time until he happened to walk past her

Did the 'oh no, I couldn't' dance with him regarding staying with him (conceded)

Did the 'oh no, I couldn't' dance with him regarding going to work with him (conceded)

Did the 'oh no, I couldn't' dance with him regarding going up to Manchester -- and was left back at his flat.

Like. Holy fucking shit. That was all in the span of like 1-2 days.*

This is what Ted grew up with. Someone who constantly refuses to outright ask for anything or confront anything without making it an exercise for the other person. She's so passive aggressive that makes Ted seem like a direct person in comparison.

But what's interesting to me is that when it came to coming to the match in Manchester, that's the one where Ted folded in the towel and went 'yeah just stay here then'. Because that is the antithesis of Midwestern hospitality, isn't it? To leave your guest--your mom--back at home while she's visiting while you go off and do something else, something interesting, for a long stretch of time. It certainly makes my learned southern hospitality shudder in social faux pas. That's just not done. It's rude. Ted does it anyways.

With passive aggression, it's about what's not said--not what is. Both parties tend to know that the person being passive aggressive actually wants the opposite thing. The 'polite' way to tell them 'no' is to pretend you accept what they're saying. Ted's insistence that she tag along is noticeably weaker than when he's telling her to take his bed or come to work with him. It's not that her counter-arguments are any better; it's that he does the courtesy dance in a way that gets him out of the situation by giving her what she's asking for.

So Ted, Ted, does something people could consider rude. Because the alternative is doing this goddamn song-and-dance with his mother again. And I think that's fascinating. Not just from a character perspective, but for how it shows Ted's priorities in that moment. He says it backwards, he says it in an absence, but it's implied all the same, I don't want you there.

His team is facing off against their white-whale. They've been chasing Pep's team and his strategy, and now they're going head to head. If his mom came to the match, he'd be focused on her. On making sure she was taken care of. He doesn't want that.

For him, that's about as close as we ever get to him saying that he wants something (that has nothing to do with Henry.)

Of course then, just like Jamie's dad hovers over him even when he's not there, Ted's mom follows him to Manchester in his head. When Ted talks to Jamie, he's got one foot back in his kitchen at home. He's there, but he's not there. He's talking to Jamie, but he's talking to himself.

And it makes me wonder how often this was the case--how often did he throw in the towel and give her what she asked for because he just couldn't take being the one who had to handle all the decisions. It's a backwards negotiation, making his mother show up for him. She does love him, but god you can see how much strain reassuring her that he loves her too takes.

If I may be so bold, I think Ted also deserved to say 'fuck you' to his mom without attaching a 'thank you'.

*(SIDE COMPLAINT - The timeline of Mom City expands and contracts to fill the narrative space as needed, and it was goddamn infuriating to write about just tell me when things happen damnit)

[randomalistic]

Ok oh my god. OH MY GOD. I just saw treasure planet for the first time and It was fucking amazing. Like yeah Duh I KNOWWW i know it’s like. “underrated Disney movie bla bla it was a commercial failure” . You know the deal.

But if there is 1 thing I want to say:

I cannot emphasize enough how meaningful and touching it is to the audience when you allow your male main characters to cry, and hug, and be emotionally vulnerable without shame. That brought this film to a whole new level 🥺

its a beautiful movie that took so many creative risks and that’s so admirable. It’s so clear they had a vision and they crafted that vision with endless amounts of love :’] I DID CRY.

More rambling below

I was CONSISTENTLY delighted by how creative the characters were and incredibly entertained throughout. So fucking fun and engaging and it feels like a 2 hour movie so much happens. How is it only 1.5 hours.

I CRIED !!!!!!!!!! John Silver and Jim’s relationship was so COMPLEX like actually amazing. The father figure dynamic is so sweet and heartwarming and so heartbreaking simultaneously like I was not expecting that AMV montage in the middle like that shit cut me so deep it was outstanding. A montage about Jim’s troubled childhood with a neglectful absent father and then DIRECTLY PARALLELING THAT WITH HIS RELATIONSHIP WITH SILVER. LIKE HES FINALLY OVERCOMING THOSE FEELINGS AND LIVING HIS LIFE. GODDAMN!!! THATS SO POWERFUL!! THATS SO INCREDIBLE!!! THATS JUST IN THE MOVIE!!!!??!

Also the character/creature designs are RELENTLESS in how good they are. And they have so much fun with it. It’s so silly.

They had an old snapping turtle pirate???? hello?? He was introduced and then he died ❤️

The animation is also MIND BLOWINF like OH MY GOD!??? the seamless integration of 2D and 3D interacting is so impressive especially for 2001 like this was a technological feat for sure . Only rarely does the CG look dated (those whales at the start <\3 poor guys) BUT JOHN SILVER’S CYBORG ARM WAS FUCKING AMAZING LIKE I COUKD STARE AT THAT THING FOR HOURS .

Can’t find a gif of it but during his introduction there was a ROTATING SHOT of him cooking (❤️) while using his arm and his arm has so many tools inside it like a cyborg Swiss Army knife it’s the coolest fucking thing ever. Just Amazing

Also the fact they introduced an entirely new character 53 minutes in when the main cast has already been established was such a risk, but it so paid off. I love B.E.N. The fact he’s fully 3D animated and he’s THAT expressive. WHILE BEING A ROBOT? adorable. He’s Adorable. He’s so mentally ill and strange.

What is wrong with him. He is. dare I say. spamtonlike. pathetic and unhinged. Houses forbidden knowledge. What a Pitiful creature 🧡his glowing CRT eyes are really cute. There was a moment when the lights went out it was only his eyes and I Liked That

I love weird little robot guys in early-late 2000s movies. I need to watch Bluesky robots. I need my fix.

Morph could’ve been a really obnoxious comedic relief animal sidekick but they somehow managed to make him really cute and likable. (Also They only used him for plot points A LITTLE. Turning into anything couldve been overpowered as fuck. But alas… he is a mindless animal...) We love Morph. His relationship with silver is so fucking cute.

Kind of a Delbert centrist honestly. I liked him but also kinda dislike him. Bro kinda gives self centered misogynist scientist vibes. But he’s also silly and self conscious though guyssss.!! I thought I would like him more than I did. BUT He’s animated SO wonderfully though I love the shape of his hands and his weird goat face. Solid 7/10 weird guy. Idk why he came with Jim on the ship though❤️

Captain Amelia was fucking awesome for the first half of the movie. One of the best characters. Yeah. ……………. They fumbled her so hard. MAYBE ITS JUST ME BUT ME AND MY FRIEND WERE NOT A FAN OF HER AND DELBERT AT ALL. Disney was like. We have a competent woman character ! Competent woman has to get injured and then the incompetent man has to take care of her and then they HAVE to fall in love. It’s actually so tragic like they did NOT deserve her.

IN FACT HERE’S MY SCORCHING HOT TAKE: Delbert should’ve been the one to get injured and Amelia nurses him back to health. Delbert might apologize profusely because of his self confidence issues and cuz he internalizes things that go wrong as his fault. Amelia reassures him, realizing that she was too harsh on him earlier. Delbert becomes less intimidated by her because she opens up to him and they grow to trust one another. Amelia stays with him while Jim goes to hide. And whapow !!!! Same relationship is built up without disempowering a female character. It doesn’t even have to be romantic they can just be friends……. 🫶 cuz it comes off as weird because since the start Delbert was like “wtf the captain is a GIRL?? Wait ooh la laaa she’s pretty” and she had 0 interest in him. so like the ONLY way they could pair them together was to get her injured and have him care for her . And she falls in love with him out of nowhere. No. Being cared for does not mean you’ll fall in love with your caretaker. She’s so ace coded to me and my friend. Until SUDDENLY. Am I crazy

Ok so like yeah the forced heterosexual love interest moment. I did not want to see their FOUR (4) hybrid babies at the end. I’m losing my mind. also did Jim become a cop? I swear to fucking god LOL

The movie was SO good that disney didn’t know how to wrap it up without ruining it ❤️ WHICH IS VERY INTERESTING I think they had to compensate for all the risks they took with a safe and weird ending where the police like him now and the police are ok guys. Disney approved

Anyways watch/rewatch the movie right now. Skip the final minute <3

One of my new favorite movies goddamn!

Edit: I would’ve forgiven them if Delbert got pregnant instead

[texasthoughtsaboutnothing]

The Stranger and my thoughts on where each LCB Sinner is at (Long)

Hey, I actually sat down and read L'etranger, Meursault's source novel. I've got some fucking feelings about it, especially relating it to Limbus Company and what it might mean for his Canto in like 2 years.

Firstly, you should read or listen to this book. It's short, surprisingly punchy, and easy to follow. I (probably) don't have autism but I can absolutely see a read of this where the character does or is neurodivergent in some other way; beyond his relationship and evaluation of social queues and norms he also seems to deal with sensory issues. There are better people than me who should talk about this and I'm probably not adding a lot to the conversation but keeping this reading in my head for the climax added an extra layer of discomfort (intentional discomfort for the benefit of the story's message, I should say) to the whole book. But It's worth experiencing even if you disagree with that reading or have a different one.

Limbus Brainrot/Spoiler stuff from here on in.

There's always the question of where exactly each Sinner is in their story as they're on the bus. Their stories have been reinterpreted and/or jumbled in ways that make it fun to guess, so to go over each Sinner and where they are based on what we know or my theories:

Yi Sang - I'm not gonna front, I don't really get The WIngs, but this seems like a Good End AU for him. He already escaped his "Wife's" control and the sunless room and is now flying again (metaphorically, or maybe literally? i dont know help me).

Faust - Likely in the middle of the part where she's using Mephistopheles' power to do good in the world and prior to her being damned to hell. Side note, she's last to get a Canto and I bet it's not a coincidence that (afaik) she and Dante are the only two with Hell in their stories directly. My long shot call is that Faust is also Beatrice and there will be so much DantexFaust ship art in 2026.

Don Quixote - The biggest enigma. La Sangre de Sancho has gripped the imagination of the fandom and I am no exception. She's next after Heathcliff so we'll get her some time in August at the latest and I can't wait. My best guess is she's currently gallivanting and will be forced home in her Canto, assuming Don is Sancho theory isn't true. Praying her Canto is called The Impossible.

Ryoshu - In Hell Screen, the reason the painter is obsessed with torture is that he can only paint what he has seen and is trying to paint the Buddhist Hell. In his quest for his art he destroys his life and those around him, and ends up committing suicide over it. But there is a villain in the form of the Lord who beyond driving the story by requesting the screen in the first place is guilty of SA and murder. I'm expecting we're post story; the Lord is related to the five fingers, the daughter might be recast as a friend or something, and the sword Ryoshu carries is likely the screen. Nothing revolutionary in my guesses here, but it's either going to be that straight-forward or insanely abstract, where she's the lord and the painter and the daughter and the screen and the sword is the monkey or some shit.

Hong Lu - I have not yet read Dream of a Red Chamber, it's next on the list. Forgive me!

Heathcliff - Oh boy. Like many, I expect he is post-spurning by Catherine and is on his journey for his fortune on the LCB. So, his Canto will be about coming home to a beloved who is with someone else. Yes, the beloved blorbo will suffer for my amusement. Let's go 3 hours Heathmael sex scene!

Ishmael - We now know her story already kinda happened, as many expected, making this a bizarre sequel to Moby Dick. I think it gave PM a lot of room to do whatever they wanted to while still sticking to the themes of the story. Already wrote about what I loved about this and the recontextualizing of Ahab as a whale unto herself (which I don't actually know if it's in the original novel, but it wouldn't surprise me).

Rodion - A weird one. Her inciting incident happened, the murdering of the landlord/pawnbroker, but the unintentional death of the innocent sister was shifted to the entire damn block. So if I had to guess she's in the period after her crime trying to avoid being caught, but no police officer allegory has really been introduced yet. I read Crime and Punishment years ago so I can't say for certain but it feels the most loosely adapted and suffers a tad for being part of the intro. Rodya's story is in no way finished so it's up in the air. Praying for a Petrovich just so people can meet the OG Columbo.

Sinclair - Still need to read Demian, but I have a rough understanding of the plot. Also unfinished in his story, Sinclair has a long way to go to his self-realization. This feels more intentional however, I remember someone made an observation of Cinqlair as representative of his drunken college years where he's popular but unfulfilled, and I think we can extend that to all of his IDs. He seems to have the most potential of all the Sinners, so much so that I wouldn't be surprised if there's a mirror world where he's a Color unto himself. I digress, the point is he's pre Frau Eva (who if she turn's out to be the Purple Tear I will lose my mind) who is also called Beatrice at some point so what's up with that PM?

Outis - Another big mystery, especially as she isn't Odysseus but Outis, a name referencing a particular part of the Odyssey with the Cyclops. I have to imagine she's on the Odyssey, journeying home after the Smoke War (which might have some parallels with the Trojan War beyond the obvious). It's interesting all the Greek myth named Abnormalities are Hospital themed, might be something there but nothing I can parse from my limited knowledge of Greek society and folklore. While she' might be a traitor, I'm thinking she's joined Limbus Company to hide while on her journey; she might be wanted dead by something and is concealing her identity after what happened in the war.

Greg - Again, a character post-story. He was locked in a room, he metamorphized, and... well he's alive? So we've diverged from the source novel, as it's taken the allegorical meanings and made them more literal, but Hermann is still around and a major player so who knows where this will go?

Meursault - I have so many thoughts. Meursault could be anywhere in his story, but I'm going to guess it's one of two places. First guess, we're completely pre story. His Canto opens with him getting a message that Maman died today, or maybe yesterday, he doesn't know. So the whole story plays out over the course of the Canto. But more likely, and my prediction, is that he's currently in "jail" awaiting his execution or acquittal. He has already murdered a man (or done some other crime) and instead of being tried for that, he has been tried and sentenced for his peculiarities of character. Bound in the chains of others, the multitudes have tightened their hold (I'm very clever and not cringe at all).

So I have to wonder what light blinded him, overwhelmed him so much that it led to his crime? The Bright Nights and Dark Days are an obvious choice, and I'm not the first to suggest it. Perhaps he distorted? Anyway, his story ends with him having given up on acquittal and instead hoping for a crowd of people hating him as he approaches the guillotine. I'm super interested in how this will play out in Limbus, especially as he must survive for gameplay purposes.

Also, Meursault is so horny. Like, oh my god. Half of his thoughts are of Marie, specifically of wanting her and all the connotations that contains. He spurns God in the face of a Chaplain, saying that He is worth nothing compared to a single hair on a woman's head. Meursault is not a romantic but not just some horndog either, his desire for sex and women and their bodies feels like an extension of his worldview centered on the immediacy of life and not just debauchery or hedonism. It's a part of the idea life is lived as today, yesterday, and tomorrow, and there is joy and happiness in that simplicity. I feel like this will get cut for Limbus but I hope it isn't, I want Meursault to casually admit he desires every Sinner on the bus carnally (yes the men and NB too, probably just a HC but I do believe that the City is a binormative society based on its already loose relationship to gender identity).

So uh, that's the thoughts so far. Merry Christmas, I guess.

[mcverse]

Hi can i ask a scenario wherein how would the sakamaki brothers react to a guy asking yui for a date and she says yes *bcs a sakamaki × yui were having an arguement*.

Oh look, there’s one of my vitals organs on the floor… I guess I laughed too much???

Yui! Reader dead.

The person she dared to even accept is dead.

It’s not meant to be funny but I can’t help it !!! You know what they are and what they can do. 🙃🙃

Okay but maybe I’m being to quick to assume, it could be plausible it’s anything but death… for some! Let’s see how this plays out cuz idon even know yet

Reminder: The boys (+ Mukami bros) are cute ngl and have moments of genuine affection and adoration toward reader (not really Yui! Reader — same difference tho) but they are very deadly, and that’s what I based this post off. Actually, it’s what I base all my dialovers posts off.

Pairing: Yui! Reader x a Sakamaki Brother

Type: Scenario

Word count: 3.2K

Warning: Death, Jealousy, Possessive, Insecurities, Yandere-ish??, Yui! Reader being self sabotage maybe, torture, not spell checked

Side bar: If you can’t tell, I love dark humor. You’ve been warned. Also this is definitely a x reader blog only, so I made the post to represent that. I didn’t want to not do the post cause the ask was really good! Some are longer than others, I got way ahead of myself. Subaru is kinda shorter cuz it’s hard to write him :/

Like always, characters are aged up appropriately!

Yui! Reader dating anyone but a Sakamki brother

Shu Sakamaki

You were a nuisance. A tiny, insignificant spec inside his world all because of that man couldn’t stop scheming. The existence of you has caused so much trouble—so many anomalies—he lost count after a while.

A human girl who couldn’t leave well enough alone. One that couldn’t obey, know right from wrong despite knowing all the facts and yet still being clueless. You made his life very difficult. He proved it to you time and time again.

Yet here he was, very out of character as he stood over your broken body. The feeling from earlier upon hearing the rumor of you leaving for someone else only now left his body. He felt like he wasn’t in control of his body during what he was doing to you.

He felt every emotion under the sun screaming at him loudly, blocking the noise of his music through his headphone. It was infuriating; he just wanted to relax. Do nothing and relax… Not break your fucking legs.

But what’s done is done.

He no longer felt this unwelcome discomfort in his chest when he saw you standing near another. It wasn’t him then. He was someone else, someone mad, someone crazy infatuated.

Shu has never been one to like someone.

So where did he fuck up?

Why did he fuck up?

He was always calm, calculated. The man he was today was driven by pure rage. Your screams in agony were music to his ears, better than any of the songs he enjoyed. Your pain, your scrunched up face and screaming, it was because of him. All because of his touch.

That thought alone satisfied him as he came down from his high, expression back to its blank slate, unreadable. He scuffs as your sound turns to whimpers and at your weak attempts to crawl away. It was almost cute… almost.

Bending down, he grips one of you legs causing a whale to leave you. Your hand instantly goes to his arm to stop him. He shakes it off him effortlessly, starring intensely at your face as he yanks you to him, you are now face to face.

With a tilt of his head, he smirks, “This is your mistake. For meddling in my life… take responsibility as I drain you of everything.” He grabs your hair, yanking back your head, “The only thought in your head should be giving yourself to me.” he finishes with the sinking of his teeth in your throat.

Reiji Sakamaki

Honestly, he thought he kneeded you into the perfect pet. At this point you should know better. His teachings should have gotten you into shape, but here you are once again being disobedient. Oh, how he detested that part of you. This hurts you more than him.. perhaps you like it?

Without missing a beat, when you arrive home he calls you to his office. This insolence has to be put to rest. You have soiled his family name, much less his pride though he would never tell.

This rumor, even though it was just that, was disgraceful. And it spread, reaching his ears. As if you would be with the trash that litter these halls. Who did they think they were compared to him. They were nothing, that’s what. You knew this. So why would you think it was okay?

Yes, it brings him great satisfaction when he saw you close in on yourself under his gaze, body trembling in fear. At least your body knows his touch, your mind still seemed to show some resistance. No worries, Reiji considers himself a excellent teacher. He was never one to give up, no matter the challenge.

“I don’t wanna hear your excuses…” he starts, getting up from his seat. On his way over to you, he grabs a cup filled with liquid and stands in front of you, pushing it towards you, “Drink this.”

Scared, you shake your head already knowing it’s something bad. You remember the last time he gave you something, the nightmares are everlasting.

Reiji inhales deeply, frowning down at you, “Drink it or I’ll shove it down your throat. I’ll be anything but gentle.” Again he pushes it to you, this time settling it in your hands after his threat weighed heavy in the air.

Cautiously you take a sip, tasting a honey dew hibiscus blend before swallowing the rest. You hand him the empty cup after, noticing no effect. It confused you, was that simply tea?

You’re question was answered shortly after when your eyes felt heavy and your body light as air. You stumbled into Reiji’s arms loosely, looking at him through blurry vision. The last thing you see is him smiling.

…

When you came to, you found you were strapped to a chair, in what looked to be the dungeon. How could you forget? You had the worst happen to you here, a shiver travels down your spine when you think about it.

“You’re up.” Reiji, a voice you’ll never forget, spoke behind you. You tried to turn to see him, but it was difficult. He chuckles are you attempt, walking around you to face you. Your eyes immediately notice a cloth bag in his gloved hands, the bottom cut open.

“What’s that for?” You squeeze out, heartbeat picking up.

“A lesson.” was all he said when he forces it over your head till it hang around your neck. He pulls away to walk around you again, making noise behind you. Then you heard a squeak. Your breath stills.

Please tell me that’s not a—

Reiji comes back into view, holding a rat in front of your face. It was mid size, black and ugly. You were going to cry, already feel the tears pool at your eyes.

“Reiji, please!” You shake your head, thrashing around in the chair.

He clicks his tongue, “Bad girls get punished.” He holds the bag in one hand and the rat in the holder. Inch by inch the rat gets closer to your face, thrashing in Reiji hand not liking the harsh treatment just like you.

A scream rips from your throat when he drops it on your head and quickly ties the bag.

You had to learn your place one way or another.

Ayato Sakamaki

Ayato had to have heard wrong because there was no fucking way that you chose someone other then him. Especially knowing that you were his and his alone. This rumor had to be just that, false information spreading around the school.

He knew he didn’t have anything to worry about, it was him for crying out loud. No one can compete… but he still needed to hear how wrong everyone was from the source.

He found you easily in the girls bathroom, locking the door to avoid any interruptions. It was a miracle he was thinking clearly, usually it was so unlike him. And that’s why it was scary.

His stare was intense and focused, it made you squirm under the heat of it. He taunts you with slow forward steps, making you take steps back until your back was flush against one of the walls. He caged you in between his arms immediately, decreasing your chances to escape. As if you had any to begin with..

“Ore-sama’s been hearing some things he shouldn’t, Chichinashi.” He begin, his left hand sliding down to grip one of your shoulder, “It’s not true right? You wouldn’t dare go against Ore-sama?”

“A-Ayato.” Your mouth felt dry all of a sudden. You knew what he was talking about. After having a disagreement once again between you both, you foolishly accepted a date with another. You thought it would come to nothing, little did you know that the person would spread the news like a wild fire.

His grip tightens, nails digging through your uniform into your skin, drawing blood from you. The smell was intoxicating as always to Ayato, but he was to busy seething inside to notice completely.

“It was a mistake! I didn’t mean it, I was upset. Forgive me.” You plea body trembling in both pain and fear.

A scowl stretches onto his face, his hand long left your shoulder the minute those words left your lips. Instead, they wrap around your throat, tightening as he processes your words. It came to the point, you were clawing at his hand, letting out choked gasps.

Ayato couldn’t think straight. All he can think about is you being with someone that’s not him. How dare you? Ayato should be your whole world, your first thought when you wake up and your last thought when you sleep. You should feel suffocated by his presence, otherwise he wasn’t doing his job.

Slowly he loosens his hold on you, leaving you chugging down air desperately. A few minutes pass before you glance at him, body going still when you see the huge sinister grin on his face.

“Ore-sama’s just gonna have to remind you who you belong to,” he suddenly grabs your hair and throws you on top of the faucets counter, “No matter how long it takes, everyone will know you belong to Ore-sama.” He finishes before sinking his sharp teeth into your neck with purpose.

Kanato Sakamaki

If it was any normal person, they would be heart broken and move on. But Kanato was anything but normal.

First he lets you get away with talking back to him in your argument yesterday, chosen to forgive you after you reluctantly make him snacks and now.. you had the audacity to cheat on him.

You filthy, untrustworthy mortal.

He was aware all woman were the same. Hell, he constantly reminded him despite the kind attention you gave him. He always assumed your kindness had ulterior motives. Why else would someone be kind to him? He knew he was a handful. He just didn’t care.

Now it was clear how you felt about him, there was no hiding it. There was no hiding from him. This time, you actions are unforgivable. You thought you can toy with his feelings… You’ll pay in the worst way.

When he invited you to his room, you didn’t think much of it. Somehow you were completely oblivious to the news spread throughout the school. In fact, the situation with the date was so far in the back of your head, you have forgotten it had happened. You were just upset in the moment. It was never more than just a sway of words.

That’s why after entering his room to see the person who asked lying lifeless in a pool of blood a few feet away from Kanato, were you shocked. Just a few hours ago, he was alive. Guilt quickly creeped up on you but it was shortly lived when Kanato called for your attention.

“So glad you’re here. Good to know you’re still a little obedient,” he smiles but it doesn’t reach his eyes. He points to the dead on his floor, “Remember them?” he laughs, “Of course they do! Right teddy?” he turns to the bear in his hand.

You remain still, time ticking like a bomb about to go off. Which in all honestly it could, Kanato was unpredictable and if he found out about that and this was the outcome, imagine what he would do to you.

How do you get out of this situation?

“Look at her, teddy. She’s planning something… whatever it is won’t work. No. I don’t like it.” he shakes his head, “I’d much rather your expression be twisted in pain than whatever this is…” he walks towards you, face twisting from one emotion to another before settling into a deep frown. He stops a feet away from you, your back against the door before she even realizes it.

“I do enjoy your terrified expression too, it’s adorable.” he mumbles. It felt like time froze with how long you both been staring at each other. Kanato hold on his bear tights as he stares numbly at you. It was too much, you had to say something.

“Kanato—“ your voice trails off because in a split second, a knife was lunged into your abdomen. It hurt so much, it pulsed with heat. Your mind couldn’t wrap around what was happening. Gripping the arm it was attached to, you looked the culprit in his crazed eyes, “Kan-ato..”

He sneered twisting it harshly, “Did you think you can get away with using me?! I told you I’d break you. Down to your last breath.” he yanks it out, watching your body drop to the floor, struggling to inhale.

“You’re lucky you’re pretty enough to be added to my collection,” he bends down to stab you again in your shoulder. He smiles when you haller out in pain, “To stay with me forever… you should be grateful.” he stabs your leg.

“That’s right.. look at me like that.” he repeatedly stabs you over and over until the life drifts from your eyes to nothing, “You’ll never leave me. Will you?”

Laito Sakamaki

What was this? Is his hearing finally going, has he finally reached that age? No, that can’t be it. So whst exactly was happening?

His little bitch going on a date with some that’s not him? How outrageous. Not possible. He’s the only one who can take you out on sexy rendezvous and risky trips. You liked it better when it was him. He knew that.

So why is it that hearing the rumor stirs something unsettling in him. It tugs at his undead heart and gnaws at his brilliant brain. Before he could do anything, it seeped through the cracks, drowning him.

Every memory with his mother, with every woman he encountered, every person who he thought he loved—who he thought showed him love and every betrayal he assumed or saw came full surface.

It hurt so much. He swore to never feel like this again. And it ate at his mind. If he had a breath to give, it would be ripped right out of him. He didn’t like this. He wasn’t the one in control, he wasn’t the one getting your love. He wasn’t the one playing the game. He felt like the game played… him.

When Laito found you, he all but dragged you to the roof top. A place where terrifying, haunting memories were held. The same ones that kept you on your toes, but failed you every time.

Laito was uncharacteristically quiet, his back turned to you as he stared out into the open planes. It could have been a pleasant sight if you didn’t know what kind of monster he really was.

“Y’know, little bitch.” he starts, taking his hat off to run his free hand through his hair, “There was only one other time I truly loved someone to the point of hate. All the others… they weren’t real.”

Hearing where this conversation was heading, you reach back to grip the handle when a gasp leaves you. No longer were you standing in front of the door, instead Laito has you dangling off the rails of the school on your toes. His right hand was twisted into your uniform shirt, the only thing keeping you from falling.

Quickly, you grab his arm, tears swelling in your eyes as you see the sad expression on his face. It squeezed at you heart, but maybe that was actually the fear of falling.

“Lait-o please!” You lean forward into his touch.

He clicks his tongue, shaking his head at your attempt to sway him. He knew this scene all too well. The first was hard on him, he drowned himself in body after body. No doubt this would be the same. It didn’t bring him the same joy as his usual actions did. This time he truly felt torn.

“Little bitch,” he draws in your attention and you lock eyes, “It doesn’t bring me joy from this. I would have rather spent the rest of our lives together… exploring each other but I can’t tolerate the betrayal.”

It only dawned on you what he was talking about. From the start of this interaction you thought he was being moody but you should have known; play your cards just a little better but it was too late. With a easy unraveling, he lets you go with a gentle push and watches as you descends to the floor.

So many emotions raved through him as he did. He wanted to grab you back and tell you it was a joke. But he stays in place when he hears a loud splat and a pierced scream.

He couldn’t even bring himself to peek before he left. You brought up to many bad memories, how could he forgive you?

Subaru Sakamaki

Subaru really couldn’t stand you. From the moment you entered their home and disrupted his peace. It was always something with you. Always needing saving from someone or something, always needing to be reminded that you were beneath him and everyone in this house.

Yet you seem to not understand it or that you do but you completely throw it to the wind, whatever the reason it pissed him off. All your stupid attempts to get close to him, to try and understand him… to get him to open up.

Then, despite his constant attacks on you, he actually grew some form of attachment. The thought of you sicken him, but the thought of you gone made him mad more. You disgusting, weak human did something to him.

So when he heard the rumor of you agreeing to date someone else. It was like… something broke in him. All his thoughts consumed him, he was a monster. Less than trash. His mother didn’t want him nor his father. Why would you?

He didn’t even like himself sometimes. It’s no surprise the time you have another argument, you agree to date someone else. If he was in your position, he’d run to. Run so far, the chances of anyone catching him was slim to none. But you weren’t that good at running… actually, you couldn’t really run after he caught you.

There was a permanent snarl on his face as he stares down at you. A chained collar secured tightly around your neck, identical to the ones around your wrist. If Subaru wasn’t so aggravated, he could have enjoyed seeing you ruined.

He grips the knife in his left hand, which drips of your blood, “Shut up!” he shouts, listening to your whimpers, “You brought this on yourself. Stupid.. You just don’t learn.”

He moves to crouch in front of you, lifting your head up by the chin, “I told you you’ll die if you stay here.” His left hand raises as he speaks and makes another slash across your skin.

You groan loudly with shut eyes, shaking as he does it again… and again, and again till more and the same wounds bleed profoundly. It was agonizing, with how many hours he’s been at it. It felt like he was never going to lighten up his assaults.

But a miracle shines on you when he pulls away and drops the knife. He stands over you for minutes, chest heaving up and down. You never understood why they pretended to breathe, but you weren’t in the position to question.

There you laid out like a doll. So broken, bruised and bloody. Almost beyond repair. Subaru smiles at that acknowledgment. As much as he was tempted to tear your throat out, the smell of your blood begging him to drain you dry till you were foaming at the mouth; this would have to do.

”I told you… you’ll die.” was the last thing he said before leaving the dungeon, locking it on the way out.

Fuck he hated you.

DL Masterlist

[autisticlancemcclain]

fic rec friday 33

welcome to the thirty-third fic rec friday! where, on friday, i rec five of my favourite fics.

1. Rose-Colored Boy by melancholymango

“I missed you, you know.”

“Yeah?” Lance sighed, warm and giddy, clearly not absorbing how serious the words truly were. Keith nodded his head for a few seconds, not trusting himself to speak around the size of his emotions. He was suddenly brought back to the years alone on the whale, when all he’d had to keep him going was memories of his friends, of Lance.

“Yeah.” Keith said, more certainty in his voice now. He reached down, hesitantly threading his fingers through Lance’s and giving his hand a squeeze. Lance tensed next to him. “I still do.”

“I mean, I’m right here.”

“Are you? You still seem pretty far away.”

again i know im not really big on those fics that make the team out to be deliberately cruel, but sometimes its cathartic tbh. sometimes you remember canon and ur just like yeah what if he got angry. what if someone got angry for him. what then. and mango gives us that

2. Swamp of Sorrows by SwissArmyKnife

Pike gets exposed to acidic ooze, which leads Block (& Keith) to make a few discoveries about their party’s rogue.

“We can't leave them like this,” Meklavar said of Valayun and Pike, who’d been laid beside the fire. "Look at how bad those welts are." She came up with a bottle of oil and a cake of soap. "I can smell water nearby. We can get them washed and roll them in a blanket to sleep off the spore. What do you think?"

"I think it's our only choice," Takashi said.

monsters and mana fic!!!!! everybody say YES to righteous anger on pike’s behalf. and also say yes to pike bc i love him. this fic is interesting bc its a little tense and awkward bc this ragtag team of misfits doesnt quite trust each other yet but they also cant quite stop themselves from caring about each other. so even though they dont all agree on eveyrthing and dont agree about all, they do agree that pike needs more care than he got. also unrelated but the fact that shiro’s m&m name is fucking takashi kills me every time like man just wants to be himself 💀

3. Beneath the Champagne Sea by SwissArmyKnife

The paladins make a diplomatic visit to a planet with sexual dimorphism roughly opposite that of Earth. Women are larger and more powerful, while men are leaner and smaller. Cue their horror at gaunt, sickly Pidge and mild disgust with the ’womanly’ Shiro. Lance hits the sweet spot. He's got the build and features to draw the eyes and the charm to keep them. Their hosts are quite taken with him, in particular the daughter of the queen, whose forwardness is a comic reversal of Lance’s usual dynamic with women. Lance likes the attention and finds her intriguing, but eventually things take a discomforting turn.

Lance tried to step around her, wanting to walk away from a conversation that seemed less and less likely to end well, but Leh’n seized his wrist before he could. Her grip was tight, and freeing himself would require an act of aggression, which he still wanted to avoid. ‘Think of the mission, of how important it is to get the castle up and running again,’ he coached himself.

Still, that did nothing to stop his blood pressure from skyrocketing as Leh’n leaned closer and said. “I am not accustomed to reluctance.”

i swear to god that ive recced this before, but i couldnt find it in my records so here it is!! this fic is endlessly fascinating. the exploration of gender roles is super interesting, considering who is impacted in this fic and how. the discussion about beauty standards, power imbalances, the alien wrench in things was so cool! and i think lance, who is very much someone who rides that gender lines in terms of presentation of hobbies and even chracter traits, makes sense as the main character here. interesting think piece. 

4. you had me at merlot by @ryomakun

“Oh my God,” Lance says as he covers his face. Keith’s tinny voice blares from his laptop speakers: “What do you call a fake noodle? An impasta.” See, this joke might have been funny if someone charismatic and charming had said it, but Keith’s flat voice and even flatter expression effectively kidnaps, tortures, and then decapitates any chance of it being remotely humorous.

--

Keith accidentally starts a YouTube channel. Lance, of course, refuses to be left out. It goes about as well as you'd expect. (Ft. copious amounts of wine and a truly shameless number of references to MyDrunkKitchen, DailyGrace, and general pop culture)

this fic is HILARIOUS. its one of the firsts i ever screenshotted for the scrapbook i have of fics that made me laugh out loud. i offer you this one part that really made me giggle: 

““It tastes good,” Keith says petulantly as he glares at the accusing finger Hunk has pointed at him. “No offense Hunk but that stuff you gave me for my twenty-first tasted like feet and antiseptic.”

“That was a merlot,” Hunk wails. “The good kind, too!”

Ignoring them, Lance stands in front of the rum selection. This is why he didn’t want to bring anyone. They might call him loud and embarrassing, but at least he doesn’t yell inside WalMart about the virtues of a “real red wine.” An elderly couple passes through, eying the bickering three. Lance resolutely pretends he is here shopping by himself.“

the way they are so ridiculous that LANCE of all people is embarrassed of them...cinema. also this fic is peak bc it has klance as enemies to lovers and childhood friends to lovers at the same time. iconique

5. Flayed by @admiralcanthackett

Lance gets hit with a face full of spores and it leaves him wracked with pain. Touch is the only relief he can find.

yes i know i tag this author all the time but in my defense there was a point in my life where i was OBSESSED with faer fics. truly. anyways this one has unexpectedly protective keith, like to a very high degree, and im loving the heavy themes of trust and emotional as well as physical vulnerability 

that’s it for today!! i’ll see y’all back next friday for the next fic rec post!!!

[dragonfly0808]

An Incredibly Long and Wholly Unnecessary Disection of How Fate: The Winx Saga Missed the Mark on What Made the Winx Club Special

So, I decided to make this cause I have way too many feelings on this and I saw someone make something similar about a different franchise and loved it so here goes.

DISCLAIMER: If you’re a fan of the Winx Club and enjoyed Fate, I have nothing against you, these are just my feelings and I 1) am really glad you were able to enjoy it and 2) genuienely sorry a show you loved got canceled cause I know how much that sucks

SPOILERS FOR FATE AND THE FIRST 3 SEASONS OF THE WINX CLUB (AND A BIT OF SEASON 4)

One more thing: I’ve only watched Fate once since I’m not about to make myself rewatch it for this so if I forget any certain scene I apologize.

With that out of the way, the themes I will be discussing in this essay will be divided into 4 categories: The Problems I Have In General. Questions That Will Never Be Answered. Character Deep Dives/Character Rants. And finally, How Fate failed to capture the Essence of Winx Club.

These will be the themes of every category (feel free to skip any that may not interest you).

The Problems I Have In General:

The Abandonment of an Amazing World and Dimension for a Hogwarts Rip-Off.

The Erasure of Good Adoptive Parents

Polyamorous My Ass (Srsly What the Fuck was that?)

Fake Feminism and Pitting Women Against Each Other

The Love Triangle Took Years From My Life and I’m Tired

Why Glitter and Love was Essential to the Feminism of the Winx Club

Questions That Will Never Be Answered

What Makes the Specialist Special?

Where are the Witches?

Why are Riven and Sky friends?

Character Deep Dives/Character Rants

From Naive but Loyal and Heroic to Boring and Annoying (A Bloom Deep Dive)

How Stella Became Everything She Stood Against (A Stella Deep Dive)

Why Musa Kinda Works but Really Doesn’t (A Musa Deep Dive)

Was Terra Necessary? What made her unique? (A Terra Deep Dive)

From Hero to Zero (An Aisha Deep Dive/Rant)

Why Sky Somehow was the Most Interesting One but Still Boring (A Sky Deep Dive)

Why Riven will Always Get the Short End of the Stick (A Riven Deep Dive/Rant)

Bea Could’ve Saved the Show, BUT- (A Beatrix Rant)

Why Flora Mattered (A Flora Deep Dive/Rant)

A Retrospective Look at Soft Boys (A Helia and Timmy Deep Dive/Rant)

The Forgotten Protectors (A Brandon and Nabu Rant)

Why Tecna is Often Discarded and Why She Shouldn’t Be (A Tecna Deep Dive/Rant)

How Fate Failed To Capture the Essence of the Winx Club

How Fate Forgot the Most Important Aspect of the Winx Club: Friendship Amongst Young Women

Now with that out of the way, let’s get to it, cause this is gonna be a long one.

The Problems I Have In General

The Abandonment of an Amazing World and Dimension for a Hogwarts Rip-Off

So. I think we can all agree that the world of Winx Club is one that is not only aesthetically pleasing but also very unique and magical.

We have Magix, where the three schools of magic are, all with very different but equally interesting aesthetics and designs that make sense for what the schools teach. We also have the city of Magix, where we have magical ships and a cool toned color pallet that makes us feel like we’re in a futuristic world, Red Fountain also feels right out of a sci-fi movie, whilst the clothing, stores, Cloud Tower and Alfea remind us of the magical aspects of the world.

Further into the series, we see the girls’s home planets, which are all very different, creative and fit the girls perfectly. We have Solaria with two suns, Lynphea as an ecologists utopia with hollow trees for houses and giant ladybugs for transport, Zenith as a sci-fi dream, Melody with its glittering oceans and singing whales, etc.

Watching Winx Club, just looking at the world adds so much to the feeling of magic, the setting just helps the story so much. Also it’s just fucking gorgeous.

Now compare that to Fate… where we get a dark forest… and an old Mansion, that serves as both Red Fountain and Alfea…

I would just like to say, I’m a sucker for dark academia, I love this aesthetic, for other shows, but this is supposed to be an adaptation of Winx Club, where there already was an amazing world where the story was set in, so why didn’t they even try to use that? I don’t know, but it really bothers me that they didn’t try even one bit.

Especially when the vibrant colors and fantastical environment were such a big part of what made the Winx Club stand out.

The Erasure of Good Adoptive Parents

I remember watching Winx Club for the first time and when it was revealed that Bloom was adopted I literally was like… but… her parents love her…

Yep.

We very rarely get good adoptive parents in stories (it’s getting a bit better but still, at least as a kid this was pretty much the only time I ever saw fictional adoptive parents that actually loved their child).

So, the fact that in Fate we get Vanessa (the sweetest mom ever in the cartoon) be a maniac who takes away Bloom’s privacy and tries to live vicariously through Bloom just really fucking pissed me off.

Like… what was the need for that? You didn’t need Bloom to be pissed for her to lose control of her powers and accidentally burn her parents.

In fact, I think it would’ve been even more traumatic and dramatic if Bloom had a good relationship with her parents (like she did in the cartoon) but still lost control, maybe in her sleep, and burned the people she loves most in the world, that would’ve been so angsty it would’ve been great. 

But no, let’s continue the narrative that adoptive parents can’t be good parents.

Polyamorous My Ass (Srsly What the Fuck was that?)

This just… I’m so tired.

We pretty much never get Polyamorous relationships in shows like this and then we get… whatever the fuck this was.

So… Bea is obvs just using both Riven and Dane (it is Dane right? I don’t care enough to check). Riven, only likes Bea and is very biphobic towards Dane and Dane seems to be in love with Riven and kinda like Bea.

This relationship (if you can even call it that) is weird. Sometimes it’s portrayed as toxic, other times it isn’t and it’s just weird.

This also really fucking pissed me off. Because… why? You could’ve had Dane as a separate character, in the original we already had the Darcy/Riven plotline so why did you have to add Dane?

Honestly, Dane could’ve just had a crush on Riven and become genuienly friends with Terra or smth, he didn’t have to be involved with Riven and Bea, that should’ve been a separate plotline. If you wanted a bi character so badly you could’ve just made one of the girls (Flora- sorry Terra, Musa and Aisha are already largely headcannoned to be bi, they could’ve used that) be bi. You didn’t need to introduce a new character for the sake of diversity, especially if you were going to screw it up that badly.

Cause Riven and Bea are already dramatic enough on their own, we didn’t need this poor, horrible attempt at a polyamorous relationship.

Fake Feminism and Pitting Women Against Each Other

Next up… oh dear…

Where can I even start? Okay, one of the first things we see in the series is Bloom telling Sky he is mansplaining… when he’s very clearly not…

The desire to come across as feminist and be an #womenempowerment show is so obvious it almost hurts. But they never do anything to actually show this.

From the very first conversation between Bloom and Stella in the show, it was very obvious to me that they would be competitors, not best friends like in the show.

Throughout the show, we see the girls berate each other, compete and insult one another, and I don’t see how any of that can be seen as feminism.

Stella literally almost causes Bloom’s death out of jealousy over Sky.

How is this anything like the Winx Club?

The closest bond in the group is probably between Musa and Terra. And even then, a lot of the time I feel like Musa only tolerates Terra, and they feel like roommates, not best friends who would die for each other like they were in the Winx Club.

There is very little support amongst the women of Fate, there are few instances when we aren’t being told to compare them or to see who is best. That is not feminism.

Now, it would’ve worked very well if the girls got off on the wrong foot but we got to see them slowly bond and slowly trust each other and become good friends, but I never felt that. The only time that they join forces is to clean up the mess that they made, and even then it never feels like all 5 of them are on the same page, it’s more like the world (and story) is forcing them together.

This was a tad bit better in season 2 but there were mostly moments between 2 Winx not all of them (the only moments I liked were the sleepover and Terra coming out) in season 2 the strongest bond was clearly that of Stella and Bea.

So yeah, with constant competition, fights and very few moments of actual friendship, almost all of which feel forced, I can say that Fate does not feel like a Feminist show at all.

From the moment I saw they were going to ignore the gem that was Bloom and Stella’s bond in the original I knew they weren’t going to try to actually make the girls friends and support one another.

The Love Triangle Took Years From My Life And I’m Tired

Why? Why? WWHHHHYYYYYYY?!?!??!??

What was the reason? What was the fucking reason?!

There was none.

There was not a single reason why the love triangle between Bloom, Sky and Stella should’ve happened or was needed.

They could’ve easily introduced Diaspro, a character we already know and a character whose only purpose in the cartoon was to create drama and tension between Bloom and Sky.

Love triangles are dead. We all know that. You will never be Jem/Tessa/Will, stop fucking trying.

Okay so, first off, I would’ve honestly been okay if we’d seen Sky and Stella be exes and they like ‘Yeah we tried that was a huge mistake but now we’re friends’ and then Bloom comes in and Sky isn’t sure cause she’s Stella’s bestie but Stella is encouraging, that could’ve been cool. But that is obviously not what we got.

Why do we always pit women against each other over a man? I think we all know the answer to that.

The Love Triangle was bland, boring and useless. Nothing came out of it.

We apparently got Stella and Sky realizing they were codependent and toxic which… duh. But nothing comes from this, we never see them get closer and have a healthy friendship, we get 1 scene in season 2 that is never expanded upon and that’s it.

They threw Stella and Bloom’s friendship to the trash for a Love Triangle that absolutely nobody wanted. And even in season 2, Stella and Bloom? They’re not friends. They’re barely cordial with one another and that pisses me of so fucking much I can’t even describe it.

In the cartoon the girls NEVER fought over a man, if there were moments of jealousy they were passing (I can remember exactly 1 with Aisha and Bloom in season 2. That’s literally it). There could be drama with other girls and even that was very little mostly Diaspro and the messes with Mitzi and Crystal in later seasons but the cartoon almost never relied on that to create drama against the girls because they knew it wasn’t really needed.

This triangle did nothing for any of the characters and the drama was petty and stupid. I just… I honestly don’t think I’m really saying anything of substance here but this particular topic just makes me sooooo mad that I can’t even describe the particulars of how this Love Triangle makes me just so mad cause it was FUCKING USELESS, IT DID NOTHING FOR THE CHARACTERS OR THE STORY IT WASN’T NEEDED, IT WASN’T WANTED AND IT WASN’T…. UUUGGGGGGHHHHHH!!!

Why Glitter and Love was Essential to the Feminism of the Winx Club

The feminism of the original Winx Club (especially the first 4 seasons) was honestly very simple. It wasn’t in your face or even really ever called out.

To me, the feminism in the original Winx Club was just… the girls themselves.

We had six very different young women, who were all portrayed as strong, funny, beautiful and just awesome.

We have Bloom, who’s a bit of a girl next door. She can be a bit hotheaded, but she’s crazy loyal and incredibly strong. We see her be naive sometimes and be really nervous and attempting to find her place and we also get to see her step up to the occasion when it’s time for blows.

We have Stella, a fashionista who I will talk a lot about in her section cause I am pissed of what they did to her. We see her be a kind person and try to grow and be dedicated to her passions.

We have Flora who is the girliest of girls but still portrayed as strong and smart. Her softness doesn’t erase her strength. And she doesn’t have these big stand up moments of ‘I’m strong and I will prove it to you!’ She just is strong.

We have Musa, who’s a bit of a tomboy and slightly more rough around the edges but who has a lot of emotional depth.

We have Tecna, who can come across as cold but who we see literally almost die for her friends and who has such a big heart.

We have Aisha, who’s very sporty and who has to seek out her place in the group and kinda learn how the whole friend group works and who we see grow in season 2.

We have a hotheaded girl next door, a kind fashionista, a girly girl, a musical tomboy, a tech girl and a sporty girl who are all portrayed as different and unique but are also all portrayed as strong.

Yes, we see them occasionally butting heads (if I remember correctly Musa/Flora and Stella are the ones that butt heads most often) and fight sometimes, but we see that their friendship is stronger than all of that.

We see them support each other in so many different ways and be the definition of ride or die.

Something I really like is that they don’t really make fun of each other’s interests despite having vastly different personalities. And they also don’t compare themselves and understand that they’re all awesome in their own ways.

The girls are united in friendship in such a deep way that they could probably never stop being friends even if they tried.

And… none of that is included in Fate.

Which is a fucking shame.

We don’t really see the girls’ interests in Fate, we just see them all acting like angsty teenagers who are either lashing out at pretty much everybody or being a bit of a doormat. They’re not really portrayed as strong either.

I can’t see the uniqueness that was there in the cartoon. The girls aren’t really… they’re just not interesting. Especially when compared to their cartoon counterparts.

Also, this part is a bit more petty and something personal to me but I think a lot of you can relate so… 

Seeing girls that were fashionable, girly and weren’t afraid to show off their girlie side was awesome. Especially in a world of ‘I’m Not Like Other Girls’ protagoinsts that just hate dresses and only wear them once.

As a girlie girl myself, looking back on the Winx Club, I love that they didn’t try to make the girls more masculine to make them seem stronger. Even Musa, Aisha and Tecna who are arguably the least ‘girly’ show off their more feminine side in a way that feels natural.

So yeah… that last part doesn’t have to do that much with Fate I just wanted to add that.

Questions That Will Never Be Answered 

What Makes the Specialists Special?

First off, I would like to say that I loved that in Fate women could be Specialists and guys could be fairies, I just thought that was really neat. So kudos to you for that Fate. Enjoy it, I won’t give you many.

Now on to the question. What makes the Specialists special?

In the cartoon, the reason I really liked the Specialists was their weapons, they were colorful, creative and straight out of a sci-fi movie. Brandon’s sword, Sky’s boomerang, Riven’s bolas, Timmy’s gun, Helia’s gloves etc.

It always felt like the Winx got magic and fantasy while the Specialists got technology and sci-fi.

And that is, once again, gone in Fate. The Specialists are now generic warrior driving Jeeps and wearing leather.

Where are the capes? The Owls and Wind Riders? Everything that made the Specialists cool even when they didn’t do much in a fight?

Where did that all go?

This one was more of an aesthetic thing but I still feel like it took a lot away from the Specialists and what made them low-key iconic.

Where are the Witches?

Where are they? Seriously I wanna know where my girlies are?

I get that, since they got rid of the transformation and gave us half assed CGI wings it might’ve been hard to differentiate the witches from the fairies but still… you can’t just not have freaking witches!

I like getting to see evil fairies but still. I don’t like this! 

I just feel like it takes away so much not having the witches. Can you imagine getting Lucy and Mirta in Fate?… actually no, they would’ve been screwed over but you know what I mean.

Yet another topic that makes me so mad and petty that I can’t quite describe it.

Why are Riven and Sky friends?

Okay so, this is actually a genuine question.

Most of the boys were excluded from Fate (which I’m lowkey grateful for cause if they’d done my boys Helia and Timmy dirty there would’ve been blood) so they kinda had to smush Riven and Sky into bestie status.

Now, looking at this objectively, we know that in the cartoon, Sky’s bestie is Brandon. And Brandon and Riven have more things in common than you’d expect.

They’re both good fighters and work hard at Red Fountain, they’re kinda ladies men, they can be jokesters from time to time but take their duty seriously. They’re also pretty competitive.

I think Brandon is what Riven would’ve been if he had a normal childhood.

The main difference is that Riven has walls. He shuts people out and can be a bit of a jerk sometimes. The Riven in Fate is a straight up asshole.

So… why is he friends with Sky?

I’ll be honest, I really wanted to see more of these two, I think the dynamic could’ve been really interesting and cool to explore but… we got… pretty much crumbs.

With the like… two moments we have with them I don’t see why they’re friends and it ruins my sense of disbelief just that much more.

Character Deep Dives/Character Rants

From Naive but Loyal and Heroic to Boring and Annoying (A Bloom Deep Dive)

Let’s talk about our favorite hotheaded redhead shall we?

I’ll be honest, Bloom was always my least favorite Winx and I actually grew to dislike her post season 3, but… she didn’t deserve this.

I’m honestly not sure how to describe why the Bloom from Fate is just… so fucking boring… I don’t really feel many emotions coming from her.

In the original (at least the first 3 seasons) Bloom has quite a bit of personality, she’s a bit naive and impulsive but also THE ride or die bestie.

She’s fun to watch even if I would sometimes get frustrated when she acted a bit stupid or when she was impulsive.

Bloom worked as a protagonist partially due to her impulsive habits (since they make her take the lead/initiative in many occasions) but I feel like with Fate Bloom that impulsive nature comes across as more annoying since Fate Bloom isn’t as friendly as OG Bloom and doesn’t really have anyone to bounce her impulsiveness off of like she did in the OG.

I don’t know, I just never really felt any connection with her but overall I think she’s still the one that was done the least dirty. And the one I’m the least furious about.

I think the main problem I have with Fate Bloom is that she’s got that ‘I have to do this alone’ attitude and it never really changed, so she doesn’t really have anyone to bounce off of to make her impulsive and stupid moments less annoying.

How Stella Became Everything She Stood Against (A Stella Deep Dive)

Welp… I am fucking furious now.

I think most of us will be able to agree that one of Stella’s main purposes in the original show was to break the Dumb Blonde/Mean Blonde stereotype that was much more prevalent in the 2010′s.

Stella could come across as a bit full of herself and could be mean since she didn’t really have a brain-to-mouth filter but she was never mean on purpose and always made up for her mistakes.

We see that Stella is at her core a kind person and soft-hearted individual when we see that after knowing Bloom for a whole of one day and Bloom helping her once, Stella is willing to risk getting herself expelled to give Bloom the chance to go to Alfea. 

We also see there’s more to her than just superficial stuff when, after the Sky-Brandon reveal she tells Brandon that she cares more about the face that he lied than the fact that he isn’t a prince. The quote was along the lines of: ‘My parents are the King and Queen of Solaria, didn’t do them much good.’

And of course in season 3 we learn that Stella is actually very insecure and believes people like her just because of her looks and get one of the best moments/episodes of the entire series.

Yes. Stella cares about her appearance and loves fashion, but there is so much more to her character than that. She is a loyal friend, incredibly kind person and willing to do anything for those she loves.

Now let’s look at Fate’s Stella

………..

I am just… Fate turned our Stella into a bitchy mean girl. That is all Stella really is.

Even in season 2 she still acts like a mean girl to the rest of the girls most of the time. I never felt her bond with any of the girls or even Sky for that matter, her best scenes were easily with Bea.

I just don’t understand how they missed the entire fucking point of Stella’s character and made her exactly into the stereotype she was supposed to subvert. How do you fuck up that much?!?!!?!?!

She tried to fucking KILL BLOOM OVER A GUY!!! The original Stella would’ve killed her with her staff for even laying a FINGER on her bestie.

Stella’s character in Fate might just be the one that pisses me off the most because of how much they missed the fucking mark with her.

They made her literally everything she stood against and then acted like they did something when she did the bare minimum for her ‘friends’.

And I cannot bring myself to care about the drama with her mom because of how fucking pissed I am about this.

Okay let’s think about it. This could’ve worked if Stella was only acting like a bitch because her mom expected that but, in the rare instances when she was sure no one was watching and no one would noticed, she revealed her soft side to the girls and they were like ‘Oh, this is the real Stella, bitchy Stella is just a mask’ but it doesn’t go like that.

Even after the reveal of her mom, she’s still a bitch!

Our Stella would never and I hate whoever thought this was a good idea, you sir or ma’am  are stupid and the whole point of Stella’s character flew right over your fucking head! (No hate to the actress or any actors in the series though)

Why Musa Kinda Works But Really Doesn’t (A Musa Deep Dive)

I was wrong before. Musa is actually the one I’m least pissed off about because I actually kinda enjoyed her character in Fate, especially in the second season. (Doesn’t excuse the fucking white washing though).

I think out of the girls Musa would’ve probably been the easiest to adapt into a more ‘mature’ setting cause she is kinda the ‘angstiest’ of the girls due to her mom’s death and being the tomboy of the group. However… the Musa we know can be a little sassy and get annoyed with the girls from time to time but with Fate Musa, it’s a lot more prevalent.

Which makes sense with the change to a mind fairy (which I hate, can you imagine all the cool visuals we could’ve gotten if they’d kept her as the fairy of music? Also they still could’ve had the empath thing with her being able to ‘hear the songs in people’s hearts’ and just cranking that up to eleven).

I actually don’t have that much to say about Musa. I enjoyed her character, especially in the second season, I feel like she’s the only one that’s reasonably lashing out and it makes sense when she’s annoyed and I feel like we got to see her soft side in a few moments and she was involved with all of my favorite moments of Fate.

The only issue is that she’s angstier than the original Musa but again, it actually makes sense this time.

The only thing I am actually pissed off at is that we lost her dynamics with Tecna and Aisha cause there is no Fate Tecna and Fate Musa doesn’t really interact with Aisha and when she does it’s a far cry from their cool original dynamic and her chemistry with Terra isn’t enough to make up for it.

Was Terra Necessary? What Made her Unique? (A Terra Deep Dive)

So, we all know what happened with Terra. They white washed half the cast realized that we would obviously be pissed and tried to save it by changing Flora’s name to Terra and saying she was a new character… nice try.

Also as a latina myself, fuck you. If you’re going to claim you were going for plus-size diversity you do realize you could’ve just gotten a plus-size latina right? Anyways, fuck you.

So Terra… I don’t really care about her and kinda dislike her. I’ll admit that I am very much biased due to Flora being my fave and my latina rage but I just don’t find Terra interesting.

I don’t know what it is about her that makes her rambling annoying instead of endearing or whatever it is they were going for. They didn’t really give her anything interesting to do, she literally just had the ‘I’m fat self-confidence’ arc. I think I might’ve kinda liked Terra if she’d had something interesting to do.

The only scenes I genuienly enjoyed with her were her conversation with Riven (right before the final fight if I remember correctly) and her talk with Musa while Sam is dying... Coincidentally the moments she reminded me more of Flora…

Then in the second season she had a super weird attitude with Flora, I wasn’t sure if she was jealous or angry or what it just made her that much weirder to me, like, what the fuck was going on there? I don’t really think we ever got an answer for her weird behavior with Flora, cause I’m not buying it was just cause of Riven. That was weird.

The only girl she really bounces off of is Musa, and even then it mostly feels like Terra is following Musa around hoping for some love. None of her friendships really feel reciprocal. And her behavior with Stella is also weird as fuck. Like… you like it when she insults you? What?

Yeah she’s just weird and I don’t really like her. I feel like she brings nothing to the table. There is no real reason for her to be there. If they were going to try and replace Flora, they should’ve at least tried to make her cool and iconic.

From Hero to Zero (An Aisha Deep Dive/Rant)

Pffftttttt… okay let me get this straight. You took Aisha. Icon Aisha who climbed a fortress for her pixy friends, was a Princess that was pretty much a runaway and a sports goddess who challenged the boys and easily had the most depth/cool backstory from the Winx.

You took that Aisha… and gave us *checks notes* ‘Oh yeah, I flooded a hall in my school with literal shit once’ as her backstory.

Okay cool, I see how it is.

But seriously though. They made Aisha into an annoying teacher’s pet who kinda felt a little full of herself from time to time but was also constantly ignored as the voice of reason and had no arc of her own, instead acting as a therapist/scapegoat for the other girls.

Why is that? I think we all know the answer to that…

But yeah, I just… I am so tired. They reduced her to… to nothing really. She doesn’t feel interesting or compelling at all. I felt no connection to her and most of the time it felt like the other girls only spoke to her when they needed something from her.

In season 2 we get a little more about how she feels pressured by her parents to be perfect (which kinda alines with the cartoon) and she talks about not being experienced at relationships, which also makes sense with the cartoon, but it honestly still doesn’t feel like enough.

It still doesn’t feel like she’s actual friends with any of the girls.

They took away a lot… most of what made Aisha into one of the most well-developed Winx. She doesn’t feel fun like cartoon Aisha did, she’s uptight which just doesn’t make sense if she’s supposed to be Aisha.

She was just done dirty. Our Aisha was never so much as implied to be a teacher’s pet. She was more into dancing and sports and exploring. 

Winx Aisha was a girl who’d been trapped most of her life, excited to finally get to be a a free soul and explore the world. Fate Aisha is stripped of all of that and we don’t really see why she’s so uptight outside of that one conversation about her parents where we still don’t get any real depth.

My girl deserved so much more and I will die pissed.

Why Sky Somehow was the Most Interesting One but Still Boring (A Sky Deep Dive)

Sky makes me feel conflicted. I think he (along with Musa) was the only one I genuienely liked and enjoyed watching but at the same time he annoys me.

I loved his dynamic with Silva but I just… I don’t even know how to describe what it is exactly that annoys me about him but he’s just not interesting enough. I’ve literally forgotten almost any scene that he is in.

I’m trying to remember right now and the only scenes I can remember are the mansplaining scene, when Bloom drugs him, when he comforts Stella, one or two scenes with Silva… and when he beats Dane’s ass… and that’s literally it.

He’s not that bad, he’s got interesting dynamics and a cool story behind him and with the revelations in the series, he is one of the most affected, so in paper that should get you to be invested but… he’s just not memorable.

Why Riven will Always Get the Short End of the Stick (A Riven Deep Dive/Rant)

One of the things that annoys me the most from the original Winx Club is how Riven is pretty much reset every season to learn the same lesson over and over and over again.

This is because his scene in the Cloud Tower dungeons when he sees himself as a monster and decides to change is one of my fave in the series and probably my fave scene in all of season 1. So having him be reset was just… such a disservice to that awesome scene and to his character as a whole.

I think we can all agree that Riven could’ve been such an amazing and iconic character if he’d been allowed to slowly grow and if we’d seen him mature over the seasons.

So in this aspect… a part of me really likes Fate Riven. He’s an absolute ass and a bit biphobic but I like the possibility of taking this and allowing him to grow after his whole mess with Beatrix (I kinda loved the chaos of their relationship up until they got Dane involved).

The set up is there and we really see him try to move on in season 2 which I love. He still has his moments of being an ass, but through a few conversations with Sky and his bond with Musa we do see him trying to grow.

However, I would’ve loved to see him be more vulnerable. Sometimes it feels like instead of his own character he’s there to bounce off of Bea, Sky or Musa. I don’t know I just feel like he has a lot of potential but for some reason he just doesn’t feel like a complete character to me. Maybe this would’ve been fixed in season 3 but we’ll never know.

All in all he was one of my fave parts of Fate, especially in season 2. Whether he would’ve been allowed to keep his progress unlike his cartoon counterpart, we’ll never know.

I feel like the more mature setting actually kinda fits Riven. Though I’ll be the first to admit that the writers occasionally tried too hard to maintain his ‘bad boy’ image in season 1 and I cringed a few times at his lines.

But he was one of my fave parts of season 2. So overall I’d say that, in a way, Fate actually improved Riven ever so slightly.

Bea Could’ve Saved the Show, BUT- (A Beatrix Rant)

So, I love Bea. She was my fave character in Fate, she’s just a chaotic gremlin and quite frankly she deserved better.

Her dynamics with Riven, Stella and Bloom were excellent. I love how manipulative she is, it makes her vulnerable moments all the better. When she goes to the Winx dorm crying to ask Stella to hang out but gets rejected and she just looks on at the group having fun like an outsider… That scene got me.

It’s a little confusing how she goes from menace in season 1 to kinda a teacher’s pet in season 2 but it kinda makes sense and she does become a menace again so it’s cool.

I both love and hate her ending. I love her constantly switching sides, being unpredictable, turning around last minute and going ‘I just saved the world, feels pretty great to be a fucking hero’, I love that concept but I hate her just being thrown away and killed like she hadn’t been carrying the show.

I don’t think they saw the amount of potential that Bea had, personally I would watch an entire show all about Bea. Them just killing her shows me that she was only really a plot device to the writers, a way to introduce her mysterious sisters. And I hate that.

Bea was the wildcard of Fate, the character plenty of us thought we’d hate but that ended up being a diamond in the rust. She was cunning and had the best of all the Trix, Darcy’s plot line with Riven and her manipulation, Stormy’s powers and chaotic energy, Icy’s ambition, personality and charisma. 

Quite frankly, she’s probably the character with the most depth and motivations. She’s the most interesting. 

And they killed her off for shock value.

I hate that we lost the Trix’s dynamic and different personalities but for me personally Bea was worth it, she was an awesome character who deserved to be in a better series. But yeah… I love Bea but even she wasn’t enough to save this shit show.

Why Flora Mattered (A Flora Deep Dive/Rant)

Disclaimer, I am very much biased here, even more than before cause Flora was always my favorite Winx. Now with that out of the way…

I think one of the reasons that Flora mattered so much is that she was never shamed for being very feminine. Flora was a cottage core, soft hearted, kind, soft spoken young girl who was still allowed to be strong and a badass. She was never made more ‘masculine’ to show her being strong. Her transformations always involved skirts and dresses, bright pinks, long flowy hair, bracelets and necklaces and cute tiaras. 

She was never shamed for her girlieness nor stereotyped as someone overly shy. Flora could have a few shy moments but they were pretty rare in the large scheme of things.

She was shown to be incredibly smart, especially in seasons 1 and 2 with her love of potions. Flora gives the girls a lot of support and a safe place but we also see her be vulnerable and insecure, but she never changes her girliness nor does she feel the need to ‘grow out of her girly traits’ to gain confidence or confront her fears, she also doesn’t feel the need to ‘toughen up’ keeping her soft heart throughout the entire series.

I love this. I loved that Flora was so soft but never shamed or considered ‘weak’ for it. She mattered cause she was there for the more sensitive girls. The more introverted, soft spoken girls.

The girly girls that can still be just as strong and confident as any other woman despite loving pink and flowers and skirts. 

I think that’s a big part of why Flora matters. She’s allowed to be a heroine with a soft heart that is never forced into an angsty personality because of the events that occur around her. She’s a special kind of softness. She’s not the kindness that comes from naivety but the kindness that is forged in steel from tough experiences.

We eventually got Fate Flora but I don’t think she really captured the essence of OG Flora, she just doesn’t feel like the soft, introverted, gentle soul we know. 

She feels a little… full of herself? In a way?

I won’t talk much about Fate Flora cause I can’t truly put my finger on what it is that just throws me off about her.

But I’m pissed that they truly thought they could get away with tossing Flora to the side, cause we all know they only included her in season 2 to try and save their asses.

Because soft, sensitive girls deserve to see themselves represented without the whole ‘break-out-of-your-shell-and-become-more-wild arc’. Because soft girls can be complete and happy without becoming party animals. That was what Flora was to me. That’s why she mattered so much to me personally growing up.

That is why Flora mattered.

Why Helia and Timmy Mattered: A Retrospective Look at Soft Boys (A Helia and Timmy Deep Dive/Rant)

Now, I am honestly glad that Helia and Timmy weren’t included because they would’ve botched it.

So, I always adored Helia but, looking back on him and Timmy now I almost find them surprising that these two were incorporated into the show the way that they were.

Helia was the definition of a soft boy, he was into poetry and art, he wore loose shirts, had long hair, was soft spoken, loved to meditate and was introduced as a pacifist, but he was also a Specialist. Something I really liked was that instead of a sword he had his strings which incorporated his way of being a pacifist into his Specialist gear.

There were never jokes about him being Helia being gay and he was portrayed as attractive, the second Flora meets him she’s already blushing and giggling. Helia is a poet, a sensitive boy in a school filled with soldiers and warriors, but they rarely make fun of him for it, and when they do it clearly is meant to be in a teaseful way amongst friends. And we see the boys go to him for advise.

And then we have Timmy. Timmy is a nerd. He has a laser gun instead of a sword and is more of a pilot and tech guy. He’s shy and socially awkward, lanky, and his portrayl is very dorky.

In season 2 we see him doubt himself as a Specialist when he can’t stop the Trix, the same happens in season 4 when he is chasing Anagan.

But we see that at his core, Timmy is an incredibly courageous person. He goes after Anagan even when he’s doubting himself. The boys may tease him occasionally but they never treat him as an outsider and in fact try to help him, even when it backfires, it’s done from a desire to help their friend.

Timmy may consider himself as the weak one, but he is never portrayed as the weak link in the Specialists. We see that his role is a crutial one. 

In season 3 we see him break down when he thinks that Tecna is dead, but his tears and despair are never considered to be ‘weak’ or ‘exaggerated’.

We see all the boys break down at the end of season 4.

And that is something important. Especially for a cartoon  in the 2010′s.

Seeing soft and dorky boys be portrayed as heroes was a great thing that we shouldn’t forget.

The Winx Club never revolved around the Specialists, they could’ve all been just the generic hero, but we see the small difference between Sky, Riven and Brandon and then we get Timmy and Helia who are completely different and not what you’d first think off when you think ‘heroes in training’.

This is an extension of Flora’s softness and kindness never being something that she is ashamed of or for.

Helia is allowed to be a poet and to love meditating and to be a bit of a pacifist whilst still being strong and a hero in his own right. Saving Flora in his introduction and Sky later in season 2. He is never shamed for being the sensitive one.

Timmy has a lot of self-doubt. But he is allowed to grow, he is allowed to be a nerd and dorky and socially awkward whilst still being a fundamental part of the group. His intelligence is portrayed as an advantage not a freak trait. He may be teased for being the nerdy one from time to time but he is never bullied or shamed for it.

And they are both allowed to have good love stories. Helia and Flora, two gentle souls that find each other and are like Snow on the Beach, falling for each other at the first time.

Then we have Timmy and Tecna, where it seems that Timmy falls first but doesn’t know how to act and Tecna always cares about him but seems to catch feelings a bit later on. That it takes them a long time to officially become something because they are both unconventional in their own way. And when they go on a date and feel stressed they decide ‘Screw doing this the traditional and ‘normal’ way, we’re doing it our own way’.

From what we see in Fate, I can tell they much prefer angsty characters. And Helia and Timmy would never have been allowed to be soft.

We saw 2 kinda soft boys in Fate. Dane who was just… a bit of a train wreck to me. He was an ass to Terra and was just super weird with Bea and Riven and was just willing to go along with whatever Bea said and then we have Sam who I wouldn’t exactly describe as a soft boy and well… he almost killed someone in season 2 so… yeah. He’s just boring and with zero depth to me.

If they’d been in Fate Helia would probably be emo or very angsty and Timmy would probably have been bullied a lot more. So I’m glad they weren’t included at all.

Because soft and sensitive boys shouldn’t be erased. They are important, especially when the stigma against them is still kinda strong. 

We need this in the media, we need to see boys loving poetry and being proud to be a bit dorky and nerdy. We need to see boys crying and breaking down and not being ashamed or shamed for it. We need boys that are absolutely in love and not be teased for it.

Angsty boys can be fun to watch, but soft boys are also important. We need more of them.

The Forgotten Protectors (A Brandon and Nabu Rant)

When I think about it, I think that Brandon as a character, at his core, is a protector. He is Sky’s squire and is willing to trade places to keep him safe. He tries to keep Stella safe, is willing to risk his life to get Sky back in season 3 and well… he’s a Specialist so this is clearly what he loves.

Brandon was always a support character, he’s never really given a lot of backstory or traits outside of being a dedicated Specialist, being charismatic and sometimes flirty and caring deeply about his friends and Stella.

Brandon is a fun character not because of his depth but because he’s just a great guy. He’s charismatic, definitely an optimist and cracks jokes in the middle of a fight. When Timmy struggles over why Tecna is mad at him, Brandon is randomly punching the air and offers him hair product.

I would classify him as a himbo. 

Brandon worked as this protector character, especially since not many of the Specialists had a lot of depth. And I always loved him,

So I’m glad he wasn’t in Fate cause, again, they would have erased his optimism and just, slightly goofy instances for an angstier attitude.

To me, Brandon’s main purpose in the show was to be a protector and a friend. He was the voice of reasons amongst the boys, especially in seasons 1 and 2. He’s there for his friends and would do anything for them.

I think Brandon could have perhaps benefitted from a more mature setting, mainly to get more depth but I think the Fate writers would’ve fucked it up. I don’t think they could handle having a non-angst, let alone an optimistic character.

Then we have Nabu, our second forgotten protector. I call him a protector mainly due to his sacrifice in season 4. All I have to say is… Nabu was a fun character. He was a bit weird in the beginning but we got to see he was calm, had extreme trust in Aisha.

We only had him for a season so I really don’t have much to say about him other than… I cannot see any iteration of Nabu working with Fate Aisha. I just don’t.

I can’t see either of them in Fate not just because they’d be fucked over but also just because I can’t see their characters fitting the ambience.

I don’t know why but to me Brandon and Nabu just emanate happy calm vibes and I can’t see that working with Fate’s desperate need for shitty angst.

Why Tecna is Often Discarded and Why She Shouldn’t Be (A Tecna Deep Dive/Rant)

I think most of us can agree that Tecna is neurodivergent coded. Most consider her to be autistic.

In the OG, Tecna rarely gets to be the center of attention, but when she does, man does she shine. I love Tecna because her arc throughout the seasons isn’t necessarily about changing to fit in, but it’s more about growing into yourself if that makes sense.

Tecna doesn’t change her personality or who she is, she doesn’t try to mask how she is. The only thing she really does is working on expressing her emotions and showing that she cares about her friends, but this doesn’t equal her changing or suppressing her quirks and more neurodivergent tendencies, which I think is just beautiful.

I think that’s a great example on how to write an autistic character growing into themselves (though I myself am not autistic so feel free to correct me on that if you have feelings about Tecna being seen as autistic),

In season 3, we see the way the club literally falls apart when they think she’s dead. We see that they love her and when Tecna reunites with Bloom in Omega, she is crying cause she knew that her friends would find her.

This is the moment that cemented for me that these girls would truly go to the end of the world for each other.

Those episodes in season 3 may be some of the best, and my favorites, in the entire series. 

Tecna is the character that is underrated, and who some may believe doesn’t add much to the story, but when she’s gone it hits you like holy shit, in a way she is the glue of the group.

She may not always be the voice of reason but the girls know to always listen to her cause when she’s determined to figure something out, she will do just that. They know that they can count on her.

She is a pillar in the group, just as much as the other girls, even if the show doesn’t always give her a spotlight, we know that it’s true.

And… Fate just threw her out the window.

The fucking disrespect.

I personally think they just didn’t want to be bother with a complex character like Tecna.

I just… I hate that they couldn’t even be bothered to try while another part of me is glad that they didn’t ruin her with an angsty hacker take on her.

But my girl deserved better.

Anyways, on to the final section…

How Fate Failed To Capture the Essence of the Winx Club

How Fate Forgot the Most Important Aspect of the Winx Club: Friendship Amongst Young Women

The final section is something I’ve already touched on a bit but, in Fate, the girls aren’t friends. They barely feel like decent roommates.

I will never forgive the way they disregarded Stella and Bloom’s beautiful bond. They were each other’s person, they were bonded for life and truly they were just THE besties ya know?

And Fate just made them into competitors. There is not a single moment in the entire two seasons that they felt like friends, let alone besties. I cannot picture OG Bloom and Stella EVER acting like their Fate counterparts. Like my girls would rather die than do each other dirty like that.

Then we have Aisha. In the OG Aisha had 2 amazing bonds, Musa and Flora. We all know how big SonicWave is. Musa and Aisha immediately connected, they went clubbing and got into a bit of trouble together and Musa was the first to really understand Aisha’s backstory, and we see Musa trust Aisha with her boy problems.

Aisha and Flora feel like besties, they’re there for each other and have casual chats in the middle of the night.

With Stella, especially in season 4, Aisha and Stella can but heads from time to time but they know that their friendship will always prevail because all the girls are bonded for life.

None of that is present in Fate. In Fate when they butted heads I couldn’t care less. I just wanted to slap Stella because she was being a bitch and I was annoyed by Aisha. She doesn’t really interact with Musa and Terra isn’t Flora so it doesn’t work. And she and Bloom don’t feel like friends. Not really.

There is no Fate Tecna so we have no chance to get the amazing chemistry between Musa and Tecna, those two were perfect as besties, they just worked so well. 

It’s just… so many amazing bonds and friendships and dynamics all thrown away for the sake of angst, drama and useless conflict. 

The event that sets into motion the entire story of the Winx Club is Bloom running into Stella and choosing to help her. It’s Stella deciding to help this girl she just met get into Alfea because they just immediately bond and that’s who Stella is.

The very first time the girls hang out, when Bloom is attacked, the other girls don’t hesitate to join in on the fight to save Bloom, not necessarily because they’re close at this point but because all these girls would never just stand back when something like this is going on. But as their friendships and bonds grow, we quickly see that they are all ride or die.

They don’t fight over boys, if they tease or take things too far, they apologize. They may but heads and get into fights but they know (and we know) that their friendship will always prevail.

In Fate… they’re not even friends, let alone besties, let alone ride or die besties that would go to the ends of the world for each other.

All of those bonds and friendships are just… nonexistent .

How can Fate claim to be an adaptation of the Winx Club when they throw away the most important aspect of the show?

In the show, friendships always take center stage, romances always felt like sideplots or add ons, not the main drama, or they were rarely the main drama. And when romance was the main drama, there would be an inevitable scene of the girls comforting each other. (Stella comforting Bloom. Tecna, Bloom and Stella comforting Flora about Crystal. Musa letting out her frustrations about Riven with Aisha. The girls helping prepare Tecna for a date, etc.)

Friendship was the bloodline of Winx Club. And Fate somehow… missed that.

I’m too tired and frustrated to make an actual outro and I’ve been working on this for literal weeks so… that… is the end.

[autisticdoomslayer]

I honestly really liked any part of the DLC that wasn't related to Bi-Han. It was all a lot of fun. Except for the Bi-Han thing. they really fucked him over.

Ok done with the pretenses heres the stuff I liked

Harumi <3

the kameos being relevant to the story (I don't remember that being in the main game but I might be stupid)

the CHARACTER DESIGN.

WWII Johnny

The fact that the khaos skins are honestly way cooler than those weird mileena not-chaos skins.

Khaos Ashrah & Nitara existing.

LI MEI my beloved.

The fact that the havik crowd are literally just throwing their heads around for funsies.

WWII Johnny being taken mildly seriously

the soundtrack.

The fact that Havik's the announcer (and the fact that he's overdramatic as shit because he's making everything a spectacle)

KHAOS MILEENA AND KITANA HOLY SHIT bro. I'm actually in love with them.

The telepathy scene/Dragon scene??? was pretty neat actually??

Noob's fighting style is SICK actually. I love how fast and brutal it is

The sick-ass fatalities noob does?

WWII Johnny flicking that cigarette

Chaos version of Takeda IS Kenshi's son!

The titan havik clone was fucked-up and I honestly love that

(the "I hate math" line tells me that Johnny does NOT actually have a PHD in quantum mechanics)

Two johnnies just whaling on a guy

the fact that I am not a Bi-Han fan and therefore am not suffering from the character assassination too badly (I'm sorry Bi-Han fans you deserve so much better)

The climax was meh. As expected. But better than the base story I think.

Also what the hell happened to titan havik? "no wait we can't kill him" but we have no idea what the hell happened? Just leave him there on the floor to regenerate I guess??

I spent wayyy too much money on this DLC and am probably unconsciously coping but whatever.

[halfetirosie]

☁ I lied. I fucking DESPISE this Rural Town Fuckery™!!! ☁

(Scales 05 - 07 React-os!)

TIME TO RANT!!!

🚨🚨🚨I'M ALSO GONNA DO SOME KUYA-HATING IN HERE, BUT KUYA HATED ME FIRST SO IT'S FINE 🚨🚨🚨

1) What the actual fuckity FUCK???

What "flesh" are they talking about? Are they cutting their hands and bleeding out into the basin or something???

Also---I think I was wrong in thinking that the villagers' attitude towards yokai is different from the Wood Territory tribe. These guys may act like they like the "merfolk," but they're actually terrified of them to a manic degree.

This scene is disturbing as hell...

2) Nooooo!!! Poor Yakumo!!!

I feel so bad for him, for real! He has issues with controlling his yokai powers like ALL the time; poor babykins can't catch a break!!!

...

...His scales do be looking really pretty, tho...

3) Ohhh, yeah, this makes a lot of sense. I feel dumb for not predicting this earlier.

I mean, the whole reason Eiden and Yakumo came to the island was to inquire about the recipe that included merfolk meat as an ingredient.

It makes no sense for the villagers to have a whole-ass ceremony to "honor" the merfolk; unless their true purpose was to appease the merfolks' anger.

I'm guessing that these villagers' ancestors hunted the merfolk in the surrounding waters---like a fucked up version of whaling. When they thought they hunted merfolk to extinction, they then feared that that they'd return and take revenge.

That's why, instead of being happy to see [what they think is] a merfolk, the villagers get scared and angry...

4) We interrupt this depressing event to bring you a Yu-Gi-Oh! reference! :D

---Yes, I know that "Umi" is the word for "ocean" in Japanese. But I'm a pathetic dork that will always associate that word with the Yu-Gi-Oh! card of the same name. (˶ᵔ ᵕ ᵔ˶)

5) ......Bruh.

Okay, two things!

FIRST:

......Eiden, sweetie? I love you, but how have you not figured out the reason for the villagers' freak-out by now??? I feel like the talk of "revenge" is enough for the average person to put context clues together..🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️

Am I wrong? Am I just being a jerk??

SECOND:

I'm sorry, but I am getting REAL sick of Kuya's bullshit. These last two events he's been an insufferable DICK.

This bitch always has something mean to say about everyone and everything, without even being provoked first. And he has the audacity to accuse others of hypocrisy when he's the worst offender?!?! Why can't he just shut up and leave people alone?!?!?!

Lately, his character seems to have gotten worse, and every scene he's in makes me feel miserable. It's just too much.

I really hope the devs will dial back his toxicity soon.

6) That's kinda weird...?

I'm confused about the rules of this fish-scale relic.

Why was Yakumo the only one that had strong side effect from touching the relic? It's not like he was the only one touching the relic; all of those human villagers + Eiden touched it an prayed over it, too.

Does the relic only react to all yokai essence?

Why was the relic designed to react to anything other than merfolk essence in the first place??? That seems highly impractical.

7) Ugh.

Look, I get it. I'm not saying he's wrong to point out that Yakumo's a special case---that most yokai would have too much trouble to live alongside humans without issue.

But he really didn't have to word it so rudely, or insult Yakumo by calling him delusional. 🤦‍♀️

---His nasty attitude aside---

Am I crazy, or do I detect a hint of jealousy here? 🤔

I know the intended interpretation of that second sentence, "But not everyone is as lucky as you are," is supposed to be in reference to Umi.

But idk, man; something about it (maybe his expression?) makes me think he could also mean himself? After all, as we see in the Forest Carnival event, over his long life Kuya has gotten acutely aware of the issues of human/yokai relations, and he is super pessimistic about it.

What if, part of the reason he's so pessimistic and disrespectful to humans is not just because he's experienced human cruelty, but because he wanted to get along with humans at one point and failed?

It's just a theory. 🤷‍♀️ If nothing else, that context would make for a good fanfic.

8) OH, FUCK!!!!!!

(⊙ᗣ⊙)

I knew the history was bad, but somehow this is even worse than I thought. Instead of the merfolk living around the island, they lived on the island, and those humans straight up committed genocide and stole their land!!!

It's safe to say, I'm certain of what the social commentary this event is aiming for now...

Step 1: Invade a territory

Step 2: Murder the people native to the land

Step 3: Retroactively mystify the culture of the people that were murdered

Step 4: Make cowardly attempts to "appease" those from the group you murdered, without returning what you stole in the first place

*depresso-s in American*

9) Oh my GOD, they couldn't be more hypocritical if they TRIED!!! 🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️

(New drinking game that would kill me: take a shot every time this event makes me facepalm or shake my head)

Talk about poetic INjustice---I wasn't even rooting for them, but I still end up indescribably disappointed.

Why do people like this never learn???

I don't care if this island is cut off from the outside world; that isn't an excuse for this bullshit.

This village has had plenty of time to think about what they've done, and how to react if a merfolk showed up in the future.

And the BEST they came up with was to do the SAME THING (attempting to murder the merfolk) THAT MADE THEM SO WORRIED AND SCARED IN THE FIRST PLACE?!?!?!?!

THEY ARE SO STUPID AND EVIL!!!!! I FEEL LIKE I'M GONNA PASS OUT FROM FRUSTRATION AND ANGER!!!

💢 (╯🔥 ᗣ 🔥)╯︵ ┻━┻

🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬

🔥 End of report 🔥

[cluescorner]

Thoughts on Canto V

Spoilers ahead. Also, disclaimer that I did not play it but instead watched it because I really like the story but I don't play the game anymore. I do not think playing it through would have impacted my experience, but do keep that fact in mind and let me know if you think my feelings would change if I had played it.

OH MY FUCKING GOD I REALLY LIKED IT! The characters were solid (though there are some problems), the theme of hoping for the future and allowing yourself to discover it for yourself rather than holding onto the past, and there were some incredible fucking moments.

Firstly, Ishmael. She was pretty stellar throughout. Watching her slowly degrade into becoming a mirror of the very woman she sought to destroy was heartbreaking, I felt like she actually had a real arc this canto that helped her become a less burdened person, and some of her deepening bonds with the other sinners were awesome. I particularly liked watching her interactions with Outis because Moby Dick and the Odyssey/Illiad are the two literary works from Limbus that I know well, and based on that info it makes sense that they would both understand and annoy each other. The moments with Heathcliff were also incredible because they've always had a really cool dynamic. Ishmael's relationships with her crew were also interesting and I feel like that could have easily been the best part of this cant, but ultimately that didn't end up happening (more on that later). I felt like the sudden character development 'Oh the other characters are my friends and they are my compass' thing was a BIG JUMP especially for Ishmael, but it's not a bad idea. I think it just needed more time in the oven, let Ishmael interact with the other sinners inside the dungeon and have her work together with them to get through things. Fortunately, Ishmael's VA + the Mili song really carried that ending so I still wound up getting caught up in the moment regardless. Speaking of Ishmael's VA...HOLY SHIT WHATEVER THEY ARE GETTING PAID IT WAS NOT ENOUGH!! Singlehandedly made me like this Canto so much more than I otherwise would have. An incredible performance all around, stand out moments include but are not limited to: Her ranting at the pirates about them not knowing what shame is, the euphoric hatred in her voice as she fantasizes about finding and killing Ahab, the grief as she discusses Queequeg and the hope as she sees Queequeg again, and OF COURSE WHEN SHE GOES AHAB MODE! Bravo Jang Ye-na, you carried this Canto through its weaker moments and helped the best ones become my favorite moments in this game.

Next, Ahab. I liked her a lot, fucking awful captain woman who reminds me of my old pastors. GOOD JOB MAKING THIS A FUCKING HORROR GAME THIS BITCH SCARES ME! I wish we could have seen more of her (and maybe we will in the future) because what we got was incredible. I was expecting a shitty boss but instead got another fucking cult leader. Her design is also a solid mirror to Ishmael's, further emphasizing the point that they are becoming more alike as this stuff goes on AND making the moment where Ishmael breaks the cycle of hatred more impactful. She is an incredible mirror of what happens where you allow hatred to consume you entirely, and the VA really reflects that. The only complaint I kinda have is that she probably should have been a lot more morally grey than she was. I feel like we just kinda got Kromer version 2 in terms of the role she played in the story and in Ishmael's life, granted that might change in the future so I will be very happy to be wrong if that's the case. But after Dongrang, I was expecting something a little more sympathetic or at least nuanced than 'evil cult leader captain lady hates that fucking whale and will kill her crew and makes that abundantly clear'. Again, I do like what we got so I can't complain too much but still.

I LOVE THAT BIG FUCKING WHALE! SCARY FUCKING BIG WHALE COMETH! ELDRITCH WHALE!

The Indigo Elder is so fucking cool. I wish he were here for more than 3 minutes and actually had something to do. They really introduced a man by having him tear the arm off the guy who we were struggling to survive against, said he was a Color and that he killed another Calamity, teased this really cool plan, and then...he's just waiting outside presumably 1v1-ing the whale but we get to neither see nor hear about it at all. I hope he comes back and we can see him do cool shit, because we had an incredible set-up with mediocre pay-off.

Ishmael's crew...I loved them so much I wish they were in the Canto for more than 1 level. They should have been introduced MUCH EARLIER in order to have their deaths have more of an impact. We should have been in the whale for longer, even if it meant shortening other parts of the chapter, just for the crew. Because those are Ishmael's ties and these are the people who Ahab's hatred is robbing the world of. What we did get of them was very strong, but Starbuck and Pip got nothing in terms of character moment and time. Queequeg got a little bit more (by the way I love that Queequeg actually looked like the design team at least LOOKED at a Polynesian person, I'm so jaded from other gacha games that I'm thrilled somebody actually looks like they're from the culture they're inspired from. She looks like a buffer, female version of one of my Polynesian neighbors it's great.) and it made her feel a lot more developed. She was a solid adaptation of Queequeg and her relationship with Ishmael was so sweet. The moments we got of them together were some of the highlights and it made me really want them to manage to escape together. Of course that was never gonna happen, but still. I also don't like how we don't even see Queequeg and Starbuck die. Are we supposed to assume Ahab killed them to manifest the ego? Did we kill them? I see some criticism around the fact that they stood by Ahab's side at the end and wondering why they did that. And I get that criticism because it is weird, but also that's just kinda what cult leaders can do especially when they're the only reason you've been alive for however long + you're slowly being overtaken by BAD WHALE JUICE. I 100% buy that they chose to follow the Captain because the Captain is always right and even when She does horrible things Her understanding is elevated above ours. And if Her fight is our fight, then surely it is ok for us to die here.

I feel like this is also a criticism that only I care about but why is the story suddenly like 'oh revenge is bad don't do revenge'? Like, I get it revenge is bad and that was kinda the point of Moby Dick. BUT WE HAVE LITERALLY DONE SO MUCH REVENGE AND REVENGE WAS KINDA SINCLAIR'S WHOLE THING AND IT'S PROBABLY GONNA BE HEATHCLIFF'S! Why is revenge suddenly bad and 'oh no it makes you just like the other person' no it does not Sinclair did not suddenly become genocidal because he kept trying to murder Kromer. Is revenge only bad when it's successful? IDK, I just hate narrative inconsistency and this immediately jumped out at me.

Overall, I really liked this Canto! I have my problems with it, but they are relatively minor compared to all it does well.

[coulson-is-an-avenger]

a brief timeline of fucking events regarding myself and the studio album "kill the whale" by daniel emond because I'm losing my mind

>get recommended this album by an anon on tumblr

>listen to said album and have an Extremely goodbad time (fedallah and gay people i LOVE YOU, quishmael and the erasure of indigeneity and the Lots of other racist things happening in there i hate you i hate you i hate you

>begin a project to transcribe the album because dear god what are they saying

>find that daniel emond himself has posted the lyrics to reddit

>make a 30k google doc comparing the lyrics of the studio album, the reddit lyrics, and the recorded live performance lyrics (because they are all very different!) with commentary (WHICH I FORGOT TO POST AND WILL BE SHARING IMMEDIATELY)

>get mad, decide to leave a comment on emond's reddit lyrics noting some of my critiques, most notably, why queequeg has been raceswapped and also had much of his story/relationships/plot entirely removed

>get a FIVE PAGE RESPONSE from emond arguing that he did not in fact erase anyone's indigenous/pasifika identity and that he was 'casting for talent, not accuracy bc the characters are "more" than their cultural backgrounds and ethnicities' which is a load of horseshit in my opinion

>notably also in that comment he reveals that the studio album is in progress to be adapted into a full broadway musical performance

>respond again, admittedly meaner this time

>get ANOTHER response from emond, that starts like this

[ID: A screenshot of a reddit notifications email of a comment from u/Danielhenriemond that reads: "Very busy these days, so much to respond to here. Thanks again for critical insight and questions which have continued to live with me as I develop the project, in particular your inquiry into my vers..." End ID.]

>open the comment to find that it has been completely deleted 🧍so I guess I'll never fucking know

>weeks later emond SHOWS UP ON MY INSTAGRAM (which has no ties to my reddit, he def doesn't know I'm the same person) and comments on my art of his musical

>go to his instagram page to see that the musical is currently in a week-long workshop

>scream

>something has tied me to this musical and i have no knife to cut the line (threat)