#And I think its more compelling than 'I hate your dad and so I hate you'

[4esthetic-dissonance]

I'm working on a fic and was like 'how in the hell do you make LINGUANG JUN the least bit redeemable?'. I mean, /Linguang jun/ who tossed a developmentally four year old Mobei Jun to a pack of humans? The kid could have died. And then I saw a translation of the extras. It describes lgj as mbj's 'young uncle', says that he 'wasn't that much older than him (mbj)'. And I just- its a hell of a lot different, a Scar type tossing his nephew to the proverbial wolves than it is for a maybe dumb, maybe petty, maybe developmentally five or six year old to shove their annoying technically-nephew-who-in-age-and-context-is-more-like-a-brother-than-lgj's-actual-brother into a situation that the text implies was more frightening than actually /dangerous/. And that- well I can work with that.

[trekkele]

I recently saw the post about Jason and Cass not having to get along, and how that adds to their dynamic.

So I was wondering, are there any other interesting facts/headcanons about relationships in the Batfam?

Your own or some you simply stumbled across?

Because what frustrates me is the absolute lack of nuance in relationships in a lot of in most of Batfam centric fan-works.

The extent to which people write Bruce as either an absolute peace of shit, or as someone who will kiss his kids feet and beg them for the slightest bit of attention

(this being the supposedly "good" parenting- which… No? That ain’t it)

Because something I find incredibly compelling about their dynamics is the absolute loyalty Bruce often on the receiving end of.

Even when they are on terrible terms, if Bruce calls, they answer. (Usually, of course there are exceptions)

Some interesting facts/ideas about their relationships I saw were;

Dick hating Jason back when he was Robin. (Because they all a bit possessive of the Bat/insecure about their place at his side)

Tim not being Jasons fan even before the murder attempt (I read somewhere that DICK was the Robin Tim admired, and that made much more sense to me)

Cass and Dick having a tense relationship because Cass can read and understand Bruce so well, when Dick was the one who knew him best for so long.

Alfred and Bruce having a slightly more complicated relationship (I‘m so sick of 'perfect Alfred makes no mistakes' I swear. If Alfred had been as good a parent as everyone pretends (in comics or fandom) Bruce would at least be a SLIGHTLY more well adjusted individual)

Sorry for the rambling- I kinda got away from what I was asking 😅

So yeah, anyone else you feel has a more difficult relationship than fandom would have you believe?

All the kids with the justice league, and specifically Clark.

No listen hear me out, Bruce’s big possibly life changing injuries? They happen with the league most of the time, because thats when he’s fighting a minor god or a sentient star or whatever. But thats also when all his allies are super powered people, thats when he should be safest. Instead he keeps coming back from league missions with close calls and broken bones.

And Clark especially, what do you mean your best friend is Superman and your arm broke in the three places on that last mission. Where was he??

Alfred and Clark having a 😒 relationship is always fun too, because while kids wont see it or realize it Clark has absolutely witnessed how Alfred parents Bruce and how … less then ideal it can be.

Kate and Alfred, because of backstory reasons (did Alfred do nothing to keep the Kanes in contact with Bruce?? Why??) and also because it would be funny.

Cass and Jason is a good one and it makes so much more sense then the usual “cass loves her big little brother uwu” because i think what Cass would love about Jason would be stealing his weapons and hiding them and watching him lose his mind. Stop bringing guns into her dads house he doesnt like them and its his house.

I think. Oh this is going to be a hot take. I think Bruce resents when Tim tries to patronize or parent him. You know exactly what i mean right, that very specific flavor of infantilization you see in Tim-and-Bruce fics where Tim is a genius brilliant boi and Bruce is just led around by the nose? Hate it and i think Bruce hates it and knows exactly when Tim is trying it. Does he look like Jack Drake?? No?? Good because he was getting worried. (Bruce loves Tim. He loves how much Tim cares. He does not love how Tim thinks caring means permission to run his life).

Another hot take, i dont think Alfred and Jason got along as well as they did until after Jason resurrected. I think baby Jason treated Alfred the way Alfred treated him, so more like two people living in the same space who mutually respect each other them like grandparents. I think Jasons death and his anger at Bruce and Dick made him want/need a neutral person to project his happy memories onto, and Alfred was that person.

Duke being wary of Jason and Red Hood - because he remembers how many people lost people to Red Hood when he first arrived, and i dont care what comics told you there is no way he did what he did without collateral damage.

Damian and Dick should have a messy, complicated, resentful relationship. Damian wanted his father, no matter how good a replacement you write Dick as that isnt what he wanted. Dick also wanted his dad, and he didnt want to be Batman or a parent or any of it, and the fact that Bruce was actually alive and if hed only moved faster, if the JL had only been smarter, if someone had been paying attention, he never would have had to do any of it. And im going to he so honest right now the way fandom writes their “good” relationship is so bad sometimes. I hesitate to use the word toxic because yaknow its been done to death but seriously.

Anyways i think i hit enough hornets nests here, but will leave with, good parenting does not always look like you think it should. Allowing your children to violate your boundaries, always taking full responsibility for mutual miscommunications and misunderstandings, and never letting them suffer consequences for actions they take is just setting them up for failure.

[leupagus]

I've never had a mystery plot so completely mapped out in my head that was so secondary to the actual Plot of a fic, please ask me all the questions about Oscar Underwood and Matthew Lannisford

(This is more of the conclusion to the Shipping Forecast trilogy, which at least now I have the excuse that I've been acting parent to my nephews this week and good lord jesus children are exhausting, how Ellie manages her kids AND managing Hardy is a mystery for the ages)

~

They duck back into her car just as the rain really starts in, hitting the roof and the windshield like a million angry football hooligans after a loss. "Christ, somebody ring Noah," Miller laughs, tugging at her hair elastic. "I think I've got a — yeah, here." She twists round in her seat to pull at something behind her.

Hardy gives her room to half-crawl into the backseat, the bottom of her shirt riding up to show a flash of stomach, the sweet give of her waist. He looks away, toward the house. "Do you think he's lying? About knowing about Underwood and his son?"

"I think," Miller grunts, "That he's been lying to himself for over a decade, and probably longer than that, and at this point it's impossible to tell what he thinks is true and what he doesn't. And of course, what he thinks is true might not even be true. Got it!" she adds, and flops back into her seat with a wrinkled towel. She begins patting gently at her hair, the rain still bright on her cheeks and neck. "This case is like one of those Russian dolls, you know, the wooden ones? Every time you think you've cracked it, there's another one waiting for you."

"Matryoshka," Hardy offers, watching her. Her nose is getting red, the way it always does when she's cold. "Turn the bloody heater on, would you?"

"Fine," she grumbles, and shoves the towel in his face.

"Thanks very much."

"Oh, it's barely damp. And your hair's going to go all sticky-uppy the way you hate if you just let it dry on its own." She turns the ignition and fiddles with the heater; a moment later lukewarm air blasts at their ankles. "God, this bloody car. Can you get me a raise so I can buy something from this century?"

"This is a 2005 Volkswagen," Hardy feels compelled to point out, but obediently scrubs at his scalp.

"So all right, say he's telling the truth, that he had no idea Underwood and Matthew were an item. Back in the 90s, that sort of thing ��� Matthew might never have said. Fathers and sons and all."

"We're still basing all of this on the idea that they were an item," he says. "There's no proof either way. They could've just been work colleagues."

Miller makes a considering noise. She's staring out through the windscreen, unseeing. "They were both out. Despite what Matthew's dad claims, we know neither of them made a secret about it. In a town like this, back then? Options would be limited."

"So you think they started shagging because they couldn't find anyone better?" Hardy can feel the sharpness in his own voice, but he can't seem to do much about it. The towel is scratchy against his skin, too rough, and smells of her shampoo.

"Maybe, or — I don't know." She doesn't seem fazed by his tone, but then she rarely notices it these days. "Underwood loved someone. Desperately, the sort of love that makes you do desperate things. Before he died, he wrote that letter, hoping whoever it was he loved would find it."

"Meaning what, exactly?" he demands, the towel creaking in his fists.

She turns to look at him, eyes large and dark and horribly beautiful. "Sometimes the right option is the only option you've got," she says, and Hardy can hardly breathe round the stone in his throat. Then she scowls at him, her gaze roving, and snatches the towel back. "You're still dripping, I just got the upholstery cleaned, come here," and she encases his whole head and shoulders in the towel while he protests, rubbing at him like he's a wet dog who'd got mud on the carpet.

"Bloody hell, Miller," he grumbles, once she's done to her satisfaction, and she smiles at him and puts the car into gear, taking them back toward home.

[mermaidsirennikita]

ARC REVIEW: A Fate Inked in Blood by Danielle L. Jensen

4.5/5. Releases 2/27/24.

Heat Index: 6.5/10.

Vibes: vIKINGS!!!!, slutty guy/serious girl, "oops I'm married to your dad", and legitimately intense battle and magic stuff that actually works and puts people in those heartrending situations where it's all "STAY ALIVE!!!!! I WILL FIND YOU!!!!!!!!!" as it should in a FANTASY ROMANCE

Married to a man she hates and hiding the fact that she's the child of a minor goddess (children of gods are a Thing in this world) Freya lives a life of drudgery. Until, that is, her secret is revealed to all and Jarl Snorri declares that she's a prophesied shieldmaiden, meant to clinch him the kingdom he's always wanted. As such, she must marry him--kind of an issue, as she is very, very attracted to Snorri's son Bjorn. Another issue: Bjorn has been bound to Freya as her protector. On top of everything, Freya's goddess-given abilities are obscure but dangerous, leading her to wonder if her fate is less that of a protector than that of a monster...

OOOOH WE'VE GOT SOMETHING HERE. I've read Danielle L. Jensen before, way back in the day with her Malediction books--but those were YA (albeit, pretty hot YA) and I really don't read YA anymore. However, I do like Viking Shit, and I especially liked the idea of a romance between a Viking lady and her husband's SON, which was something I always wanted to happen on Vikings. So I picked it up.

And dude. It sucked me right in. I am, as I will get into more below, kind of a hard sell on fantasy romance--when it works, I am HOOKED but when it doesn't I am quickly turned off. This is the former. I was so drawn to Freya, a heroine who does have Chosen One aspects, but is also very human and just trying to make it work, one battle at a time. (Also? She's not instantly gREAT at fighting, how refreshing.) And I absolutely fell head over heels dumb girl for our hero Bjorn, who I expected to be a stoic silent warrior type. NO. He's so much better. He's like, an amazing warrior--but is also so funny and super slutty and just a BRO. I love him. Protect him.

The fantasy plot is compelling and doesn't get so in love with itself that it's impossible to follow. It's really good! I'm excited by this! Can't wait for the next! (What a relief, God.)

Quick Takes:

Here's my issue with fantasy romance (or romantasy, though I'll point out that this series is billed as "fantasy romance" on Netgalley, and that is so HOT to me): often, though the name implies that it's a subgenre of romance with a heavy fantasy bent... It's basically fantasy (well-done or not) with a romance subplot tucked in. The character work is shoddy, the tension is nil, and you can tell that the author is just trying to horn in on the romance audience. Not so, here. 

First off, I think Jensen was really smart to create a fantasy world that is very "Vikings But Fantasy". It's not poorly drawn. You can tell that she's really into the Norse vibe, and I will say that I am biased because as someone who has somehow been watching the Vikings franchise since its inception (pray for me) I'm fairly familiar with it on that level. But the way she weaves the fantasy elements, most distinctly the idea of these empowered children of gods (who are basically made when their mortal parents HAVE THREESOMES WITH GODS??? Amazing. Just imagine having these superpowers and knowing that it's because your parents took some dude home from the bar one night and he turned out to be Thor.) into the story is really natural.

Secondly... There is a really compelling plot, yes. I am really into the duality of Freya, don't get me wrong. I really like the royal intrigue. All the WIFE DRAMA. It's My Brand. But the real heart of this story, very openly and honestly and presented without any self-consciousness, is Freya and Bjorn. And I think Jensen just lays it all out there the moment she introduces the brilliant plot device of "Bjorn's Dad, Who Freya Is Technically Married To, Wants Bjorn To Follow Freya Around And Make Sure She Doesn't Get Into Danger". Oh, so he's supposed to protect her as she hurtles into adventure and fights Viking zombies and shit? HOW CONVENIENT. Throughout the story, their immediate physical attraction melts into this emotional slow burn... and I am also a hard sell on a slow burn, so thank you for doing it right, Danielle. The book is single POV (Freya's, though I wouldn't mind Bjorn's in a future installment) but you can just tell that Bjorn is so mad that he's this into a woman who is technically his stepmother. Like, he can have anyone! But he wants HER. But he can't have her! 

Picture me gobbling this up like a raccoon in a trash can.

--Speaking of! If you're all "ew, I hate that Freya is married to his dad"--no spoilers, but this is dealt with in a way that I think both avoids the ick that some readers (to be clear: not me, I am very resistant to ick) may feel over that setup, and avoids a copout. 

At the same time... First off, Bjorn doesn't fully know that the ick has been avoided, and to be frank, I don't think Bjorn really cares about a little ick. But he does have like, you know, the "WHAT IS WRONG WITH ME" vibe for a while, and it is delicious. All very illicitaffairs.mp3.

--I also really loved that there is no mistake about Freya being a GROWN WOMAN. I strongly, strongly object to shelving this as New Adult, because regardless of her age, Freya (and honestly Bjorn as well) has been through a lot. She's literally married when we open this novel. She gets a second husband. She is not a virgin; her marriage was not chaste; it sucked. (To be clear: you don't get a lot of insight into Freya's first marriage beyond "it sucked" because it's dealt with pretty quickly. You don't see any sexual assault on the page in this book, and I don't know that Freya would see it that way? It's alluded to as "lie back and think of England" bad, gross sex, which I think suggests assault, but there is not any explicit violence, sexual or otherwise, depicted in either of her marriages.) She is JADED. She has never had a man like, take care of her.

And then she gets linked up with local dude who's snarking at her horrible husband about how he must not go down on her enough, and she's all "WHAT'S THAT MEAN :/". I really, really enjoy a pairing that involves a tough woman who's never been properly taken care of and a man who's like "I am DESPERATE to take care of you". Freya deserves!

--Another good choice: often, in fantasy romance (or at least in fantasy romance of yore; I feel like there has been a recent push to correct this, at least somewhat) the heroine is hypercompetent. She's smart, she's a good fighter, she's a femme fatale, she's the seventeen-year-old master assassin...

Freya is... a person. She does want to fight, and she is--not surprisingly, as she does come from a culture in which women do fight--not incapable of holding her own. Somewhat. But as soon as she's up against a master warrior like Bjorn, she's kind of not great, Bob, and even with the benefit of her goddess-given abilities, she still has a lot to learn. It's giving "Book One Aang", and I'm good with that. I'm actually much happier with her giving Book One Aang as a twenty-something woman because like? Give us hope, Freya.

She also doesn't have all the answers. Frankly, Freya doesn't have 80% of the answers, and she shouldn't, because she's new to this. She's new to the magic stuff (though she knew she had it, which I did like--she's not an Alina Starkov-level "WHAAAT" about it) and she's new to the court intrigue, and frankly she's new to Hot Dudes. Speaking of, she does spend a decent amount of brain time going "STOP! STOP, SELF! DO NOT LOOK! DO NOT TOUCH!" Which, frankly, I loved. I feel like that's the kind of behavior people are going to be annoying about because people are dying, but like. This woman just spent years surrounded by Village 2's and suddenly she's being swung around and guarded by a very flirtatious Royal 12. Give her a break. I would be much worse. 

And she doesn't know what the hell she's doing with this man. She knows the mechanics, but she doesn't know the FINESSE. Speaking of...

The Sex:

The reason why I'm between a 6 and a 7 on this (and that's not quality, that's literally just how hot the book is re: sex acts) is that the story is a slow burn. Everything sexy happens in the back half, and you don't get to the full shebang until pretty late in the game. It's ABOUT THE YEARNING.

However, I think this was a good choice, and when we do get those scenes they are super hot (and explicit, though not like Sierra Simone explicit to be clear) and passionate and you definitely get the sense that it's this giant deal for these two. I was quite touched. I was like "awww" but also "oh" which is where I want to be when a story builds to two people hooking up for that long.

And Jensen fully takes advantage of the "Vikings" component and does have some "under the sleeping furs with 76 people sleeping in the near vicinity but we just need to get this done" action here. Which. Brava.

I'll be honest--I was worried about this, as I feel like I've been let down by a great fantasy romance in the past. I, much like several people in this novel, have been burned before. Not so here. I'm fully on board. I loved where we left off, and I cannot wait to see where those two crazy kids go next. Hopefully, like. To Vikings divorce court. So she can end that marriage to his dad.

Thanks to Netgalley and Del Rey for providing me with a copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Preorder:

Amazon

B&N

Bookshop.org

[captainbobbin]

For the ship ask game: Marluxia/Saïx, please! 💜

(referring to this ship ask meme)

Its threading the line between Makes Sense, Compels Me and Doesnt Make Sense, Compels Me tbh!

this got long so uh under the cut to save your dashspace lmao

okay. okay. Marluxia/Saïx

listen. Horrible bitchy power-hungry usurpers that hate everyone and have cotton-candy hair and will do everything in their power to be snide shitty and get their way while also covering up a deep and intimate loss of a formative female figure in their lives I get it I get it these two should AT MINIMUM go get coffee together or something fr.

My chat and I talk CONSTANTLY about Marluxia being so peanutbutter and jealous over Saïx being Xemnas' fave special boy and being big mad because does he want to be in Saïx's place or does he want to be Saïx or does he want to be WITH Saïx god he's a mess and he's going to go sit and talk to a potted plant until he feels a bit better. Why is that stuck up moon prick so pretty and insufferable and whats his deal and is he free of Friday night? of course he wouldn't be UGH he's such a dickhead nevermind but he's so cute tho

I think. They would have amazing chemistry if for the love of god they just pulled their heads out of their asses and sat and had a normal convo however my take on these silly little disneyanime guys is far removed from canon ajsdhask hence why it both does and doesn't make sense. Like absolutely they're both self-serving (to an extent) jerks who are narrow-viewed and focused only on their own gain and its physically impossible for either of them to care at all but. Man. If they had a little more time to just chill and hang out and discuss things like normal people I think they'd have a lot in common and would actually get along and be civil and hell can you imagine them working together poor Xemnas wouldn't stand a chance against his two fave bitch prettymen coming for his throat arm in arm

I feel like they'd be that kind of couple that are either like cat and dog and fight constantly and bicker and spit vitriol and no one knows why the fuck they're together because PATENTLY whatever this is isn't working (when actually no one *gets it* except the other and they have a strange and corrosive bond) or its just like. They just click. Theyre seamless with one another. there's a flow, an equilibrium, they both want the same things and can look at something and process it the same way. I think they'd be absolutely despicable together as Nobodies, Literally cataclysmic levels of insufferable cunt and snide violence and god poor Axel would never know peace. However I am very very much of the view that Any And All Nobody-based Romances are doomed to fail by the narrative so. Maybe it should be kept to a sordid little affair more than anything else. That would probably be the for best. You just know Saïx would be so super bent out of shape abt it tho lmaoooo

I'm a sucker for XemSai (as I'm sure everyone knows well by now) but I'm also a big sucker for LauriEven/MarVex and one of my big headcanons for the latter is that post kh3 when things have settled down, Lauriam and Isa hang out. Isa is friends with Even more than Lauriam but. I really really like the idea of Lauriam perhaps approaching Isa and just being normal around him? They go out on coffee runs and just talk, they meet up every so often to catch up, talk about how Lea and the kids are and how Radiant Garden is coming together again and yes the flowers here are so nice and I understand why you would want to live here and I Just! Really Like! Isa being a supportive character towards semi-dad-figure Even and now that everyone is cool and not wanting to murder each other Lauriam is actually really civil and dare he think it even good for dear old Even and Isa just kinda! Likes him! They become friends. Like friends with no baggage, no pressure, just hey if Isa swings around RG way again do you wanna get lunch and catch up? Theyre just normal guys now with a lot in common and a future ahead and its just comfortable having someone similar a phonecall away that is happy to listen and provide a fresh outlook on daily things, yknow?

I think. all the time. About a LauriEven marriage where Isa is asked at the reception to dance with them both because he's like. Even sees him as 'one of the kids he saw grow up' and they bonded over their work and they've always gotten along, surrogate son and dad relationship, and Lauriam, softened and approachable with his new heart just as Isa is, feels able to reach out and know that Isa is ever-reliable and genuinely wants things to be better for everyone. I just think that they'd make really really nice like family-friends who platonically love and appreciate each other once they have hearts..... as Nobodies, maybe not so much ahsdgahskd

I know my take on isa is generally very soft and doting but just let me have this asdhaskjdj

anyway this was a rambling splurge of words and I will be thinking about this for the rest of the evening thank you I love this I am going to go sit in my bathtub and think about the symbolism of moonflowers a lot.

tl;dr: I love them as a platonic ship but there is def potential there and I love them both separately (and with others) so so much

[fatgumsurpremacy-remastered]

hello, I'm not sure if you're familiar with the arkham games, if you are could you do some yandere riddler headcanons for arkham city?knight works too if you can think of any for city specifically. Or if you don't feel like writing it, that's perfectly fine too, have a nice day!

Anon I’m kissing you on the forehead several times. This greasy man has my soul. (I actually played the Arkhamverse games with my dad when I was younger so here’s a little trip!)

@letstalkaboutfandomsbaby Maybe you'd be interested

Tw: Angst, Childhood Friends, Breif mentions of violence, kidnapping, obviously yandere themes. Non con tattoo, tracking, abandonment.

•Arkham City Eddie definitely fell for you as a friend first. He as a friend was also super possesive. Always wanting to be around, show you off to anyone else at his job or otherwise.

•Then it got… stranger. He began bragging about you without meaning to. Staying outside your apartment to watch you go about your life. Stalking your social for any hint of who you may like.

•He refuses to admit that he is head over heels for you. He instead switches to playful insults between the two of you so he can distance his feelings. But the more you laugh, and lean into him the more he needs to run.

•As compelled as he is to do something, fear nags at him and he wants to do literally anything else. He’s restless.

•His whole ‘vigilante’ route wasn’t great on his mental health., but it was worse trying to think of your possible rejection. So he kept at it. He amped up his behavior till it burst out of him.

•After nearly 5 years of friendship and 2 years unrequited feelings he’d snap. He’d follow you around and show you.

•When he says he loves you he doesn’t mean it lightly. You mean the world to him, you’ll just have to be kept at his side for a good amount of time.

•He’s not delusional, he just likes the feeling of something ‘normal’. It’s more than likely, almost inevitable, that he will kidnap you. Fill your room with your favorite chintz and keep cams hidden throughout. So long as you can keep your façade of friendship you’re golden.

•He’s not a violent yandere to you, in fact there’s a very small difference between how you were as friends and now as a ‘couple.’

•When the bat eventually shows up to steal you he’s livid. He attempts to throw punches but it doesn’t work: he fails miserably. When he does take you and he sees you hugging the rodent his heart shatters.

•It’s then when he realizes that he’s got to keep a tighter leash. When he gets you again he doesn’t pull back. Your fake outs at this game are for naught.

•You sleep in his bed now. Eat what he eats now. And wear what he wants you to. You have no say in it, and if you wanna talk back you’ll wake up to a tracking chip and a convenient question mark.

•He’s a lot colder to you after he gets back from arkham. No it’s not because he hates you now, hell he doesn’t even wanna teach you a lesson. He is just conflicted on how to go about it.

•In the end you have to kiss up to him (literally) to get anything you actually need. He doesn’t mean to deprive you but he really can’t even take care of himself. You have to convince him you’ll come back to him whenever he gets out of arkham so long as you can get what you need to survive.

•As much as he wants to keep you he knows he can’t. And he aches. He removes your tattoo, lets you go. Keeps an eye on your activities and sends his men to keep an eye.

•He hates to be away from you so long, so he’ll leave riddles. Pointless ones you never return. He leaves letters, sweet, honest letters that would sweep others of their feet if they read them. But they’re left unopen.

•When the gas takes over the city you leave, and he understands its for the best. Now he knows every action you have is our of his control. He wishes sometimes you were still there. Sometimes in Arkham he dreams of the two of you together. Happy- and when he's lit he plays the videos you made when you were younger.

•He’s very much a pining yandere. One who goes too long w/o saying something and breaks too fast. Puts his all into someone only to have his already thin veil ripped in front of him. When he gets the chance to take his love back he can't take care of them. It leads to him having to let them go- and watching from afar as you drift away.

[sleepsentry]

for the ask game, number 8: unpopular fandom opinion(s) regarding gravity falls. also, love your work. ^_^

Thank you! ^^

Of course these are based on my assumptions about what's popular and these are takes I haven't seen around in the wild.

This kinda just devolves into a headcanon list towards the end. haha ^^'

OK so hmmmm oh boy there's a lot:

Gravity Falls is NOT the best thing ever it just had a bunch of really talented people working on it who made it super fun. But it's far from a golden standard and I don't think it should be held up as a standard, that idea is reductive and creatively stifling.

I don't like comparing Amphibia, Owl House, Duck Tales (2017), Inside Job and many others to Gravity Falls. The similarities are superficial and those shows shouldn't be living in Gravity Fall's shadow. They deserve to stand tall and cast their own.

On that note Alex Hirsch is just some guy and I don't like his stuff on its own that much. He's not that funny or interesting to me, but he is just some guy. Hope he doesn't turn out to be a shitty dude. *shrug*

Stanley is overrated (I love him but jeez guys. He's not that endearing.)

Rick and Morty x Gravity Falls is a terrible crossover, tonally, technically and thematically. (I also am just very unimpressed by rick and morty in general)

Stanchez is bad. Rick can eat my shorts. Stan "deserves better". Obviously the fan creations are good. But they don't change my mind about the base idea.

The stans both did nothing wrong ever and I love them deeply without comparing them. (joke I know they fuck up, but they fuck up together.)

Fiddauthor is mid and boring. It comes off as amatonormative and people overall are very exclusionary over it wich is just being a dick and using a ship preference to justify it. (I dont mean to be mean but yeah, you guys are doing fine you can take some salt.)

Ford and Fidd are more like siblings than a couple.

Ford and Fidd both dismissed eachother and the miscommunication was on both of them. (Similair to stan and ford it's no one character's fault)

Ford and Fidd's relationship has more emotional weight viewed through the platonic lense of fidds being older than ford by two or three years and "adopting" him as a "little brother" in college, and how that followed them into their 30s even when the age gap had long become irrelevant. Rather than just "gay sad nerds have marital issues" as fun as that sounds.

Fiddleford is a crazy, scary, adorable, kind, stupid, genuis. This man contains multitudes, I try my best not to flanderize him into one over the other. He can be all those fun things.

Fiddlestan is inherently more funny and compelling than fiddauthor. (To me, to me.)

Fillbrick wasn't the devil incarnate he was just a shit dad, wich fair enough is very bad. Haha (idk there isn't enough of him for me to truly hate and I'd rather not assume the worst, I deal with abusive parents enough in my day to day I don't need to add one to my fav silly show haha)

Billford isn't "toxic" it's too bizarre for that, and much is left to be inferred about both characters and their dynamic. (Again, assuming the worst instead of something more fitting and fun) It's obviously bad for ford but I thought everyone hated him when he isn't nice to stan or being shipped with fidds so it should be cool. (Sarcasm)

Dipper and mabel fuck up equally and mabel is generally more empathetic and aware of the world around her than dipper who hyperfocuses. (Been there pal.)

Mabel is more similar to Ford and Dipper is more similar to Stan

Dipper is a good boy but a bit on the boring side for me. He's fine. I like him well enough.

Mabel is more relatable to me, but I relate to dip's anxiety disorder so bad.

Dipper would NOT grow up to look like Ford. He'd look like shermy or stan.

Mabel would grow up to be bigger and broader than dipper. She'd also be the one to get glasses and look more like ford. She's already halfway there with the hair and jumpers (sweaters)

Jokes about ford failing to impress girls are cringe, heteronormative and bad. And ford doesn't like anyone. (Bill is his own can of eldritch worms)

Dipper doesn't like girls in the way he thought he should and that's why his crush on wendy played out the way it did, it was never really about her, it was about his relationship to her. How she helped him find someone to admire, and was kinda his first real friend who he felt was cool and understood him, heteronormativity made him think he liked her romantically. He so obviously didn't that it hurts my soul.

Mabcifica is underrated as hell and more interesting than dipcifica. That being said.

I do ship dipcifica but in a queer way. You guys don't get it. They're queer.

The cis/heteronormative takes where pacifica and dipper have children together and dipper looks older but Pacifica is just her kid face on a sexy lady bod make me uncomfortable.

And that's why Dipper, Mabel and Pacifica could grow up into a polyamorous "Vee" relationship. [When one person is dating two people who aren't dating eachother, in this case obviously cause they're twins. It forms a "V" from Pacifica to the Pines twins ^^]

What was this ask originally about?

[96percentdone]

Is Shouma really the trans rep y'all want? Someone who had no agency in their metaphorical puberty blockers and was forced and threatened into 'taking' them, hated it for years, and eventually decided 'yeah i guess it's pretty neat i'm still youthful but also but also fuck that guy who did this to me?' Is this not just a right wing talking point about how doctors are abusing innocent children with irreversible surgeries to trans their genders being with trans-positive paint? I think reclaiming transphobic narratives them can be powerful, but the context of Nirvana Initiative canon this doesn't feel like 'reframing conservative beliefs' so much as just. Doing their arguments beat by beat including the medical abuse part and saying 'its good actually we want this.'

I haven't seen works transformative enough that change the text so Shouma wasn't abused into the early stages of her transition, or that she was actually willing to take the abuse and deception once she learned about it to see if it could get her what she wants for her body, and her grievances are with the abuse alone. It's just treated as a given that canon is exactly as we know it to be, and the ends justify the means.

Maybe a controversial take, but I just think a lot of transcanons are poorly considered, genderbent or no. This isn't specific to aitsf, and I'm also not saying anyone who likes them are just as bad, even for the ones I don't like at all like this one. They are popular with trans people first and foremost, that would be a bizarre claim; I'm not your dad, fandom should make you happy, do whatever. My beef is that as far as I have seen, a lot of the popular ones in trans fan communities are done by picking some part of the text, ignoring the context it exists in, and then using that detail to justify the hc, even if the context flies against it, and without providing any new context to supplement or even replace the old one. We're just left to assume that everything else is the same still, and transitioning is often the focus of genderbent ones making it stranger. In the case of transfem!shouma, this style of creation just like accidentally leans into transphobic ideas, but even for characters where it's not doing that, they're still similarly thoughtless. Transmasc Kuranushi Mizuki has its own popularity, to distinguish her from Date Mizuki, but like...that's it. No one posts about what it would mean for his character, their life, it's an aesthetic decision alone. It means nothing other than the petty fan grievance or wish-fullfilment that inspired it.

That laziness is what I hate the most. Fandom is transformative, those transformations have the power to be extremely beautiful and compelling and meaningful. They can elevate the text into something more than what it was. I love that. I am a trans person who loves good art. That's why the way trans headcanons are made and portrayed is so irritating to me, because they feel low effort. People will say they have thought about them a lot, and maybe you have! But if all of that consideration is in a private discord server, that means nothing to me. I refuse to consider the merits of context I have no access to. If the context exists, put it in your work!! I just want better art than that.

Fandom wants to be taken seriously. It wants to be treated as art, and yet it also wants to be treated as just a fun hobby unworthy of criticism, but I don't think you get to have both. You cannot position your creations as art, your community as an artistic one worthy of respect, and yet its immune to the treatment all art and art communities get: criticism. I just want more thoughtful and considered fanworks. I want transcanons, even if they exist for a ship, or out of spite, or for fun aus and comedy fan-comics, to be taken just a bit more seriously and with more effort.

[iamnotawomanimagod]

top 5 yellowjackets characters

Thank you my friend! <3

1 - Natalie

I've always had a serious soft spot for tragic burnout addicts, and Natalie is no exception to that rule. The way she arrives in the wilderness a bit more fucked-up than everyone else (having witnessed her dad's death,) and with all this baggage surrounding being an impoverished addict at such a young age. You'd expect that she'd unravel first and hardest, but instead, we see Nat take up a role of responsibility in the group. She hunts for food. She comforts Travis when no one else will. She tries not to take her emotions and reactions out on other people.

Even with everything she's been through, how seemingly broken she is in civilization, she ends up being one of the strongest and most capable of the plane crash survivors. And I love that for her.

2 - Misty

I often find myself repeating Adult Natalie's first on-screen words to Adult Misty - "Misty, you crazy fucking bitch." Because she truly is THAT crazy fucking bitch, and I absolutely adore her for it. She does the most insane shit, the most selfish and ruthless things, and yet I love her more and more for it with each increasingly unhinged act. It is so compelling to see someone who is genuinely very caring, considerate, and concerned about others take that to the absolute worst extreme, where compassion becomes control and adoration becomes obsession. She put a spy camera in your motel room because she cares, Natalie!! She can't leave you alone or stop being in love with you because knows you need help, Ben!! She just wanted everyone to have a fun Doomcoming, group-of-people-who-just-unknowingly-did-shrooms!!

I've rarely seen a character be so lovable and also so utterly awful at the same time. I was sure I'd hate her after her first scene as an adult (denying that old woman her pain meds) so I was very surprised that she became one of my favorites. She keeps things interesting, and her motivations are both painfully simple and maniacally complex.

3 - Taissa

Tai's storyline is probably my favorite. I really love the dramatic irony of this straight-laced, logically driven, pragmatic girl losing her mind in the most obvious and dangerous way out of everyone else (so far.) Her backstory reveal - the Man with No Eyes, her grandmother's terrified final words - does so much work in explaining why Taissa is so stubbornly refusing to accept help, to accept an explanation, or to seek answers. She just wants to be able to ignore it all until it goes away, which is a very heartbreaking thing for such a seemingly mature character to experience. I think her adult storyline is the closest to true horror that this show has done, and I'm very eager to see where it all continues to go - especially since it finally looks like Tai and Van will reunite as adults next week.

But that contrast between someone who's about to explode while trying to keep the tightest lid on it all - that's compelling. She killed her freaking dog and I still love her. This show has that effect.

4 - Lottie

Seeing more of Lottie in s2 has made me appreciate her character that much more. I'm so glad she's a bitch, lmao. Having her survive the wilderness, I definitely needed her to make it through with as many problems as all the others. And she definitely has them. I'm not sure if she's crazy, or a prophet, or both, or if it even matters. She's such an interesting character to bring into this narrative, and although we've only really just begun with it, I'm excited to see her descent into cult leader madness in its entirety. I do think she's one of the more compassionate and caring girls in the wilderness, and that she truly does want to help them all, and believes she's helping them all.

I think Adult Lottie has herself convinced she's still the same, but it's so easy to see how power-hungry she is, how much she likes being followed and believed, and how good she is at controlling people. I'm very keen on seeing how this all unfolds for her, and how she finds her way back to a leadership role after all the therapy and psych treatment.

5 - Shauna

Shauna is my least favorite of the main cast, but I do still like her. I just found her adultery storyline boring. But if I separate her from the Adam Martin of it all, she's definitely a super fascinating character. Her dynamic with Jackie is obviously the most interesting thing about her, and I think she's the most compelling candidate for the "teenage girls always cannibalize each other" metaphorical argument that so much of this fandom likes to make (which I'm otherwise a bit iffy on.) I'm a big fan of dynamics between teenage girls which explore that tender, tragic line between love and resentment. And Shauna brings a really fucked-up, dark edge to that dynamic. What I'm really liking about Shauna is that, out of all the girls/women, she seems the least bothered by violence, and the most willing to commit it. Killing the rabbit, killing Adam, threatening the car thief - Shauna is willing to take a life if it means she can get her way, and there's a part of herself, however deep down she tries to push it, that really enjoys violence and blood.

And that sets her apart from the others. They're all crazy, but the one who actually gives me the biggest Serial Killer vibes is Shauna, especially as an adult.

Thanks again, Lau! I love talking about this show. I'll answer your other questions soon!!

[petrichoraline]

🔥 choose violence ask game 🔥 thingy

2,12,23 and 25

choose violence ask game!

2. a compelling argument for why your fave would never top or bottom

i feel like a fish out of water here wow. i keep going through my faves and they all seem like they'd do both? like im thinking about one straight couple and even there things could get interesting but anyways

naoya from mr.unlucky is never doing either cause with the tempo at which kouta is moving they'd both die from old age before they ever get there

masumi and ritsu from bokushoku both love their dynamic (and why wouldn't they, they seem to be having the most enjoyable sex ever) and they're never changing partners so they're defiinitely sticking to their roles (ig masumi could be curious cause yknow how ritsu is basically his only partner ever but i doubt ritsu would be down? and also if the end of the world didn't get them to try switching i don't think it's likely to happen)

12. the unpopular character that you actually like and why more people should like them

as i said, i take so many outcasts under my wing lol like the more hated he is, the more i empathise. like LM mark or even tonhon (i KNOW)

this question implies it's someone people are feel neutral/negative towards so i'll ignore my boy jiha from all the liquors though i haven't seen an ounce of love for him because i just think the show didn't get posted about much in general. he is cute, he keeps it real, he is the bestie the gives advice but actually sucks at relationships, low sense of self-worth - he's just perfect. and also those lips boyy he's so beautiful. anyways

i kept this question for kim actually but now that i'm here i wonder if i should even bother. like people have had a long time to sort out their feelings.

this just kind of ties with my dislike(?) of porschay, people just ganged up on kim as if the way he acted wasn't an act of protection - a poor choice but coming from a good place nonetheless. in my eyes he's such an antisocial loser that he's not that much more mature than chay who, in some way, i'm sure could outsmart kim easily, not to mention manipulate him if necessary. so with the whole pathetic factor going on idk how at least the tumblr fandom didn't instantly get his pov. i saw so many threats against this guy even long after the finale had aired, some were like ''i get it but i still want to smash him with a hammer for hurting chay'' which ok fair ig if you love porschay i can see where the anger comes from. but still. kim has grown up around the mafia, learnt to always keep his guard up. he tries to solve a mystery all by himself except for the help of a bodyguard who, ultimately, works for his dad, not for him. who can he trust except for himself? he's in the entertainment industry, ppl are interested in him for his family, looks, money or his fame. what he can give them. when he ain't sniffing around and wrecking his brains, he's in the recording studio. that man does not know how to act around his crush, we know how he subtly he gets info out of chay or how he's delighted to see a wall plastered with his face. that man is pathetic, lonely, paranoid, he'd kill anyone who's a threat to chay instantly (>leaves like a dozen corpses in a bar similar to a cat bringing rats to its owner) but will wallow in misery, write a song and serenade him through a text. HE DOES NOT GET HUMANS. he went to that bar, got told off and stormed off, he is so clueless, somebody please help him.

i actually read plenty of posts on kim and that's why i feel strongly about him (thank you everyone who defended him in such articulate ways❤️) and i don't even like him that much!! i just need the hate train to stop

23. ship you've unwillingly come around to

i know what the question means but like i usually try to like ships, it's easier this way, no? lol so it's not really unwillingly..but i think haruka and rin is a good answer lmao

i was a haruka/makoto girlie for years but watching free! with friends made me realise the harurin appeal

25. common fandom complaint that you're sick of hearing

i thought i wouldn't have much to say here but omg i have to pick just one? skipping over the controversial ones, i'll have to go for hate for songs in bls lol

i'll start off by saying a lot of my mutuals are of this opinion and i respect it <33 that being said - bro. i know they could be a bit much especially when the actors aren't that good or the song is a bit bland or if it just feels very out of place? i understand it's sort of become the norm to hate on these performances because '''bl boy whips out guitar'' is a fandom joke at this point. and people are so loud and proud about skipping every single scene with a song in it. but it results in takes like "omg why did win and team sing their confessions they sounded so bad, so off-key, i barely made it".. that's the point? they are overwhelmed with emotions, snot is running down their face, after months of inner turmoil they finally reach the point where they just have to let it all out and yeah, the song would sound much weirder if they played a studio version on top of the footage lmao (example: the autotune on top of akkayan's bday performance that was so horrendous it turned out funny)

it's not that i haven't been tempted to skip through a boring song. i'm not saying it's a baseless complaint. i just find the way it's expressed usually annoying.

[kazimortem]

1, 4, 6, and 9 for Takizawa because you know what, why not. If this is too many feel free to only do a couple of your choice!

1. (Hands you a free card to ramble about whatever for your favorite character/ship)

I don't care if SeiAki is, at its core, extremely toxic and could never realistically be canon, but I will take interesting, toxic chemistry any day over healthy, boring/nonexistent chemistry. Sometimes toxic ships are just more fun with the absurd amounts of angst

I just feel like Akira and Amon's relationship is just… a whole lot of nothing. I feel like Amon only got with her because he felt guilty over her dad and because it was what she wanted at the time—and the closeness she feels to Amon kind of comes off as her clinging to the closest thing she has to her dad.

It also rubs me wrong that Akira's personality and plot relevance just kind of fizzles out once she and Amon officially get together. I hate when that happens to female characters :(

There's this infinitely compelling and beautiful tragedy to Akira and Seidou's relationship that maintains both of their personalities and desires and dynamic. I would have loved to see them continue interacting and talking about what they've been through so Akira's brain could be picked a little more concerning her feelings about not being good enough and why she felt so strongly about losing Seidou that she threw her entire life away and nearly died just to tell him she wished she'd saved him.

Another thing I like about Seidou as a love interest is that it bothers me how clear it is Amon doesn't see Akira as her own person but as her father's daughter—which could be due in part to him feeling some intense survivors guilt over his death. Be compares her to him and thinks of him and brings him up when she's around.

But Seidou? Even if he holds a grudge and sees her as a rival, he sees her as Akira. Just Akira. Not Kureo Mado's daughter. He never even once brings her father up in conversation (iirc), but he most certainly knew who he was.

Obviously he's blinded a lot by his inferiority complex and projects his feelings of inadequacy on her, but I think that also makes his dynamic and relationship with her SO much more compelling than Akira's relationship with Amon. Her sacrifice was his first time not viewing her as this flawless, cold rival to him. His entire perspective on her changed in an instant. He risked his life for someone he swore he hated for years. He was so genuinely worried about her and didn't want her to die.

And that makes me want to see him Akira more than anyone.

4. What character do you (the asker) remind me of?

This one probably won’t work very well for anons but no matter.

Seidou!

6. What’s your favorite piece of TG fan content you’ve made? (If you haven’t made any just treat this as 7)

I will be honest I'm obsessed with my Blinding Lights fic but have long periods of writers block. I get self conscious sometimes about my characterization bc I don't want it to be too fanonized but I also want to have fun.

I have a lot of plans for it that I just…cannot get to yet. But hopefully one day I can

9. You switch places with (character) for a day, what’s the first thing you’re doing with your newfound abilities/associations and do you survive.

Most definitely survive because I feel like trying to kill Seidou is like trying to kill a very stubborn roach. I'm not really sure what I'd do, though !

Maybe test out his ghoul abilities and have some fun doing like… parkour or something.

[rainydaze-rhys]

Do all 25 for borderlands. Yknow. For funsies.

There will be a readmore line here somehow because on god I’m about to say so much. let me preface: all my hot takes on the matter are a solid 4 years old at minimum, I do not keep up to date on the blands fandom, my enjoyment of the series exists exclusively in isolation these days, etc., etc., if things have changed then I simply do not know about it

1. the character everyone gets wrong

Handsome Jack. He is not a good dad. He is also not in his 30s. That man has an adult daughter and has been married twice. I refuse to believe he was anything under 50 during BL2.

2. a compelling argument for why your fave would never top or bottom

DHKDGDJSHDJDJ I sure did forget this was one of the questions. Um. My faves are all verse and no one would refuse to do one thing or another.

3. description of the worst take you’ve seen on tumblr

I saved this for last and then still couldn’t bring myself to remember anything so this doesn’t get an answer because I simply do not want to remind myself of those takes

4. what was the last straw that made you finally block that annoying person?

Back in my borderlands days I was afraid of blocking people so I simply did not do it. Took me until only a couple years ago to finally realize “Oh this rules and significantly improves my online experience” and now I block all the time, but this is an entirely separate blog from my borderlands one so it doesn’t have any crossover

5. worst discord server and why?

This one I can’t answer. Discord wasn’t a thing for my original dive into borderlands. We all were just on tumblr constantly and then me and a few friends also talked on Skype

6. which ship fans are the most annoying?

Handsome jack/Rhys. I mean I was there. I was in the thick of it. I could see it. But oh my god the braindead takes on it and the aggressive insistence that it was basically canon! The number of people who actively harassed people who liked the actual in-game love interests! The amount of times I saw people say “I don’t personally like this so I’d rather people not discuss it around me” only to be bombarded with dozens of responses discussing it in detail! Wretched! One of the all-time worst collective cases of people insisting the biggest and most popular ship was effectively canon and getting mad at anyone saying otherwise

7. what character did you begin to hate because not because of canon but because of how the fandom acts about them?

Handsome Jack. lol. lmao.

8. common fandom opinion that everyone is wrong about

Handsome Jack is a dogshit father and every single fluff piece or “Happy father’s day lol” post or headcanon about him being a good dad to Angel is dead wrong to an astounding degree. He put her in a cage and used her as a computer for her entire life and frankly she should have gotten to kill him

9. worst part of canon

Borderlands 3.

I was going to say “I kid” but I don’t. It has its moments, but god, it sucks so bad. Killing Maya, replacing Angel with Tannis, writing off Lilith, doing what they did with Aurelia (she would NOT fuck that man), flanderizing the characters from TftBL (Vaughn’s… whole situation…), and— god I just remembered mid-sentence that New Tales exists. That one was actually worse than BL3 somehow.

10. worst part of fanon

Handsome Jack. I’m just gonna keep saying this for basically every question that asks about the bad parts of fandom because literally… him and the people rabidly defending him. (<- he is my favorite character and also I think he deserved worse than he got. these are not mutually exclusive)

11, number of fandom-related words you’ve filtered

See above re: blocking people, I didn’t filter things at the time and on this blog I follow almost no one who posts borderlands content

12. the unpopular character that you actually like and why more people should like them

Fiona is weirdly unpopular given that she’s literally a protagonist. The same with Lilith, actually, now that I think about it; people seem to either be “meh” about her or frothing-at-the-mouth enraged about her. And they’re wrong! Fiona is a great character who deserved to actually fucking exist in bl3, and Lilith is really well written as understandably arrogant and capable! Also, Nakayama and Vasquez. I can’t take credit for being into those two because other people with extremely good taste did it first and influenced me, but it remains true. And ELLIE. I know “unpopular” isn’t strictly true of her because I think most people would say they like her, but Ellie is a gold star across every game she’s in and I wish there was even more of her and I wish people appreciated her more. Love Ellie.

13. worst blorbofication

. handsome jack.

14. that one thing you see in fics all the time

So many borderlands fics are a/b/o. Mpreg is like the DEFAULT. It boggles the mind. “Rhys Borderlands is Handsome Jack’s PA and then he goes into heat in his boss’s office and Jack is such a ruggedly masculine alpha he takes suuuuch good care of him!” Gives me the ick. One thing they don’t tell you about naming yourself after a video game character is the rammys when you try to read a fic and see Your Own Name in those situations.

15. that one thing you see in fanart all the time

I actually don’t really remember the fanart well enough to say about this. I vaguely remember a lot of art of Rhys Borderlands strung up like a puppet controlled by Jack, but beyond that, I’unno

16. you can’t understand why so many people like this thing

Can I be very fully and entirely honest. I don’t love Tim. I don’t hate Tim! And I’ve turned around on him a lot, his appearance in the Handsome Jackpot DLC in bl3 is phenomenal and he’s a great character! And it’s a super interesting concept! I just still don’t love him.

17. there should be more of this type of fic/art

I want more fics where Angel survives and gets out from under Jack’s influence. Let the Crimson Raiders be her new parents. I want her to be Maya’s best friend and I want her to date Gaige and I want her to be there in person to kick Jack in the dick when he loses badly and then dies.

18. it’s absolutely criminal that the fandom has been sleeping on…

The Pre-Sequel. The Pre-Sequel. The Pre-Sequel. YES the gameplay can be tedious at times. However. I love the Pre-Sequel so much. Love the writing. Adore the plot. Cherish the individual Vault Hunters. The Claptastic DLC remains one of my favorite DLCs. Love Elpis. Fucking love Janey Springs. Hate the way they left so many loose ends to be tied up plot-wise and then just kinda went “lol nvm all that” in the next game.

19. you’re mad/ashamed/horrified you actually kind of like…

IYKYK ;)

20. part of canon you found tedious or boring

A lot of the Pre-Sequel is going back and forth across very large open areas using Stingrays which are a vehicle I do not love. A lot of BL3 is also going back and forth across very large open areas using vehicles which control like the Stingrays. There are so many quests that are just “drive around and kill 30 guys and pick up 8 items then drive here and kill 30 animals and pick up 8 more items then drive back and kill 30 guys and give me the items.”

21. part of canon you think is overhyped

I don’t really think there are overhyped things unless BL3 entirely counts as overhyped, which… not anymore. Honestly most of the stuff that’s hyped is fairly understandable. The most popular DLCs are inevitably the ones which are the most well-written with interesting mechanics.

22. your favorite part of canon that everyone else ignores

I already said the Pre-Sequel. Uh, if “everyone else” includes the writers, then TftBL, because they absolutely just threw all of that except Rhys and Vaughn in the trash and then ran those two through a meat grinder.

23. ship you’ve unwillingly come around to

No “unwilling” about ‘em, I’m usually pretty much open to whatever, but I also don’t even poke my head into the tags these days so I haven’t experienWAIT no I just remembered Zer0/Rhys is a thing. I used to not like it. I do now. Silly goofy.

24. topic that brings up the most rancid discourse

“Is it okay to like Handsome Jack?” I will not be elaborating because thinking too much about the endless debates gives me hives

25. common fandom complaint that you’re sick of hearing

Once again I am too disconnected from the greater fandom these days to actually know and be annoyed by what people are complaining about.

[oddree13]

Steddie at the Crossroads

Last night on the Steddie HOM Server, @originalbooktheif had the wonderful idea to suggest an AU where Eddie tries to sell his soul to get Corroded Coffin a breakthrough but when he summons the devil it's none other than Steve fucking Harrington. This is the result of an unhinged discussion between @originalbooktheif, myself, and @lurkinmerkin

---

After everything happens in season 4 Eddie is tired. He's tired and he wants to get out of Hawkins. He figures if everyone thinks he’s a satanic devil worshipper despite the government coverup he might as well try it out. 

He drives his van to a crossroads outside of Hawkins and buries a few items into the ground - one of the graffitied missing posters Wayne had mistakenly hung up, his guitar pick necklace, and he couldn’t find a cat bone so he settled for a chicken bone from his dinner a few nights ago. 

Eddie buries the box and waits. He feels like an idiot as he paces, grateful that no one is around to see him. He’s about to start walking back to his van when he turns and sees King Steve™️ - gap jeans, polos, and devil horns peeking out from his infamous hair. He's so startled he trips on his feet and lands in the dirt.

"Really Munson? All the way out here? Not the intersection of Maple and Roosevelt?"

Eddie looks utterly confused and disappointed while Steve is just pissed he's been summoned to a crossroad way outside of Loch Nora. He wonders if this is some sort of trick. Jason and his lot are usually going on about how the devil shows you what you want to see and sure preppy and mean is his type but Steve Harrington is not what Eddie thought the devil would look like.

"At least you have your van. Given the circumstances, I'm at least taking a ride. Soul to be determined. So what are we asking for?" He wonders, as Eddie just stares at his newest friend in bewilderment. "Oh c'mon please don't tell me you did this for like a dare! Zazy is going to be up my ass even more," Steve grumbles. 

Eddie's not sure what to think but for some reason, he's compelled to ask if Zazy his dad. Which makes Steve laugh. 

"Absolutely not. Lucifer is too busy fucking fallen angels to remember I exist. Hawkins isn’t on his radar, trust me. No, Azazel is one of my - cousins I think is the closest human equivalent - thank goodness he's not my dad."

"But you're not Steve. You just look like him," Eddie stammers, and Steve just walks over to him and crouches down to look Eddie in the eye. 

"Sorry to disappoint you there. Samyaza is my real name but Steve is way easier on Earth. Are we going to ask questions all night or are going to ask me for what you want? Probably not going to give it to you seeing as you’ve already gone through hell and back.” Eddie hates how pleased Steve seems as his own joke. 

“Wait, no, that’s not how this works. I bury the items, I offer you my soul, and you give me what I want!” Eddie argues, finally getting up, frustrated that even now Steve in condescending to him. 

“Eddie that seems like a lack of agency in my role. We demons may be loose about a lot of things, but consent isn’t one of them. Free will is highly prized.” The smile that crosses Steve’s face is both cocky and feral and Eddie hates how he’s turned on by it. He really is a freak. “Just tell me what you want and I’ll see if it’s worth the trade.”

“I want the band to take off. I want Corroded Coffin to get its break and take me far from here. I don’t care what it costs.” Eddie hates the face Steve is making mainly because he can’t read it. The demon flicks his hand and a piece of paper appears and he scans it over. “I need to run some numbers. Ever since the stuff with the upside-down happened hell’s been a little bit in shambles.”

And doesn’t that just floor Eddie? He thought surely that the upside-down was proof of some sort of hell and that Steve’s involvement and survival are proof before him but that doesn’t seem to be the case. 

“Look you can ask all your questions on the ride home. I assume you’re driving.”

“Can’t you like teleport or something?”

“Does this look like Star Trek to you? Get your offering out of the ground and let’s go.”

*

On the ride back to Hawkins Eddie learns the following.

King Steve™️ is a demonic long con that is now completely in the trash due to the Upside Down. 

He’s not in Hawkins to actually kill anyone (his dad has guys for that), just cause chaos and debauchery. It started first with his “parents”. Get the head of Harrington Industries to settle down in suburbia to placate his wife while amassing money and influencing elections in a swing state. Steve left to his own devices just made chaos where he could. His mission was simple, corrupt a small town that would cause a domino effect across the American heartland. All he had to do was slowly deflowering the virgins, tease the closeted gays, reinforce the school hierarchy, depressing wages. He titillated the housewives as a lifeguard, and got them to vote for Reagan, etcetera, etcetera. He helped get the mayor elected which resulted in Starcourt, a shrine to capitalism. 

He was so close to his goal. Nancy Wheeler was right near the end of his list when he finds himself squaring off with some flower-faced alien motherfucker and he’s left reeling. Steve’s seen a lot. Hellhounds, demons that resemble eldritch horrors, and some of Hell’s finest torture sessions but what the hell is a Demogorgon?!

He has to reassess his whole plan. No one was really meant to die directly on his watch, and he feels something odd in himself when he attends Barb’s funeral. He doesn’t mind the lying or the coverup, more that he actually liked Barb. Sure she was an obstacle in the Nancy plan but he knew a part of Barb could sense him. She wasn’t fooled by his veneer and he respected that. He thinks what bothers him isn’t guilt, but annoyance that he should have known better, sensed something.

Steve tries to continue his mission but then the Halloween party happens and Nancy dumps him. For the first time, it hurts that someone doesn't like him and he doesn't understand why. He chalks it up again to not wanting to be a failure and tries to get back on track. But before he can do that Henderson crashes into his life and Steve cannot let that kid die. It isn’t a part of the plan. And as time goes on Steve takes to Dustin like he was his own minion. He’s not even annoyed that he can’t even figure out a good way to corrupt Henderson and it almost feels wrong too. 

At this point, Eddie has to interrupt and ask if the Party knows. 

“Of course they do. After everything that’s happened, they really aren’t that surprised.”

Steve explains that the party discovered his true nature after the Starcourt incident. There were hints beforehand, and Max has to ask if Billy was his doing. 

Steve explains that Billy’s run-in with the upside-down was a coincidence and actually caused a lot of confusion. But no, Billy Hargrove’s asshole propensity was just fueled by Azazel who got the sweet job of running around California. He only visited Hawkins periodically to check on Billy, and Steve doesn’t realize that until Billy and him are fighting. After all, Steve did love the chance to knock down one of Zazy’s pawns. 

But he leaves it alone after, just warning his cousin to keep Billy out of the kids' way, and Azazel reluctantly agrees. His cousin only resurfaces when he senses Billy’s death and finds Hawkins in more chaos than he left it in. 

“You should’ve reported this to Hell, Steve!”

“I've been busy at the ice cream shop!"

"How is that integral to your mission?!"

"Fueling capitalism, tooth decay, and creating naval fantasies Zazy!" Zazy pictures Steve in his Scoops Uniform, his ram horns on display enticing customers saying 'Ahoy matey! Wouldst thou like to live deliciously?' He doesn't buy it. 

Eddie listens to all this but doesn't understand why Steve is still in Hawkins. 

"Well, that's complicated. You see no one knows what the upside-down is and no one wants to deal with it. Plus plenty of people are willing to make deals now that a hell of sorts has opened up," he mumbles, but Eddie just looks over and sees through Steve's excuse.

"You can just say you like it here. I won't tell a soul." Eddie finds his words hilarious. Almost as hilarious as the pout on Steve's face. 

They sit in the parking lot of Eddie's temporary hotel room and he keeps asking questions. 

Yes, Steve was insulted by Jason Carver claiming Vecna's curse as devilry. And yes, he hated that the man managed a mob before Steve could.

No, he had nothing to do with Chrissy. 

Yes, he definitely was the cause of Eddie's influx of customers in 1985. 

Yes, Robin knows and likes it when Steve tells her the dirty secrets of everyone who comes into the family video. She has a running list of all the Regan voters so she can be vicious with late fees. She also takes advantage of Steve's abilities to know when it's safe to flirt with girls. 

No, he hasn't enchanted anyone in the group though he fondly calls Robin his little familiar which bothers her. He admits Azazel wanted him to but Steve put his foot down. Though after a very dumb argument with Jonathan he toys with the idea that he should make Robin seduce Nancy away from him. 

Eddie then repeats his offer from earlier. “You never told me whether you’d take it. My soul for fame. I’m sure you’ve made plenty of those over the years.”

Steve admits that he has but can’t bring himself to do that to Eddie. “I don’t think you get what that means. And I sort of like you too much to do that to you.”

“Aww, you like me, Stevie. That’s embarrassing.” Eddie expects Steve to blush or just brush it off. But instead, he sees a flash of Steve’s inhuman eyes and wonders if he crossed a line. But then he remembers something Steve mentioned earlier in the night. Steve Harrington collects virginities. 

“Then what would my virginity get me?” he asks.  Now there isn’t a flash of inhumanity, but steady eyes that lock onto Eddie’s and make him shiver. He hates that he might prove Jason Carver right if he sleeps with the devil, but judging by the way Steve’s staring at him, Eddie thinks it’ll be worth it. 

[redphlox]

Dabi's fear of feelings and connections

Dabi is a walking contradiction; he says he doesn't care about anyone, but his flames, which are linked to his emotions, demonstrate otherwise when Twice is killed. Dabi brushes off the news that Natsuo could have died because of him but still refers to him affectionately as Natsu-kun. Touya went around calling Endeavor out for neglecting his children but still trained to regain his approval and attention anyway. He lashed out at baby Shouto, admitted Shouto had done nothing wrong, and then attacked him again years later. He cries blood while thinking about his family but doesn't go home to them or change his actions which hurt them even more. Dabi wants to destroy hero society for a better future but it's obvious he doesn't plan to live long enough to see that future.

The gaps between his actions and his words are a result of dissociation and repression. It's not that Dabi is emotionless. Actually, he feels too much and he's afraid of his feelings because they've done nothing but hurt him emotionally and physically. He literally almost burned to death the one time he had a burst of emotion on Sekoto Peak and in order to prevent a repeat of that, he operates under the flawed notion that safety lies in repressing his feelings and pushing people away. He lies to himself and others and therefore cannot reconcile with his true self and can’t trust others.

In this meta I'll discuss how Dabi deals with his unprocessed feelings of betrayal and neglect by denying himself connections with both his inner wounded child and those around him. I'll also address a few misconceptions surrounding Dabi because dismantling them is key to understanding him. Contrary to popular belief, he does not want to kill his father, he never wanted to be a hero for his own sake, and he doesn't hate Shouto or his family. At its core, Touya's hurt stems from discovering that his relationship with his father wasn't based on unconditional love. This realization destroyed his sense of self so much it caused him to start fearing his own feelings and being close to others because of the link between his emotions and his self-destructive quirk.

To understand Dabi we have to understand Touya. In 291 we see through Endeavor's flashback that Touya was eager to train under him and carry his legacy. It's implied by the fact they’re working on ultimate moves that not only is Touya a willing, eager participant but that the two have been training together for quite some time. In 301 we learn that after Touya's quirk started hurting him Endeavor not only abandoned the training regime but also abandoned Touya both emotionally and physically. Instead of using the time he spent training Touya to help Touya find a new hobby or purpose in life, or just hanging out with his kid, Endeavor chooses to remove himself from Touya’s life. When Touya confronts him about the change of routine, Endeavor is seen putting on his jacket and leaving the home, his body turned away from his son.

Maybe Endeavor had errands to run, but my point is that he was in Touya’s life one minute and then gone the next. Touya says so himself: why did Endeavor change his mind all of a sudden? The abrupt change in attitude was jarring for a 4-5 year old to handle. To Touya, training = love, so he felt compelled to keep training and demonstrate his worthiness despite the fact that his quirk was hurting him. To Touya, the pain was worth it if it meant hanging out with his dad again.

But why? Well, Touya was Endeavor's #1 fan, genuinely so. His admiration and fondness for his father was genuine, and he didn't question the triumphant look on Endeavor's face when Touya said he wanted to learn the ultimate move. Before his quirk started burning him, Touya had no idea he was born for his father's ulterior motives. He had no reason to question his father's attention. Touya lived under the impression his bond with his dad was genuine and special, and he probably felt lucky that his father was willing to share something so important to him (heroism). Even after the training stops and Endeavor stops paying attention to Touya, Touya still wears his merch and vies for his attention. Most kids see their parents as larger than life and Touya was no exception. Keigo Takami admired Endeavor the hero, and Touya Todoroki admired his father who just so happened to be the hero Endeavor. Since being a hero was such a big deal for Endeavor, it was a big deal for Touya.

But that's where Touya's story becomes tragic. His father is a flawed, flawed man with many insecurities and fallacies that he pushes onto his family. I’ll get to those in a moment, but as intelligent and observant Touya is to catch on that Endeavor never set out to marry to become a father, he is too young to separate himself from his father’s expectations. Touya realizes he was born for a purpose and Touya will be damned if he doesn't fulfill that purpose even if he knows it's wrong. His father's ‘love’ meant that much to him. For Touya, it's not about becoming a hero for the glory. It was about his relationship with his father because, as I mentioned earlier, Touya was his #1 fan in the sense that he loved Enji just for being his dad. There were no conditions tied to that. “You are my dad, and I love you.”

But that wasn’t a sentiment that Touya felt in return, and that hurt Touya. He internalized he wasn't good enough, that something about him was inherently wrong. But more than that, his world came tumbling down - he felt betrayed and lied to: his father didn't love him like Touya needed him to, and this truth destroyed him. Their relationship was a lie, a farce, and it hurt so much Touya became obsessed with not hurting anymore because he couldn’t get away from it.

Touya’s motivation to become a hero didn't rise from being inspired by All Might like Shouto. Touya’s thought process wasn’t "I want to be a hero to help others or be like All Might" like Deku. No, Touya only wanted to be a hero because he wanted his father to be proud of him for surpassing All Might. Notice that Touya's obsession with beating All Might slowly diminishes from “I can surpass All Might” to “I can surpass All Might like Shouto, too” to just “look at me, Endeavor.” It was never about being a hero per say, but about his relationship with his father. Touya realized that Endeavor isn't his father first, but a hero, and he understands that he has to be a hero too to fit into his father's world. Even upon realizing that his father was using him, Touya still wanted to be part of his life, still wanted that bond. Touya, in his desperation to be loved and accepted again, could look past his father's selfishness as long as he regained that approval. Touya could pretend the relationship was real as long as he stopped feeling so unlovable.

This is unhealthy thinking, of course. Even if Touya somehow managed to regain Endeavor's approval, the relationship would still be one-sided and dissatisfying because he wouldn't be able to ignore the truth. But, this is how he rationalized his insistence to keep training in his 4-5 year old mind and this line of thought stuck with him as he grew up just as those feelings of inadequacy never left him.

This is precisely why Natsuo's drowsy "can't you go talk to our sister?" hurt so much. Touya was already emotionally fragile, and hearing that felt like being rejected all over again when it was actually Natsuo just trying to sleep. Touya was hypersensitive to any words or actions that could be interpreted as dismissive. His trauma wouldn't listen to logic that Natsuo was 8 and too young to understand, that he was tired - no, Touya's brain said, you're being rejected again! This is also why he also stormed away crying from Fuyumi after she expressed her concern for him.

In Touya’s mind, why couldn't anyone just agree with him that he was good enough? He heard "your dad's right and you're not good enough so why try" not "I care about you, your father is wrong, and I don't want you to keep getting hurt" whenever Rei tried to get him to stop training because that's the message he got from his father, too. Nevermind that it infuriated Touya that his mother could stand there and preach to him when, from his perspective, she couldn’t take her own advice. All Endeavor ever did was teach him to turn up the heat, so why should it matter that doing just so hurts him? Touya didn't understand NOT training his quirk because he had been taught that raising his firepower was ideal in all situations. Those two statements didn't make sense to a 4-5 year old, a 13 year old, and it still doesn’t make sense as a 24 year old.

To take Endeavor's lack of self awareness a step further, because it's important to understand Endeavor to fully understand Dabi, Endeavor has yet to realize his own inherent worth. He doesn't have to prove anything to his family, especially his kids. They love him unconditionally, without special reason aside from the fact that he's theirs and he's himself. However, Endeavor is so obsessed with proving himself that he doesn't realize he never had to, and he projects this onto his children. They must prove themselves by winning the genetic lottery, by being useful to his plans, by surpassing All Might.

The irony that to be a great father he doesn't have to be a hero at all is ugly because Endeavor has no identity outside of being a hero. Endeavor has said before he wants to be a good hero and father to make Shouto proud, but he fails to realize he already had this in Touya all those years ago and it still left him unsatisfied. The issue isn’t his role as a hero, it’s his inner self. In 301 Endeavor literally reaches out to Touya to talk him out of training and hurting himself, and Touya allows his father to touch his shoulders because he wants a bond with his father - any bond. Shouto, on the other hand, wouldn't allow Endeavor to touch him in 167 and slaps his hand away because he doesn’t want Endeavor’s approval. Endeavor doesn't realize Natsuo carries deep abandonment and neglect issues because he wanted to be accepted by his father too (light novel #5) but was ignored. Endeavor doesn't realize he was always good enough by default and that by projecting onto his kids and trying to be the top hero he’s doing the opposite of what he wants. He just keeps pushing away his family.

It’s important to point out Endeavor’s illogical thinking because Touya learned some of these same ideas. Touya repeatedly tries to prove himself without realizing that he was always good enough by default. The problem wasn’t his quirk or his body, but his father’s flawed thinking and self-worth issues. Now as an adult, Dabi is selfish because he's Endeavor's son and emobidies his most negative characteristics. Dabi thinks of his flames as Endeavor's, and he thinks of himself as an extension of Endeavor because that's how Endeavor set him up for life. Touya has no identity to fall back on after his father casts him aside. He was supposed to be Endeavor 2.0, but now that title is Shouto’s. Dabi doesn’t hate Shouto as a person, but he has tricked himself into believing Shouto is their father’s puppet. Shouto is a doll being used by their father with no self agency, and Dabi is going to break all of Endeavor’s toys. It’s nothing personal against Shouto, it’s just Shouto’s bad luck that he happens to be Endeavor’s masterpiece. This is why Dabi doesn’t hurt Shouto when they first meet at the training camp, and why Dabi stops attacking Shouto after Endeavor passes out - it’s not about Shouto. It’s about Endeavor, and breaking Endeavor. Touya is still there trying to be part of his father’s world, only this time not as a hero but as a villain who will end his own suffering. He doesn't want Endeavor to die, he just wants him to suffer, to ruin his dreams. Dabi thinks of it as justice.

But because Touya is still there, there is still that goodness in him, too. His connection to Fuyumi and Natsuo is still there, repressed and compartmentalized. It’s why he calls them affectionately as Fuyumi-chan and Natsu-kun. Touya’s pain is so great he has decided he’d rather end it than to carry on and look elsewhere. He's stuck, rightfully so. He recognizes his mother is a flawed person and ultimately doesn’t blame her for being a victim - she could have done more for her son, but he still sees her and his other siblings, even Shouto, as people who fell victim to Endeavor’s abuse who don't challenge their situation. Dabi sees himself as someone who does stand up to the abuse but doesn’t realize he still wants his father’s attention. He's always wanted it. That's why he went around at 13 condemning his father's treatment of his children but still trained to prove himself. This is part of the reason he became a villain.

Not to mention that Dabi literally can't cry. He has no way to release those emotions, so instead of trying to let them out, he pushes them down. But that doesn't work and is detrimental in the long run. In 290-294 we saw Dabi's flames burn so hot during his confrontation with Endeavor and revealing himself as Touya that his burns have spread. Dabi is afraid of his feelings because of their connection to his flames, but he also uses his feelings to his advantage. He wants to go out in an inferno along with Shouto just to hurt Endeavor and put an end to his own suffering and Endeavor's career. This is why Dabi doesn't bother calming himself down or denying that he never forgot how he was treated when he lived at home. Dabi became emotional in that battlefield, smiling maniacally instead of crying because he physically can't cry. In his mind, if his feelings are going to destroy him, he might as well use them to prove a point. After all, he has experience being used. It's why he was born.

I'm not saying any of these actions or thoughts are healthy or correct or condoned, by the way. Trauma responses don't make logical sense and usually aren't healthy. Knowing how the mind responds to trauma, it's understandable that Touya still wanted his father's attention even if it was abusive. In fact, this is how children often respond to abuse. Their caretaker/parent is all they know and they cling to these figures. Often times when authorities try to remove a child from their abusive parents, the child doesn't want to go because this parent is all they know and they do feel like they love their parent/caretaker. I’m not saying the authorities got involved in this case, because obviously they didn’t, but this same mentality of abused children can be applied to Touya. Touya, in his four year old mind, probably convinced himself that if he was good enough everything would go back to how it used to be.

So, to sum up Dabi’s character, of course he doesn't make any sense. He’s still that hurt 4-5 year old who is trying to protect himself from ever getting hurt like that again while still wanting his father’s validation. Of course he doesn’t want to get close to anyone, not even the League. He doesn't want to be vulnerable or let people in or form connections because the last time that happened he was let down, forsaken, and it hurt so much it literally made him lose control of his quirk to the point he almost died. When Twice is killed, Dabi consoles himself by saying he didn't care anyway, all to prevent another emotional fire. Dabi is a master of compartmentalizing and boxing away his feelings - this is probably why, 310 chapters into BNHA, we have yet to have a few chapters in his POV or his backstory. He's disconnected from himself. He knows his plot to get justice will hurt his siblings and mother and to live with himself and move forward he represses those feelings.

Because of his father not showing up on Sekoto peak, Dabi has to live with physical disabilities due to his scars and memories of burning alive. He doesn't want to go through that again so he lies to himself that he doesn't care about anyone or anything. He denies that he's still in pain while simultaneously seeking validation of his pain. He acts like he doesn't care about his family but still calls them affectionate names. He acts like he hates Endeavor and calls him by his name but still wants his attention. He decided long ago that he would die destroying Endeavor's career because that was the thing Endeavor cares about most of all in this life. It's a "you hurt me so I'll hurt you" mentality. He has tricked himself into thinking this is justice, failing to realize this won't make him feel better if he doesn't die by his own hand along the way.

Dabi is full of resentment and spite, both of which take root from feelings of abandonment, betrayal, and the loss of a purpose and the realization that he wasn't born to be loved for who he was but as a tool for his father. The first betrayal he suffered was in the form of realizing his father didn't love him genuinely, and this was identity-breaking for him. He never recovered from it. The second betrayal, the reinforcer, was his father not showing up to Sekoto Peak. Since then, Dabi is reliving his trauma over and over again the more he uses his quirk and the more he faces Endeavor. To be saved, Dabi needs to accept that he is loved unconditionally and needs to be validated that he was right to feel thrown aside and used.

[katrinamakes5estuff]

DM Tip: Don't give your players +1 magic weapons.

Or rather, don't give them magic weapons that are just +1.

Getting a +1 Longsword is usually about as exciting as swapping bronze sword, 12 ATK for iron sword, 14 ATK in an early JRPG shop: it's about thirty seconds of thrill followed by pretty much nothing, as the only distinct feature the new thing had – its numerical edge – becomes just another part of the rote mechanics of the game.

I can't tell you how many games I've played in where I genuinely forgot I even had a +1 weapon because it's just so ... boring.

What magic weapons and gadgets do you remember from other fantasy? The stuff that sticks with you is rarely going to be "the sword that cuts 5% better than a normal sword" or "the especially nimble screwdriver that's really still just used for screwdriver stuff". You probably remember things that were special, compelling, and a little bit weird: a sword that glows when Orcs are close; a lasso that makes anyone caught in it tell the truth; a hammer that won't tolerate being held by anyone but a Dwarf.

A magic weapon's magic should never amount to just a +number. Magic stuff needs an identity to shine.

This doesn't mean power creep! I'm not telling you to swap every +1 dagger for an artifact flametongue that does 3458d80 fire and summons your demon dad from demon hell to remind the party you're his demon son and also half-dragon and half-angel, too. Just think of a little magical quirk or utility – mechanical, not just flavor – but mechanical in a way that's minor, roleplay-focused, and probably quite a bit niche. Think of something that would be useful to a very specific kind of person, or in a very specific situation.

Some stuff I've given out in the past:

A +1 dagger, shaped like a gilded trowel: when touched to metal or ore, it glows different colors to indicate the type and purity of metal present (counterfeiters hate it!);

A +1 longsword, perfect porcelain white all over: its enchantment automatically cleans it of blood, dirt, and filth after every battle (it can't become rusted, corroded, damaged, or cursed!);

A +1 whip, night-black with a golden tip: it leaves twinkling motes of light floating in the air where it cracks, eventually lighting up the battlefield like a starry sky (useful in the dark!);

A +1 rapier, with a velvet grip and a blade stained the color of fine perfume: it can be made to emit any aroma of the bearer's choice, so long as it's one that might be smelled in a nobleman's luxurious parlor (gives a bonus to CON saves against awful smells!)

These are all immediately more memorable than +1 dagger, +1 whip, and without affecting the balance of the game much more. When one of the niche situations comes up where these little properties are useful, your players will feel engaged and clever, not power-crept.

A good magic item, even a minor one, is something your players are going to talk about, brainstorm uses for, picture themselves using, grow attached to, and feel angst about replacing if the time comes. In other words, a good magic item is like a minor character in your story. You wouldn't want your NPCs to be flat; don't let your loot be, either!!!

[simkjrs]

How about Kusuke for that ask meme? Would love to hear more of your thoughts on that little freak 😊

favorite thing about them

im kind of obsessed with his misanthropic mad scientist ways. theres nothing funnier about kuusuke than his complete lack of consideration for the happiness or quality of life for the rest of the human race. just look at him <3

least favorite thing about them

i hate all the incest jokes baked into his character. asou shuuichi had a perfectly interesting and compelling guy without that so why did he have to ruin it.

aside from that i think its really sad when he regularly invades saiki's privacy & bodily autonomy (such as adding a trigger to saiki's second limiter device without telling him. someone introduce kuusuke to the concept of informed consent please). i do think that this is one of the most interesting points of conflict between him and saiki tho so i wish asou shuuichi did something more with it where saiki gets a character arc learning how to assert his boundaries after living his whole life unable to respect others boundaries (due to x ray and mindreading) and without others respecting his (see: his dad and kuusuke)

favorite line

brOTP

i <3 saiki and kuusukes fucked beyond all repair brothers relationship i love how they care about each other but this fixes nothing and makes everything worse. its so interesting how they shaped each other growing up, and how despite resenting each other they also give each other things they cant get from anyone else -- kuusuke finding a "playmate" who can challenge him and stimulate his creativity, kusuo having someone he can rely on when it comes down to a crisis (such as his limiter breaking or needing to find a way to stop japan from being destroyed by a super volcano explosion).

of course, the fact that kuusuke cant be relied on in any other circumstance is also what makes the relationship interesting i think. like if kuusuke isn't helping saiki fix a problem, then he's the one causing all of saiki's problems. i really wish that we got more exploring their relationship.

that said it's really hard to enjoy them whole heartedly when all the incest jokes keep sneaking in. sorry i keep bringing this up but i really do hate them so much. like either commit to the incest/harrassment plotline and do your best to thoughtfully & respectfully portray the consequences of that trauma, or just leave it out. dont make it into a joke LOL ... literally why does anyone ever think this is funny

OTP

kuusuke x his pure & innocent disregard for humanity <3

nOTP

i see people shipping him with teruhashi makoto sometimes and its like ... why ... would you think that putting two creeps together would fix anything about them. they wouldnt make each other worse in a fun or interesting way. and they wouldnt even be funny

random headcanon

i think that kuusuke stopped resenting saiki shortly after he left home to go to cambridge because suddenly he was the smartest most genius most admired person in the room again but it was so boring because no one could challenge him and there was nothing to surpass. since life felt very boring & meaningless like this, i think that made him reevaluate his relationship with his brother and he realized that as much as it frustrated him to lose it made him happy to have a goal to always strive for. so i think after that, his ill will towards saiki mostly disappeared ... though he still has deadly serious competitive intent.

that said i think saiki never realized kuusuke's change of heart because kuusuke invented the telepathy canceler. and i think kuusuke wasnt interested in correcting saiki about how he felt now, and i think kuusuke didnt give much (if any) consideration to how it would make saiki feel to keep living under the misconception that his brother still hated him but had simply found a way to hide his plotting, forever. in conclusion: kuusuke is kind of the worst. LOL

unpopular opinion

ive already said all my unpopular opinions. my extremely niche opinion is that if saiki kuusuke and enoshima junko were born into the same world they would perfectly cancel each other out because what they both wanted was to fulfill their boredom and what they both did to do that was raise the stakes on other people until they managed to stop them (or didnt). kuusuke and junko would become perfect rivals. they would be like bbc sherlock and moriarty if they were high schoolers. they would be like L and light if L was completely amoral and just devote to winning the case for the sake of winning, and light was also completely amoral and just killing people to see what would happen. and they would be exactly like this post

song i associate with them

HMM i don't really have one. if i had to pick one... primadonna by marina. LOL

favorite picture of them

i cant pick one so you get three.