#Don't know how people can see potential for redemption in that guy

[xjackjackx]

Learning that apparently some people headcanoned Victim as a nice guy and friend before Wanted is so mindblowing. Like not just because it aged so poorly it loops back to being hilarious. But also cause. like. where did the idea of him being nice come from.

His own father made him just to torture and then kill him. His introduction to life was having to fight to defend himself despite having done nothing wrong. A powerless man in an unfair battle against God. And he lost, was killed for no reason. If you believe the clones were their own people instead of a hive-mind, then he made four new friends and immediately lost them. And, if he lived on as a ghost, he spend several years alone, seeing his father forget him and abuse his successor, only to see another successor: One that was so similar in many ways, but got a second chance, got to keep his friends, got to befriend his father, got to live.

His name is literally fucking Victim. How do you NOT get issues and insecurities about basically everything.

If Victim was to return, him being a villain seeking revenge was always the most likely and realistic option. No offence to anyone who liked NiceVic, and this IS from the perspective of someone who never interacted with that side of the fandom, but idk how people could see him as anything but a man hateful towards the whole world for never giving him a chance.

this post was all an excuse to say victim is NOT redeeming, he's gonna join dark in stickhell /hj

[zvtara-was-never-canon]

The only way i could see Canon Katara interested on Zuko is if he somehow did his Heel Turn long before the start of the show and has become a freedom fighter akin to Jet, but without the murder.

Obviously, this is impossible, there is no way that a young Zuko could become a better person without his exile, his enviroment is just not place that encourage

Sorry for the last question i send, i made a mistake and send it sooner than i wanted.

But anyway, what i tried to say that, even if that ridiculous scenario that i propossed where to happen, Zuko would be a very different characther from his Canon self. Plus even if he has become Katara's type, there is no way to know if Katara would be Zuko's type on that scenario lol

***

Once again, guys: pre-scar and exile Zuko was already dealing with a ton of bagagge, and post-redemption Zuko was already a "freedom fighter but without the murder." Katara saw him at this worst during all of book one, at his somewhat less of dick moments (Ba Sing Se), and at his best after his redemption - and she wasn't attracted to him at any of these points.

"I don't support war, genocide and/or murder" is the bare minimum for Katara to not want somebody dead. Compassion is an obligation, not something that immediately makes a guy be a potential boyfriend in her eyes.

We have the answer of what would take for her to be into Zuko, and that answer is not "He can't be a villain anymore" but rather "He can't be Zuko." He can't be a dork that says the wrong thing in a funny way, she'd get mad. He can't want to live in the Fire Nation, there's nothing there for her. He can't be as stubborn as she is, otherwise they're gonna fight (just look at how many times she fights with Toph). He can't take himself too seriously, she'll just mock him for it (ask Sokka).

She wants the guy that literally sweeps her off her feet to charm her, or the guy that notices she's feeling left out at a party, dances with her, and smoothly tells her to ignore everyone's eyes on them because "it's just you and me." She would NOT react well to a guy that screams "SHE'S NOT MY GIRLFRIEND!" in the middle of their date (just see how well it worked for Aang when he went "I mean, if it was between kissing you and dying")

And we do know what Zuko's type is: Mai. Gloomy yet sweet, bitchy yet unbothered, out-spoken yet doesn't feel she owes anybody any explanations ever, can handle herself but likes being pampered, apathetic yet caring, has nothing prove yet can be quite arrogant, stubborn yet understanding, aloof to the world in general yet obviously crazy about him in particular.

Zuko might catch brief feelings for someone like Jin (nice, sweet and cheery), but long-term he needs someone as messy as himself so he can relate, but with the kind of mess that balances him out instead of encouraging his worst traits - the yin to his yang. He was not kidding when he said "You're so beautiful when you hate the world"

Katara loves life in general too much for her and Zuko to relate to each other in that regard. She doesn't even know what the word "apathy" means. She doesn't have an "unbothered" bone in her body. Girl went through a ton of trauma and still wasn't anywhere near gloomy, quite the contrary. And she has a bad temper, just like Zuko, which they both know is a bad combo, hence them surrounding themselves with more chill people (Aang, Iroh, Hakoda, Mai, etc).

They're not each other's type AT ALL, hence there being no spark when they become friends. Hence them being not just embarassed, but weirded our and uncomfortable when people mistake them for a couple.

There's a reason zutara fics re-write their personalities completely: there's no other way to force them together because they're fundamentally incompatible. The real Zuko would NEVER be attracted to the real Katara, and vice versa.

[sorcerersandskillusers]

Ignoring Dazai's horrific actions in the past takes away from the importance of his redemption

I've seen a bunch of people who seem to not know (Or just choose to ignore) how incredibly brutal and terrifying Dazai was in the past.

Dazai is one of my favourite characters and definitely one of the best written in the series, and trying to pretend he wasn't that bad is really reductive for his character as a whole. This post is not some moral plea of why you shouldn't like Dazai because he was evil, he's fictional, but don't pretend a fundamental part of the character doesn't exist.

I'll start with a list of some of the things Dazai has done:

Nailed a guys feet to the floor with rebar, then stacked concrete blocks on his arms till they were about to break.

Imprison Q who couldn't have been older then 8 at the time in conditions that made Q want to destroy Dazai years later.

Mental and physically abuse Akutagawa to the point where he is entirely dependent on Dazai, and values Dazais approval over his own life.

He has never failed to break a victim in interrogation even when Kouyous division couldn't make then talk.

He was responsible for half of the mafias profits in the year before The Dark Era, which is completely insane.

He was able to make both Mori and Verlaine uneasy, two of the most dangerous individuals in the whole series.

"Miscalculation.

You misjudged the situation, you failed to find the optimum solution. You should not have chosen this child to help you. Dazai is unpredictable. He can be sharp but in a dark, twisted way. He's observant. He's cold and calculating with no equivalent in the mafia where most evil resides."

Dazai is a darkness so deep that no one in the mafia can fully see the bottom.

But that's what makes his redemption so powerful, surly if even that child, who has come to believe that he isn't even human, can find hope and safety, then anyone can.

Dazai is a product of his environment, he has infinite potential, and a talent for manipulation, but when he surrounds himself with good people he starts to reflect them and become better himself. First with Odasaku and Ango, then with the ADA. He is washing the black of the port mafia off himself, and that will take time, and it will take support, but its why his journey is so fantastic.

[adyophene]

what if husker is only still a drunk bc alastor keeps him around booze? like he tried to be sober before the hotel but failed bc where alastor put him. and so now he thinks he can never get sober and it's what keeps him from heaven

also ur really cool

also it's like very late and I'm sleep deprived so sorry if this doesn't make the most sense

We actually think sorta alike! (and thank you!)

I'm gunna pop my reply behind a readmore, cause it ended up longer than I anticipated! Sorry if it doesn't make a whole lot of sense, I too, am chronically sleep deprived! ♥

I have two theories on exactly this premise. One that is more what I imagine, mainly cause its simple, and even a bit silly, which is that, judging by what Mimzy says, it could just be that Alastor has had Husk bartend for him for a long time, and as a bit of a creature of habit, dragged him along to the hotel just because he wanted him there! That he knows the guy, knows he's good at his job, knows he's loyal despite everything, thinks he's entertaining to annoy(or that they're somewhat friends, depending on what 'word of god' you go with from the creators) and maybe even knows about that soft heart that Husk hides behind all the hissing.

The second theory is a bit darker/less charitable to Alastor, based on a few thoughts I had during my recent rewatch of the series. I started with the pilot, and noticed how dramatically Husk reacts to being offered just a generic cheap booze, and then how intensely drunk he starts off during the series proper. Like how we see in Al's initial commercial, where he actually blacks out completely. Or during some early dialogue where he's slurring he words a lot more than in later episodes? It did kind of strike me as either a 'binge drinking after not drinking for a long time' or maybe a 'get blackout drunk to not have to deal with being there' thing. Either way, being caused/facilitated by Al. While I've seen a lot of people discredit Alastor's motivations in 'wanting to see demons reach for redemption, and then fail miserably' as just being a front to a greater purpose, I think that both can be true. I think he's got a reason he's there, but also that he just really enjoys fucking with people.

I think he added the bar as an extra temptation to any hotel residents, but then also potentially to mess specifically with Husk and put him in an environment that would be both a good influence on him, and a terrible one. Literally put him in a place where he could have a support system if he wanted it, but be surrounded by one of his worst vices the entire time. Also, since Al and Husk are supposed to know each other quite well, I could see Al dragging Husk to the hotel because he'd know how stupid Husk would find the whole thing. Although, my theory would be less that Alastor providing booze is the reason Husk can't be redeemed, and more that Husk's self loathing is the reason he feels like he can't be redeemed. I think we'll learn about some shitty things he's done in S2, while at the height of his gambling addiction, and that he just doesn't/can't/won't come to terms with. Or something like that anyways!

Did that make any sense? I hope so. I don't usually write stuff like this.

[yurnu]

I'm really happy that you see Lucifer the way I do. The way I see it, Lucifer thought he knew better than anyone else, and despite the warnings, he still did what he wanted because he thought he was smarter than everyone else. All because he wanted to play God.

I guess I'm just tired of people saying, " 'uwu' poor baby. Heaven didn't deserve you!" And the book talking about the Fall of Lucifer and Lilith, where they are seen as the victims who did nothing wrong, I just sigh. Because I find it so hard to believe that they didn't do *anything* wrong. Like, really? You sure that's just not, I don't know, a watered-down version to make your parents look good Charlie?

And I do see Charlie as someone who is naive in the worst way. Like, if you want me to sympathize with you, how about NOT going to the Cannibals and asking them to help fight Heaven? You don't SEE anything wrong with that? At all? Or are you just looking through your rose-tinted glasses because you were sheltered?

How was Adam "controlling" when they had no concept of anything? They hadn't had the fruit of knowledge, so they had no concept of evil. How...how was Adam the bad guy in Eden? All I can see is Lilith bored with her lot in life, Adam completely happy and oblivious, and Lucifer who coveted someone else's wife. And he didn't just stop there. No. No. No. He took Eve too.

He doomed humanity to sin and evil, had Adam and Eve cursed and thrown into the wild with no way to know how to survive, and then had the gall to say, "Humanity is a mess. I gave them free will and look what they did with it." Like it wasn't your fault for giving it to them in the first place! No wonder Adam hates you! Because you cursed his family to know what pain feels like for the rest of their lives!

And they just WASTED Adam's potential but I've ranted enough.

That's what I dislike about the HH fandom, they always make Lucifer out to be a poor pathetic little man who wanted to do something good But no dude! Lucifer is the main reason for human decay and the main reason for Adam's suffering! But that's a fact that almost everyone tends to forget since it would make him look bad to your baby.

I feel that Charlie is quite hypocritical and stupidDoes she really want to take her sinners to heaven after having killed a large number of angels with the cannibals to devour their bodies and after having killed the first man? Is there something wrong with this chick's head or what?

Obviously that book at the beginning of the series was made by Lilith to make her and Lucifer look good in the eyes of her daughter, they are the good guys in the story, not the evil heaven where the innocents go after dying at the hands of the sinners she supposedly loves so much.

Adam was a bloody character with quite a bit of potential to exploit, from his tragic history, his love for Eve, his constant ups and downs in his life since the expulsion from Eden and possibly seeing the reason why he came to the conclusion why extermination was the answer to overpopulation. But it was obvious that it would either reveal Lucifer and Lilith's incompetence to lead their kingdom or show how wrong Charlie was about redemption.

But let's just say Viv doesn't want that, she wants her baby Charlie to be the one who shines in the show and the one who is right about everything.

I just hope that in the second season they shut my mouth and show a plot twist that will leave our asses twisted, but knowing who is running the show and already having watched HB and seeing how it turned into a cheap soap opera, I doubt that will happen.

[ablogofsapphicpanic]

humbly asking you to do the rest of the characters’ dnd classes because all of those were so spot on!

Gladly!!!! I have way too much free time lmao

I'll do the ones I can think of and if I miss any that you want, just let me know!

Amren - order of the scribes wizard. I partially chose this one because of the awakened book and her interactions with the book of breathings ngl. Am I hilarious? Yes. But I could also lean into cleric given that SJM has been like she's an old testament angel so I'd do war domain for that but imo that would be like a life she's left behind type thing to favor the wizardry

Mor - Okay Mor is kind of hard for me because I like the eloquence bard a little bit but not as much as I did for Lucien but we don't know her powers exactly so I am just kind of swinging in the dark for some aspects but ultimately I think I'd do that.

And then for the High Lords, I already mentioned that Helion and Beron (and Eris) would be the different subclasses of sorcerer and for the record I think Beron would specifically have gold dragon ancestry

Tarquin - fathomless warlock. It's got a whole bunch of water/sea based powers and also certain weather stuff. The water elemental summoning is giving the water wolves that Feyre makes in Velaris and she definitely stole that from his spell list imo. Also I know you horny bitches would love that the bigby's hand shows up as a tentacle

Tamlin - Path of the Beast barbarian. There's specifically a backstory option about descending from an archdruid and inheriting the ability to change shape which I feel like fits his backstory and how he chose being a warrior over any sort of diplomacy/prepping for being High Lord. I would say generally the High Lord of Spring would be a druid of some sort but Tamlin (and potentially his father bc we know he's not the nicest guy) kind of broke the line on that.

Kallias - Circle of land druid but specifically the arctic one. My man is out here commanding polar bears in his army, no way that's not some type of druid. And the arctic circle is perfect for him because it's summoning ice and snow storms and all that jazz

Thesan - Life domain cleric. That one is pretty simple, that domain focuses on healing and keeping people alive. But I could also see the alchemist artificer considering the Dawn Court is full of tinkerers and not just focus on magic for healing and protection but also actual physical solutions to things.

Gwyn - so I also generally put the priestesses into clerics but I feel like the domain can vary and Gwyn would probably go into knowledge domain but I like @separatist-apologist's paladin path for her. I waffle between vengeance and redemption because Gwyn's path as a Valkyrie seems to be more focused on protection and prevention which the redemption oath fits well. I feel like I'd need to see more of her as a valkyrie to fully settle.

Emerie - also a paladin but oath of glory. I don't say glory in that I think she's self obsessed, but more in the fact that I think she feels like she and her friends are destined for greatness and refuses to settle for less. She doesn't let circumstances hold her back even before joining the Valkyries and this oath fits that well.

Jurian - Battle master fighter. There's something to be said specifically for the interacting with a creature outside of combat and learning something about them for this one because Jurian does his watch and wait pretty much the entirety of ACOWAR and Prythian winds up better off in the fight for it.

Vassa - You know I gotta do the fiend warlock. Gifted magic from a pact with an ancient semi-demonic being? It's right there. Obviously it doesn't include her shapeshifting but so many of her abilities are based around fire that I can't not go with this one. Imagine a giant firebird casting scorching ray at you.

[hamliet]

Hi....if you don't mind me asking, can I ask your top 5 (or top 3) favorite characters from Hazbin Hotel? And why you loved them? And your top 5 favorite moments from the series? Sorry if you've answered this question before....Thanks....

No worries!

1. Angel Dust. No surprise. He's my type, and I love that he's self-destructive and selfish while paradoxically very caring for his loved ones. The same guy who worries more for his drugs than someone crushed under a boulder adores his pet and is desperate to protect Charlie from Val. His romance with Husk is also well-written, because all Angel thinks he has to offer is his body, but Husk isn't at all going to take advantage of that and meets Angel where he's at: two losers, baby.

2. Lucifer. I think he's a well-written bumbling dad with a lot of love and a crippling sense of apathy brought on by guilt and the dissolution of his dreams that Charlie reawakens in him. I think he's essentially a disappointed idealist, but the story will show his resurrection into idealism via Charlie.

3. Alastor. Our devil on Charlie's shoulder. But he also clearly has a heart, and while I see him getting worse before he gets better, I think the pilot is exceptionally clear that the endgame is his redemption as well. He doesn't want it, doesn't care about it, is merely interested in watching humans struggle... and in fulfilling whatever deal he has with Lilith. And against the odds, he does care about Charlie.

4. Charlie. I love how inspired by Tangled's Rapunzel she is, and her idealism as both a coping mechanism and a potential weakness yet also being her greatest strength--there's so much potential in her arc. She's the only character who never had a chance to end up in heaven, because she was born in hell. Yet she's so full of love and idealism, while still being flawed and a bit naive (that deal with Alastor is so coming back to bite her), that she inspires people around her and the audience too. We see why people like her.

5. Rosie. A minor character, yes, but she has a good impact on Charlie... And dearie, who among us hasn't thought of eating our first husbands?

As for moments, I don't really know. That's harder for me, but in no particular order:

Sir Pentious awakening in heaven as a silly snake and Emily's delighted face.

Lucifer showing up to fight Adam on Charlie's behalf and his malapropism bringing the entire battle to a temporary standstill.

The heaven court scene as a whole that climaxes in "You Didn't Know." Atonement theories for this theology nerd's delight!

I quite liked Carmilla challenging Vaggie before the final fight.

Niffty killing Adam; it was the perfect ending for his character this season.

[rius-cave]

The reason why I think killing off Adam permanently is a huge mistake is the fact that he deserves redemption the most. Out of all Hazbin characters, he's the one who deserves to be redeemed, both literally and figuratively in the viewers' eyes.

He's been introduced as an utterly obnoxious, narcissistic and egoistic asshole, with literally zero obviously positive qualities expect maybe him being a funny guy?? Although his humor was built around vulgar and sexist jokes so it's debatable. He was clearly meant to be an antagonist and that only, kinda like the Vees (although that has room to develop yet, and certainly gonna in s2). No concrete reason was stated as the motivation of his behavior, we can only assume things but it's clear there wasn't much thought, he just wasn't destined to be explained and redeemed. He's just like that.

And that's the big issue. He's kinda portrayed as he's always been like that (why Lilith left him etc). But there's the fact that he's in Heaven. How could he be in Heaven if he's a guy full of negative traits, shitty behavior and issues like narcissism (or even a potential god-complex)?? I don't think it would be possible for such problematic people to pass divine judgement and become winners, not even if said person is the literal first man and hasn't eaten the apple. Yes, we see how lenient Sera is with him about the whole extermination and his behavior, I wouldn't be surprised if Heaven has always been just as lenient, but I don't think they could've determined if he got to Heaven (especially since even Sera doesn't know how people get there).

So what's the point of saying all this? That he HAD to be better at some point. He had to be as "pure" and good as it leads one to become a winner. And that automatically means something had to change that later on. Be it the treatment Heaven gave him, how he's been praised as the first soul to get there, the perfect man, or some kind of untreated trauma from earlier (being abandoned, betrayed, etc) or even just seeing what humanity became (disappointment). I absolutely believe this would be reason enough to give the guy some development and redemption. He was caused to become what he is now by other people and circumstances in some sense, and he, unlike any actual sinners!!!, was actually "good enough" for Heaven. He made mistakes, he had flaws, but he wasn't all bad despite being portrayed like that, he wasn't hopeless, and him being an angel was the proof of that.

But even if he didn't get redeemed, he would've absolutely deserved atleast some character depth and an explanation of why he is like that. Sadly, that obviously wasn't Vivzie's goal, and probably won't ever be. (I still do have a slight hope that Adam will come back in some way once, though that's mostly just desperation on my part and me being delusional lol)

Wow anon, you really went off here. I understand. I also have Thoughts™

See, I am in a bit of a difficult position, because I see most things as, well, as they are. On one hand, yes of course I believe that Adam absolutely deserves a redemption story, or if not that, at least more story, ya know? On the other hand, I understand Adam's narrative purpose for the show and what the big picture is. I also understand the writing flaws of the show and how maybe one explanation is just that, the writers don't have that big of a scope in mind lol.

But also there are limitations that are outside of their control. Adam could honestly easily have a complete season to himself with how much potential as a character he has, but Hazbin Hotel is not about him. Yes, it's about redemption, but it's not about his redemption, you know?

And let's be honest, most of the potential that fanon usually attributes to him is mostly based on the real biblical character that he's "based" on. If he was just a shitty angel with a shitty motive with some shitty beef with Lucifer and hell, I don't think as many people would've cared this much about him. But I also feel like Adam being THE Adam from the bible was more like.... An adendum. Like they knew they wanted a main angel antagonist, and then just went "oh wouldn't it be cool if it was Lilith's ex husband too lol" and then rolled with that.

As for Adam being a good person once, trust me, that is also my headcanon, it's one of my favorite headcanons in fact, but... I wouldn't be surprised at all if it wasn't like that.

I think Adam was a good person once because of all the reasons you listed, but one of the reasons why they made Adam such a shithead is, yeah so he can work as a fun villain, but it's also to shed light on Heaven's hypocrisy and the fundamental problems of the system. It also serves to highlight how ridiculous Heaven is for allowing someone like Adam in for being privileged from the start, but not allowing the people in Hell who are arguably not worse than Adam. Adam isn't only a villain, he's also showcasing the issues of Heaven and their double standards.

And on the subject of the writing process, sometimes for shows like these, it's completely possible that the writing team is aware of how good of a character Adam is, it's highly likely that they've seen the sinner Adam AUs and all the love he's gotten since the show ended, and some of them probably agree that it would be an awesome story! .... But they still had to choose not to do it.

Again, at the end of the day, Adam is not a core part of Hazbin or its themes. Sure, he could represent redemption, but we're also kinda doing that with Angel and Pentious and maybe with other characters. They can't tell EVERY character's story because that just goes outside of the scope of the show. So, they need to prioritize Angel, or Husk, or maybe even Alastor if he gets some sort of redemption too. The show has a set of main characters and it has to put them before the villains, specially when they didn't even know if they'd get a season 2 (or how many more seasons they're going to get). The main cast is already a bit underdeveloped and I can't imagine them cutting even more of that for the vulgar, genocidal villain.

It's hard being an Adam fan that also has a vague idea of how shows and writing work lol

[animentality]

Maybe a hot take, but I think Durge is the real protagonist of BG3. Like... I'm sorry, everyone love their Tavs, but from a narrative point of view, it doesn't have fucking sense. It's just another guy (gender neutral) in a The Choosen One situation. I've read this story before, hundreds of times. But Durge's recepción (or disgrace)... now that has juice! That makes sense on a narrative level. You started it, you end it, one way or another.

Anyway, I'm never (with my +500 hours) going to play a Tav run. Ever. Origins only, mostly Durge. Durge and Durgetash are waaaaay better, sorry not sorry.

You are spitting nothing but facts, anon.

You wanna know what the HONEST to GOD fundamental problem is with the writing of Baldur's Gate 3?

It's that it spreads itself so thin, desperately attempting to write an open sandbox sort of world in which ANY kind of character can fit in...that it ends up being this hollow nothing.

IMAGINE if the Dark Urge WAS the default protagonist. It WOULD'VE BEEN an amazing story, if it had been given the focus it deserved, instead of just blankly repeating the SAME dialogue you'd get as a Tav and as an origin.

The idea of a former villain turned amnesiac, and going on an adventure, learning about themselves from the perspective of an outsider and seeing firsthand the horror they've wrought? It's like a fucking Zuko arc, except finding out you were the Big Bad all along could've been written even better than that...

We could've had that blank, nothing slate that Tavs start out as...and then find out, that it has thematic significance, because WE CHOOSE who we become, after a childhood/adulthood of being unable to make our own choices, and being forced into the role of the villain before the game even starts.

It's a MUCH BETTER WAY to give people a blank slate to work with, for the fun of roleplaying, but ALSO asserting a particular theme. Which is, the gravity of your choices, big and small. To do good or to embrace evil.

YOU KNOW. How Baldur's Gate 1 and 2 did being a Bhaalspawn.

IT'S ALSO A REALLY GREAT WAY to DO an RPG because yes, you slightly infringe upon the freedom of the customizable characters a person can make, but in exchange, you actually tell a fucking story where choices are the main theme.

INSTEAD. Because they were so dedicated to Tavs and the variety of ways you could play as a Tav...they completely undersell and underutilize what could've been a really amazing character.

You can literally choose to DIE for your friends in the end...and then what?

Withers brings you back in five seconds, no one has any real reaction to you doing that, except saying good job buddy :)

And then you're basically a Tav.

And ALSO. I want to say this, because it's been bothering me.

The Dark Urge has Tav syndrome too.

They have TWO notes in the entire game that we have to read into to try and glean a greater depth to their character other than murder hobo.

And that's it. They're a blank slate too.

If the Dark Urge was the protagonist, we might've been able to look into who they were before, outside of just laughably evil flesh eating monster.

They might've had real fucking depth, instead of just tidbits.

I and my fellow Dark Urge/ Durgetash enjoyers have to do the fucking work for them and write in stuff that isn't actually there. The Dark Urge as a protagonist could've been really meaningful. We could've seen inklings that they had misgivings about being Bhaal's Chosen. We could've seen scars of resistance, where they tried to defy Bhaal, but were punished with death, disintegration by the loving hands of your own father and flesh. We could've had betrayal, redemption, loyalty to one's blood family vs one's found family.

But we don't get that, because it's taking too much time away from Tavs.

Sometimes I really wish the Dark Urge wasn't even an option. They gave me this thing, and I thought wow this is the only way to play the game...and then I look and see, ah. But the potential for greatness could drive me absolutely insane.

And it has.

Durgetash is the product of my frustration with the game's characterization of the Dark Urge.

And I know I'm pissing off the salty BG3 fans who love their Tavs and all, and think the Dark Urge is lame, and god FORBID a protagonist have a character, can't have that in an RPG, but I can't find it in myself to care.

I'm built different than the rest of y'all. I don't just feed on content, I analyze its nutrients. I calculate how good for me it actually is.

And BG3 has wonderful mechanics.

But the story has so many problems, from beginning to rotten end.

And it is what it is. I still enjoyed myself playing it.

But the story isn't good for anything except allowing you to create a far more compelling story on your own, in fanfic or in original work inspired by it.

And I guess if that's all they wanted, then fine.

But goddamnit, I'm gonna complain anyway! Divinity 2 did it fucking better.

[bibibbon]

Characters with wasted potential: Bakugo Katsuki (rant)

Look as much as I don't and I mean DON'T like bakugo I have to admit that Horikoshi's favouritism has caused the own downfall of his own favourite character which is just sad.

There are many things I don't like with bakugo which are :

HIS ATTITUDE. I know hori was going for the moody deuteragonist trope but it fails horribly when it comes to bakugo because the guy has NOTHING AND I MEAN NOTHING to be angry about. This guy basically won the lifes lottery so by making him like this he literally just comes of as an aggressive, ungrateful child.

HIS REDEMPTION ARC. His redemption arc was utter and complete BS I mean he literally still does bulky izuku and others but it's just being treated as a gag instead of him learning not to and why it's bad. Also what makes it so bad is the lack of izukus pov and personal thoughts/emotions about it like izuku is the victim so we should see his negative and positive emotions towards bakugo and we should see bakugo take all of these emotions and try his best to make it up to izuku and change

HIS INTERACTION WITH OTHER CHARACTERS. I have no idea what those MHA stats were but they were horrible and why is it that every single time bakugo interacts with a character they will end up thinking he is cool and worthy of respect when he CLEARLY ISN'T.

LACK OF CHALLENGES. In my opinion, as a character bakugo doesn't go through enough obstacles or challenges and if he does he always has someone who goes through it with him like his whole I caused all mights downfall thing or the failed provisional license exam thing were so horrible in my opinion

A LACK OF CONSEQUENCES. Bakugo lacks consequences for a lot of his actions like the suicide incident and many other things. The problem is when he does finally receive the consequences it's always him and another character which doesn't make sense especially when izuku also got house arrest for what? Defending himself.?!?!

Bakugo could of clearly been a well written character that would be involved in the plot when necessary. Honestly, I hate bakugo and if it were to me I would have him erased as a character from the plot or bring in ORIGINAL BAKUGO!!! Who was soooo much better then the canon bakugo we have now!

But if we were to go with the 1st option of keeping bakugos character the same I would :

Change his attitude or actually give him something to have that type of attitude. Honestly, it's so infuriating that this guy only knows how to be an angry Pomeranian and it irritates me even more when he has nothing to be angry about. I know it's said in the manga that bakugo has a nasty attitude due to whatever mixture of superiority and inferiority complex he has and while you can do that and explore it a whole lot more like how did this happen? Where does it stem from? And stuff like that. It would be good to do something like that and Involve/show how society contributes to making these type of people which you can then use to expand on the world building that MHA lacks in. Or alternatively, you can give bakugo a reason to be angry all the time but in my opinion you already have so many of those characters so it would be better to stick with the first option.

Make him have obstacles and more realisations while gradually propping and hinting at a redemption arc. In my opinion it should of taken the entirety of the series for bakugo to have a redemption arc and when that arc is finished DONT GIVE HIM HIS OWN VILLAIN TO FIGHT. If you wanted him to fight someone make him fight himself and his own ideas. Also I think his development should start from the moment he gets saved by izuku and all might from the sludge villain where we can see him realise that maybe he has been lied to and that he isn't as great as he thought he was or everyone thought he was. He can also try and start focusing on what he has done or what he has been doing and at first you can have him ignore it, ignore it, ignore it and still not change until he reaches rock bottom in one of the earlier arcs preferably early season 3 when he fails the final exams BECAUSE HE SHOULD OF AND JUSTICE TO SERO!!!

Change the way characters interact with him. At first I loved how class 1A didn't like bakugo and viewed him as annoying and all of that and I think this should of continued until bakugo himself starts seeking for change during the training camp arc. Probably also have aizawa and other teacher reprimand him for his actions like the battle trials we don't see Katsuki receive any consequences just him on a verge of a mental break down and that's it. Also, we should definitely have more of Katsuki and best jeanist because let's be honest it was only best jeanist that tried to help bakugo and guide him in the right direction. You could also have him interact with all might but scrap the whole I got kidnapped and ruined all mights career I find it better if it were izuku to get kidnapped during the training camp arc.

Give him CONSEQUENCES. Iam all for Katsuki getting consequences for his own actions and faults and I feel like he should of got them during the battle trials, failing the provisional license exam alone, the final exams(he should of failed that fight with all might). Also I don't think he should be expelled from UA but I do think he should have more of a severe consequence that's NOT him getting anger management classes or therapy because that's not really a punishment. The idea might work if you also add him getting house arrest or losing a clean record and getting those types of classes but just that doesn't work for me

Lack of challenges. Katsukis character arc would work great if we focused more on his challenges and him ACTUALLY LOSING and not winning all the time. Realistically speaking there are many challenges bakugo can go through which are: having to realise he isn't the best and there are people better then him, he should treat people with respect, his behaviour towards izuku and other kids he bullied was bad, him trying to differentiate himself from endeavour and become a better hero and human being then endeavour by redeeming himself, his superiority and inferiority complexes.

Overall, Katsuki in this role should of been someone who is arrogant and has basically won lifes lottery but then he gets into UA and realises "oh Iam not as special or stronger then everyone else" which could then cause him to become insecure aka que the superiority and inferiority complexes which he develops out of and slowly redeems himself and becomes a symbol of how society can create bad people by too much praise or just thinking they are superior and how these people can go on to them become heros or people that society is supposed to trust and praise when they don't deserve it. Something that bugs me is how katsukis character mainly focuses on just izuku and whenever izuku is mentioned Katsuki has to be mentioned or vice versa.

Also it would if been better if you emphasised on the Katsuki and endeavour Parallels and don't redeem endeavour but redeemed Katsuki. Also, have Katsuki and todoroki have a difficult relationship it's out of character for todoroki to get along with someone like Katsuki. You can then explore the relationship and have Katsuki change and todoroki interact a bit more with him or something of the sort.

ALSO WHEN WE GET AN APOLOGY LET IT NOT BE WHEN IZUKU IS ON THE VERGE OF DEATH AT HIS MOST VULNERABLE AND LET HIM HAVE SOME THOUGHTS ABOUT IT

Ps: this is my opinion!! And I think I could of done more justice for bakugo but Iam not his biggest fan so ... Yeah. If I missed something definitely add it !

[zoeykallus]

How do you feel abt the finale? Will you be writing again?🤍

I will be writing again, in fact I'm working on it right now. I still have a lot of catching up to do in the request section, as well as continuing my fics. How do I feel about the TBB finale...? Oh gosh... Well, I can tell you, as much as I love them, as much as I would have loved to see more seasons, the ending of season three was such a disappointment to me. There was so much wasted/unused potential that it downright hurt/frustrated me. Some things felt more like fillers than plot relevant. And as much as I loved to see certain things going on, some just simply angered me.

SPOILER UNDER THE CUT!!!

The following is just my perception, my opinion. It's totally fine if anyone, reading this, thinks and feels different about it. To each their own... I'm usually not that critical about TBB, never have been. But this was the ending, the goodbye, the part where everything comes to a close.

There was such a build up and hints for Tech to be CX 2, partly. Maybe a lot of it was wishful thinking by the viewer, but still. They could have made them reveal, after he was killed, that it was Tech, for example, or reveal it first and still make them fight, leaving them no choice but to kill. There was so much missed potential right there, for real emotion and Drama, that wasn't used. But that's just one thing. Well, yeah the Zillo Beast was kinda cool I guess... But why was it there in the first place? What for, what use did it have? We don't get any kind of info about that... it's just there, for Omega to use it and wreak havoc. *shrugs* wasn't really impressed or happy with that part to be honest. As cool as the destruction was, it was just that, nothing more. It felt like a filler, just put there for Omega to use, without any further explanation before or after. Rampart suddenly wanting to steal the Data instead of getting out of there right away and saving his ass?! Did he really think he could blackmail his way back into the empire? Plain stupid, sorry. Even if the empire did agree, as soon as they had their hands on the data, Rampart would be executed or thrown back in his cell. At least that's what I would do as the empire. He worked for those people long enough to know that. That was just a facepalm Moment for me. Honestly, as much as I despised that guy, I'd rather would have seen a redemption arch about him than Nala Se sacrificing herself to destroy the data and kill Rampart in the process, in a forced scene to make her look badass and make us feel something. ....Oh my god we lost her, but she went out like a badass... gosh I couldn't care less, she died because Rampart is suddenly a total dimwit, if this scene made me feel anything, well, it's anger. He was a Vice Admiral before, can any airhead become that high ranking now? Anyway...

The way Hemlock died was, well, interesting. I did like the little call back with Crosshair steadying his Shot on Hunter's shoulder, like he used to do with Tech, but the rest of it felt... rushed. The intensity buildup was pretty good in parts, but the things mentioned above, ruined it for me. I did love to see all the other clones to get freed though, I was moved to hear/see them ready for one more fight, not leaving TBB on their own. One more time, fighting with and for their brothers, for their freedom and most of all, fighting for something they chose, not for something anyone else ordered them to fight and die for. That part I smiled at with a little tear in my eye.

And the very last scene, with Omega and Hunter. I loved to see them this way, him grown old, her grown up. But I felt miffed about Crosshair and Wrecker not being there. Would Omega really just sneak away and leave them? Maybe she didn't really want to say goodbye or arguing with them about leaving, but on the other hand, I feel like they owed it to each other to say goodbye, to wish Omega luck and have a more emotional moment. Besides, I might be just miffed about the fact that we didn't see old Wrecker and old Crosshair as well.

I guess, after all, it's a Disney show.

All in all, I'm not entirely happy with how things ended. 🤷🏻‍♀️

[el-moscorrofio-y-el-mercachifle]

I don't see many people talking about Patricia's character anywhere, so I'll talk a little (give my opinion) here.

I personally feel VERY sorry for her. Okay, many of Patricia's attitudes and actions are not justifiable, but you can't help but feel empathy for her at least at some point throughout the story. She was never a saint because several times she was not strange when it came to manipulating/seducing to get something, she never thought before humiliating people among other things that make her a bad person.

But despite all this, you can see that several times she showed herself to be a naive person, she filled herself with expectations, deluded herself and lied to herself, (like for example the whole story with Mário, which she faithfully believed he was would marry her and keep her), and as you said, she always thought she was in control of everything and all the relationships she was involved in, but she never was.

She tried to use everyone and always ended up being used, she tried to manipulate everyone and they easily manipulated her, situations that show that she was really a vulnerable and naive person. I believe that her being so materialistic and wanting to find a rich husband is not only to solve her economic problems, but also to fill a void, because what she really is, is a very lonely person. She's so empty that she'd rather go to the gym than buy food, she'd rather not give up things she doesn't need than live poorly. These things only show that she is a person who lives by appearances, who tries so hard to be someone she is not, rather than showing the reality: that she is alone and does not have someone who loves her to the point of caring about her.

She was so at the bottom mentally (stopping eating to try to look like a life she can't keep it’s not normal, also other things she did) and economically that she had to humble herself to people, like when she went to Daniel because he had become president (that's all he wanted, and we know that sooner or later he would tell her the worst possible way how shameful this situation was and how much she fell to get to that point), or when she tried to seduce Mario to get a ride home.

Anyway, Patricia could be selfish, materialistic and a lot of other things, but that just reminds us that she is a REAL person like so many others out there.

I know many will definitely disagree with me, but as I already said, I know that she is no saint throughout the entire novel, but she suffered as much as those who were called and considered the “good guys” in the story.

Hiiii! Loved that you shared some of your thoughts! Here are some of mine too🥰

Patricia's character was definitely... a topic. It's no secret that to me she became a wasted potential and I dislike the decision to make her purely comedic relief when at first she was honestly pretty much in the same camp as characters like Armando and Marcela: very entitled and blinded by their own gigantic ego, to the point of hurting others for their own benefit even though they didn't realize it. I'm not saying she should have gotten a redemption or anything of the sorts. Characters like Mario never got them but they were still super well worked with. Patricia just became a joke.

I've also mentioned before that I too feel pity for her, or at least, I feel for first-half-of-the-novela Patricia. She was never kind, polite, humble or endearing, sure, but she seemed much more human. She was truly excited to think Mario fell for her, and seemed truly disturbed by that firdt encounter with Daniel. I feel for that Patricia because up until that point, her story felt real. I wouldn't say she was naive, but rather, too egocentric to realize there are bigger fish on the sea. She thought she could do anything to anyone and she'd always triumph. Uo until there, you feel she is a real person clinging to appearences because her life is so empty she literally has nothing else. Eventually it just became comedy and exagerated whining that made you forget that she's actually a person with real suffering, even if she's causing it herself (most of the characters cause their own suffering, too).

I couldn't pinpoint exactly when she became a parody of herself. At some point her role was just to throw venom, be comedic, and complain. That's it. She didn't even cause much trouble like at the beginning, and her extreme poverty was merely the butt of the joke. This last part particularly is where I feel the potential was the most wasted. I would have loved to see more of Patty's real struggles, and, if we had had a but more time with the novela, perhaps we could have even seen this for character development (or character regression, whichever you choose!): for example, how poverty is keeping her from eating, which is leading to headaches and dizziness and lack of energy. How poverty is landing her homeless. How she's forced to rely on, for example, Nicolás. I could totally see their love story having formed from this, like her falling so badly that she has no choice but to rely more on Nicolas now not only for frivolous things like the car and the cellphone, I mean real things like food and shelter and seen in a more real light.

Anyways, Ik why they couldn't develop more their "love story" (I think they probably were meant to be together, as in Gaitan probably had that goal, but we all know all the problems that theproduction went through), so it's just an idea.

I do think Patricia was probably mentally ill, tho. Her obsession with appearences is so bad, like you said, that she's willingly STARVING herself. She's starving and yet she doesn't miss a single day at the gym. She's willing to risk going homeless but doesn't stop buying new clothes or hair dye. She's willing to shower with cold water and go back to a pitch dark apartment where there's no food or entertainment as long as she can still look and act like a rich person in front of everyone. I think we often forget how insane Patty's situation was because we remember more her funny/malicious sides, but honestly, her whole world view was crazy.

Thank you for sharing your thoughts and sorry this took so long!😂❤️

[zvtara-was-never-canon]

Rewatching atla and realized iroh is not a morally good like he's not the kind, wise person he is. I know his past actions doesn't represent him know but it does, he canonically in the show's contexts & clues has terrorized the earth kingdom and it's citizen, led his man to pillage and raid wars onto the earth kingdom territories but when his son died is when he realized war is bad? Not the horrors war can bring to people's livelihood? that made me see iroh in a different light and his character leaves a bad taste in my mouth.

I don't think anything else COULD make Iroh see the horrors of war. The whole point of indoctrination, propaganda and war training is to make the soldiers forget that the enemy is human. They NEED to be desensitized to violence otherwise they simply wouldn't go battle people. That's essentially what happened to Iroh. The enemies he was fighting were not people, they were obstacles on the path towards his goals of achieving personal glory, honoring his father and obtaining a major victory for his nation.

But when Lu Ten died it was the brutal reminder that all that shit comes at a cost. And once he feels that pain, he doesn't want to fight anymore because all those goals don't mean shit compared to his son's life.

For most of season one, Iroh is just going along with the flow. Zuko needs to capture the Avatar? Fine, he'll help. The siege of the North will help his nephew? Fine, he'll do it.

It's when Zhao kills the moon and Ozai sends Azula after them that Iroh gets back in "battle mode", that's another reason he and Zuko argue A LOT more in season two - Iroh is realizing all this shit is pointless and he doesn't feel like losing another child to something he no longer believes in.

And because he no longer believes it, he can finally look at all the innocents around him and finally see them as PEOPLE.

Now, the show obviously dropped the ball on a few aspects - mainly Iroh's compassion and understanding somehow not extending to his 14-year-old niece (something even the voice actor acknowledges was fucked up), or the nonsense that was the White Lotus plot, or absurd shit like him refusing to even try to fight Ozai because "history will see it as just kinslaying for power" and then immediately sending Zuko to fight, and potentially kill, his own sibling for a crown. But for the most part, Iroh was still a largely coherent, mostly sympathetic and likeable character.

And then the writers bought into the fandom hype for "uncle that can do no wrong" and started doing bullshit like pretending Iroh was NEVER an ambitious general that did very much kill people without giving a fuck. THAT is what leaves a bad taste in my mouth because, if you watch season one and even early season two, it is VERY clear the writers KNEW Iroh was no saint. He was kind and wise in a lot of ways, but he was still a bad guy doing bad guy things. For fuck's sake, they considered making him eventually BETRAY ZUKO, that's how aware they were of his moral ambiguity and how it could push his character to either become a cautionary tale or an inspiring one.

The problem with Iroh is not his backstory, or his mistakes, or his redemption and happy ending. "Everyone has potential for great good and great evil" and all that. Nothing wrong with a formely evil person becoming good. The problem is the writers, and the fandom, bending over-backwards to pretend he was never evil in the first place.

[arliedraws]

What's your opinion on Snape? The "poor little meow meow that was //forced// into the role of a Death Eater by those awful monsters that were the Marauders!"

Because I'm kinda fascinated how in fanfics, Most people turn Snape good by early on showing he's sad that Lily is dead. And him being obsessed with Harry's eyes. I don't think I have ever read a fanfic where Snape starts as the canon one but then grows up and sheds his Death Eater beliefs.

I looooooove Snape.

He’s a horrible person. No, he’s not a poor little meow meow, and that just wouldn’t be interesting! Look, the ONLY poor little meow meow in HP is Harry himself. That’s it. Maybe Neville.

I love Snape because we do get to see an arc of his character. I wish we weren’t meant to admire him for his bullshit though. He is soooooooo obsessed with masculinity. Snape is so fixated on what makes a man a man—for many men, that can be attractiveness, athleticism, and intelligence. Welllllll, he’s got at least one of the three, but guess who’s got ALL three? James Potter, of course. Boy, I love toxic masculinity in fiction!

Young Snape? Insufferable, terrible little ghoul. He tries to make up for being powerless during his potentially abusive childhood by joining in on the pure-blood rhetoric to gain social capital, and by doing so, betrays his oldest and dearest friend.

Adult Snape? Insufferable, slightly less terrible ghoul. But still fairly awful. This is a guy who knows he’s fucked up, and honestly, I do think he has a tiny ounce of caring about students. In his own, ugly way. He is a horrendous: Kids don’t learn when they’re terrified—they only learn to be afraid of school. But Snape does, I think, care a bit for students. For example, he does try to save people if it won’t blow his cover. I can acknowledge that.

He’s not evil, but he’s also not a good guy. I would not be excited to read a redemption fic about him, but I WOULD like to see him say nasty things to my favorite characters and then they FIGHT.

[fanfic-lover-girl]

Draco Malfoy is not the only problem with Dramione

Look, am I the only one who hates Dramione not because of Draco but HERMIONE?

Dramione antis (often Draco antis I notice) usually paint Draco as the toxic person in this ship undeserving of Queen Hermione. How he's a cowardly, dumb ferret and Hermione deserves a real man.

You know what Hermione deserves? A consuming career and a house full of cats! Ron can have her! I feel like I am dissing myself when I diss Hermione since I see a lot of my academic self in her but who the hell sees Hermione as wife or mother material??

No one deserves to be in a relationship with someone who hates them. Hermione is no exception. Hermione does not deserve to be in a relationship with a guy who stands by while she is being tortured or hurls slurs in her face. Or thinks she is worth less than trash.

But based on canon, we know who is more likely to attack their partner and commit domestic abuse. It ain't Draco. Like...do you not see how this girl treats Ron?! The guy she's supposed to like?! While Draco has never laid a hand on her, even when this girl slapped/punched him for no justifiable reason. Him making fun of Hagrid is not justifiable. Slap him when he calls you a mudblood and then we can talk Hermione.

Draco does anything to upset her and this vindictive shrew would probably turn him into a bug and squash him. Or maybe poison him. Or turn him into a bouncing ferret for nostalgia (I read a Dramione fic where Hermione did this - that definitely killed my recent short-lived Dramione reading spree). Magic provides a myriad of possibilities :).

At least with Draco, we don't really see him mistreating his (female) friends. None of his actions towards Hermione is irredeemable. After thorough redemption and maturity, he would theoretically treat Hermione well. His parents may be hostile but he can always just give them the finger the way he did for dear Astoria. Hermione on the other hand is shown to be constantly abusive to Ron yet she's one of the heroes of the story, hardly ever called out for her appalling actions. People need to wake up from their Draco hate and recognize Hermione's flaws as well in this ship. It's more than just her not forgiving him. She would literally hurt him. Like she already hurt Ron! And her own parents!

My mother told me that if your loved one hits you once, you need to leave. Immediately. Ron should have dropped Hermione as a potential love interest the second she attacked him. Because she will do it again when she gets angry.

So yeah, Ron can keep her. Poor Ron. Hermione is hardly a catch. For anyone calling me a sexist, that kind of attitude is not cute in a dude either.

Draco can do better than her. But literally, almost anyone is better than Hermione (I'll be over here enjoying my Druna content).

Actually, the only guy who probably deserves Hermione is Harry Potter himself. She actually seems to be sweeter to him and respects him more than Ron lol. Those two can be vindictive, inconsiderate psychos together while Ron finds better friends who don't see him as a dumb loser. Oh, and Ginny can find a guy who won't dump her the second she cries (like that "crybaby" Cho) or excludes her. Harmione is practically a match made in hell.

[justanotherhh]

@girlbossradiodemon: Queerness as an insight into humanity. I am curious what that means.

heya, hope it's ok to move your question to a new post, because it gave me an opportunity to ramble about something I've been thinking about -- so we'll call this post:

hazbin hotel, aroace alastor, and complicating redemption

cannot remember how i phrased it in the original post, but the main crux of the idea about queerness as humanising is "when does horror and villainy use queerness as a shorthand for Other/deviant and when are those thing subverted"

in terms of alastor specifically, aspec identity (especially the kind that is on the repulsed side of things) is often used -- without people knowing they're even describing real experiences and identities -- as a way of describing a lack of feeling, a lack of empathy, a lack of connection with other human beings, as a way of signposting "this is going to be a Bad Guy, look at this person who can't engage in the Universal Human Experience Of Love (sometimes with the prerequisite desire for sex, and sometimes it's the just-wanting-sex-but-not-love that's the Evil Code)"

note here, of course, that a lack of empathy also shouldn't be a shorthand for evil! the word "psychopath" generally needs to be put on a high shelf for anyone writing anything unless they can prove they know what in the world they're talking about!!

with alastor, when reading with the aroace hat on, we get an insight into how he does relate to other people. rather than going "he's so evil he can't love," it's opening up questions about what sort of connections he does form with people, and how those are complex, and possibly there's a lot of backstory there -- that's part of the whole story we're seeing with pretty much all the main characters: "misfits who have struggled to form connections because of their specific brands of Weirdness (and also they're in hell)"

now something im interested in with him being aspec, is how the show also to an extent deconstructs the ideas that being alloromantic and allosexual are necessarily indicators of goodness, and could go a lot further in future, if it wanted to -- this works better because almost all the characters in this show are queer (and tbh, until niffty is confirmed to be allorom, i am hc'ing her as aro), and so there's much less risk of falling into the trap of "deviant sexualities vs normal sexualities" that even some shows with queer characters fall for, because they still set up monogamous, allosexual relationships as More Correct vs Other Kinds Of Queerness That Is Bad

in the hellaverse, being kinky isn't semiotics for evil, being poly isn't semiotics for evil, being arocoded isn't semiotics for evil, etcetc.

being aspec is a difficult pill for a lot of people to swallow, including other queers, especially aromanticism, and so it's neat to consider the potential of portraying depictions of love and sex that are healthy (charlie and vaggie, pentious and cherri bomb, etc) next to depictions of love and sex that are unhealthy/toxic/abusive (valentino's and vox's ways of interacting with these things) next to depictions of not-love and not-sex that are complex and (i hope) indicators of how to get to know a character better, rather than villainising or simplifying a character. that maybe initially a character like charlie (amongst others) might not get it, but that's something she needs to sort out, not alastor

it's another way the show could go a step deeper into deconstructing how we take in ideas about "goodness" in narrative and in life based on simple clichés, for example the idea that "love redeems you" -- well, what if you don't love? and what if you do love, but that's not an indicator of goodness at all? is "love" in fact an all-encompassing positive force in the first place? why do we place it on this pedestal?

in many ways the potential of alastor through being aroace, reminds me a little of how we see angel in season 1. he's introduced a Certain way -- as shallow, as someone who doesn't put the work in, as someone who "doesn't care," -- and these narratives are enforced diagetically and non-diagetically by showing that he's an addict and a sex worker. a lot of the scenes related to drugs and sex work and kinky sex are funny (crack is expensive), and/or are met with disgust by the main characters (the sex dungeon), are considered things he needs to overcome in order to be worthy of redemption (the roleplay with sir pentious)...

and then those things are pulled apart, and both narrative and characters go: "what's wrong with being a sex-worker? what's wrong with being an addict? hell, what's wrong with liking sex???" and through that "why does he need to prove himself to be redeemed?" and i predict, eventually, already heading in that direction "why even need to be redeemed when the problem is the black-and-white morality of pure goodness/badness to begin with?????"

and i think alastor being aroace could play a cool part in that. it's not love that makes alastor human, and it's certainly not sex. it's how he interacts with not fitting into those normative boxes, and how other characters, hopefully, eventually, will learn to see things from his perspective (at least, in this case)

the whole the idea of "queerness as an insight into humanity" is something both hazbin and helluva do really well, because of their portraying queerness as a given, as the thing that it simply is how these characters interact with the world -- whether good or bad or somewhere in between, the characters' queerness invites us to ask questions about them, and i think some characters offer that opportunity even more starkly than others...

i mean alastor of course. keeper of the aroace Themes.

so yeah. aroace as humanising. love doesn't mean goodness. what even does redemption mean?