#Don't try to look for the parallels between my favorite characters they're not obvious I swear

[that-birdy-chick]

Part 2 of me rambling about s8 of hawaii five 0

Live commentary

ep 6

- did-did Danny really just organize an intervention for Steve? To make him take better care of himself?? I don't know how to feel about this

- Lou really just said "Steve listen to your husband, he loves you" spoken like a true married man

- kinda gotta agree with Dog, not your finest move Danny

- so can we all agree that Danny losing his mind a little over Steve's radiation poisoning is kinda like the whole Steve losing his mind over Danny retiring thing but in reverse?

- I think Steve has never looked more stressed than with this stress counseler person asking him about his sexlife right in front of danny

- awwww now the end of this episode is in my top 3 favorite heart to hearts these two dorks have ever had

- Danny being honest about being scared that Steve isn't taking his radiation poisoning seriously to the point it keeps him awake at night and steve replying that he's scared too but that he doesn't want Danny to change because he loves him the way he is and that he does take things seriously URHGH

THE GROWTH! The genuinely healthy communication! I'm so proud of them 🥹

ep 7

- no no no what is going on between adam and kono? My breakup senses are tingling and I don't like it

- I swear the way Adam and Steve's conversation in the car went is so "let's talk about our respective marriages" coded

Like honestly it's so blatantly obvious - they are literally paralleling mcdanno to kono and adam ffs

- hey and come on adam you too? Why does everyone need to shit on the restaurant thing

- haha Steve is mad people he cares about just walk into a dangerous situation without backup - I love how this season confronts Steve with his own behavior

-hmm l don't know how to feel about Lou literally deleting evidence to protect tani, really most of their shady "police work" really didn't age well

- damn Steve killed a cop, that's definitely gonna fuck with him

- love how Lou is looking out for everyone, he just is the team grandpa

- sooo adam is gonna join five 0 right? This is what all this is about isn't it?

- I swear I am trying to care about junior and tani and what's going on with them but Idk so far I haven't really warmed up to them

ep 8

- eyyy Danny is back and calls Steve babe within 1 min into the episode? This can only be a good one

- nvm I swear to God Steve if you crash land yet another plane-

Seriously dude? Haven't you learned your lesson from the last time?

- naww Danny is so proud of Steves character development, sure hope he isn't gonna do something dumb and risky and ruin it again

- okay so tani and junior huh? They're definitely gonna be a thing soon aren't they

- the dude was killed because he was hiding from a drug cartel that he snitched on and fled with the drug lords daughter, I swear all these people always have the most dramatic backstories

- aaaand steve is doing the dumb reckless thing, Danny my guy I feel you're pain, he is so done with his shit he doesn't even yell at him anymore

- Danny is such a fucking saint, Steve almost went and got himself killed AGAIN and all he cares about is being last and danny husband of the fucking year just goes "yeah yeah you did well let's get a beer maverick"

- okay tani and her brother are kinda cute in their peek sibling behavior, I feel bad now for calling her a kono replacement, girl is much more than that

ep 9

- damn love Jerry's new haircut

- I will never get tiered of Danny and steve bickering about the restaurant, I know they are setting it up to fail but I genuinely think this could have been a good thing to eventually end the show on, like a retirement thing, but oh well

- aww I love Danny trying to comfort neolani with something Steve told him, only to have it backfire and make him anxious again

- pfffff and tani and junior sit in the far back like literal children

- oh great we're doing the biological warfare stuff again, this should be fun

- so they only have 8 hours to live? sounds like a prime love confession set up to me

- love our respective couples comforting each other, have to say tani and junior are doing a way better job tho like seriously Steve "try not to die while I take this call okay?" that's the best you can do, seriously?

- and of course Danny's all time stress response is to bitch about or at Steve, stellar coping skills all around

- omg danny did not just say-and steve didn't - OMG is it actually-

-nvm of course it's a fake out, damn it after 7 season why do I still keep falling for this shit

-the little restaurant talk Danny started to distract Steve and himself with was pretty sweet tho

- hey, wait why is Danny the only one definitely close to death? The others all seem relatively fine

- and of course Steve has to go and needlessly risk himself, so junior has to safe both their ass's instead of him just doing it on his own in the first place

- excuse me people why are there not more fanfics about the crew stuck in quarantine together?? this shit is hilarious and has so much potential for angst!

Please if anyone has some great fic recommendations send them my way please!

-no come on Danny, Steve didn't wanna upset you! That's honestly a pretty mature thing given the situation you were in, and now their arguing

- poor tani and junior they be stuck with these two idiots for a long time

- I could really see tani, just snapping at them after two days to either kill each other or fuck it out already, because their whole shebang is just exhausting for everyone

ep 10

-AHHHHH they finally opened the restaurant!? Progress!

- why does the screen look weird? Please don't let this be a dream type thing

- "Right now grandma Williams is smiling down at you" awww Steve, that is so sweet🥹

- nooo it's a dream thing 😭

- love how everyone makes fun of Steves near mental breakdown haircut, really dude it looks terrible, why does no one stop him?

- wow you really gonna give em kids the judgemental stares for flirting? Steve Danny as if you're any better

- and of course they're getting jumped in freaking quarantine

- really the dude went through all that trouble, just to kill Danny? And didn't even try aiming for the head? amateur

- aww Danny imagining grace wedding, my heart <3

- Danny is hurt, Steve is freaking loosing it, I'm so here for this

- Lou really said "sir, you better have a plan soon because if you don't Steve will come up with one, and only God can help us if that happens" I love you so much Lou

- huh so Danny thinks Charlie will be a cop? That's interesting

- awww and of course Steve is there, sitting next to him like a good husband, and the rest of the ohana

- nooo Danny being there for kono and adams first kid, that is so wholesome 😭

- Steve is straight up having a terrible time, while Danny has some idealistic feverdream about the future, this is so fun

- excuse me Steve you fingering your husband does absolutely not make you even for the liver thing, you nut

- so there gonna blow up a bomb right next to another bomb? Sure that seems reasonable

- yes Lou! Get the sledge hammer!

- poor Eric, don't worry hun we still have 2 seasons left to go Danny will be fine

- no NO you cannot- you did not just show me that while Danny's dying the last thing he hallucinates about is having grown old with Steve 🥺

- "and if I could do it all over again I wouldn't change a thing" I'm done, this is it, that line just killed me 😭❤️

- excuse me, Danny is dying and you people are choosing NOW to tease Steve about his stupid haircut? Seriously??!

- yes everyone copes differently I guess, but when Steve's life was on the line no one was joking around is all I'm saying

- yes Danny Steve saved your life by fingering you, deal with it XD poor Eric is scarred for life

- love Danny genuinely getting some love for once, this was a good episode

[princesssarisa]

Character ask: Honour "Beauty" Huston (Robin McKinley's "Beauty")

No one requested this. I just finished rereading the book and felt like discussing it.

Favorite thing about them: How human and relatable she is, especially compared to the idealized fairy tale heroines of tradition. She makes the parallels between Beauty and the Beast and Jane Eyre more obvious than ever, since she's not a physical beauty (or at least doesn't think she is until the end), nor is she the traditional sweet and gentle figure, but a no-nonsense, stubborn, intellectual bookworm and horse girl, who only gradually attunes to magic and romance as she lives in the castle. These differences from the traditional Beauty make her more of a kindred spirit to the Beast (since they're both kind-hearted yet slightly rough around the edges, and both insecure about their looks), and they humanize her too. So do many details in the way she's written. For example, the sheer physicality of her first-person narration – her emphasis on smells, tastes, and tactile sensations, her mentions of aching feet or hands raw with work, her dislike of dainty teacups and preference for a big mug of tea, etc. – enhance the sense of her grounded personality and make her seem all the more real. Or the fact that she doesn't ask her father for a single, pretty but ephemeral rose, but makes a more practical request for rose seeds, with which she can plant a garden full of roses that will last. Now, of course, the idea of reimagining a classic fairy tale heroine as plain, strong-willed and down-to-earth rather than sweet, gentle and beautiful is nothing new anymore. Neither is a YA heroine with low self-esteem because she thinks she's not pretty. But those tropes were obviously fresher and newer in 1978, when this novel was first published, so I feel free to consider them effective in Beauty's case without calling them clichés.

Least favorite thing about them: The very brief moment when she loses her temper and shouts some nasty things at her horse Greatheart when he panics at the sight of the Beast and almost throws her. I understand that she's struggling not to fall and break her neck, but it still seems harsh and faintly out of character for a girl who's usually so level-headed. But then, her level-headedness also disappears at other important points, like when when she goes into hysterics and faints at the reveal that she can never leave the castle. I suppose the key to understanding these moments is that she doesn't often let her emotions flow freely, but when she does, whether in anger, anguish, or fear, she goes all-out.

Three things I have in common with them:

*I love books.

*I'm sometimes insecure about my appearance.

*I like spice cake and hot chocolate.

Three things I don't have in common with them:

*I don't have any sisters.

*I have very little experience with horses.

*I'm not allergic to dogs, as she mentions in passing that she is.

Favorite line:

To her sister Hope, when the latter worries that their father won't approve of her love for a blacksmith:

"If you think you'll be happiest scrubbing tar out of burlap aprons, Father won't say nay. And he will probably buy you several maids to do the scrubbing."

When her invisible maids are trying to force her into a fancy gown that she thinks is much too beautiful for a plain girl like her:

"It's a beautiful dress, and that's why I won't wear it; if you put a peacock's tail on a sparrow, he's still a brown little, wretched little, drab little sparrow."

After she saves the Beast from dying at the climax, and is nearly swooning from exhaustion, and the Beast urges her to rest:

"Not yet. I have to see to Greatheart – I'd still be in the forest without him – but I had to find you first – and then there's something I must tell you... I can't sleep now. It's daylight. What I want is breakfast."

Attuned though she is now with the castle's magic and her own love, she's still her old, down-to-earth self. Even when she's near collapse after journeying for twelve hours through the forest, finding the Beast near death, and then miraculously reviving him, she talks about tending to her horse and getting something to eat.

brOTP: Her father, her sisters Grace and Hope, her brother-in-law Ger, and if non-sentient animals count, her horse Greatheart.

OTP: The Beast/Prince.

nOTP: Her father.

Random headcanon: Her life story will inspire the fairy tale of Beauty and the Beast as we know it today. But the telling-and-retelling process, combined with attempts by parents and governesses to make the story more didactic for young ladies, will distort the tale and result in all the familiar differences from the "true" story. For example, that Beauty was always physically beautiful, that her sisters were wicked and jealous rather than kind and loving, that she did all the cooking and cleaning in their cottage rather than the "boyish" outdoor work she really did, and that she asked her father to bring her a rose rather than rose seeds.

Unpopular opinion: I don't think Disney's Belle is as much of a knockoff of her as some people do. Yes, Disney did arguably borrow some details from this novel – even more in the 2017 remake than in the animated version – but apart from their shared love of books, which comes from Mme. de Beaumont's version of the original fairy tale, this Beauty is a very different person from Belle. For the most part, Beauty is a grounded, unromantic girl, whose love of books is intellectual (for example, she writes her own translations of Greek tragedies and dreams of becoming a scholar at a university), and who learns to embrace magic and passion in the Romantic world of the Beast's castle. Belle is a sensitive, "dazed and distracted" dreamer, who loves books for the adventure and romance they bring her, and she doesn't change as much as Beauty does by the end, but finds what she was always looking for, just in an unexpected way.

Song I associate with them: None.

Favorite picture of them:

This stylized silhouette from the cover of the book's 2018 edition.

[p5x-theories]

Hey do you think you have any guesses on what arcana each character might be? I’d really love to see what your guesses are in one of our favorite topics for the characters and the game itself. 😁

Oh, it has been a while since I've talked about my own theories on that, hasn't it? Yeah, why not! This got long, so I'll put it under a cut.

Right off the bat, I'm still on board with the theory that the story teammates, at least, will reflect the arcana of the P5 characters they seem to parallel. I also don't think any arcana will be repeated, at least for the main Confidants (if they add more later, that could change). So for me, that means I think Wonder will be the Fool, Ruferu will be the Magician, Motoha will either be Lovers or Chariot, Shun will be the Emperor, and Riko will be the Priestess.

From there, I lean towards Motoha being the Chariot- it feels like the athletic aspects of her are treated as more important/significant in the story than the sort of popularity usually associated with a Lovers- and I think Tomoko might actually be the Lovers, given her indecision about what she wants to do now that she can't play baseball, and her crush on the protagonist (not that that's required for a Lovers arcana, but still). An additional bit of my reasoning for that is that Tomoko, who seems to parallel Shiho, is kind of an "extra" Confidant (since Shiho wasn't a Confidant at all), and then we're also "missing" a teammate (since Motoha seems to fulfill both Ann and Ryuji's roles to some extent), so it makes sense the "missing" arcana might go to an "extra" Confidant.

As for the others, the ones I have thoughts on off the top of my head:

I've talked about this one quite a bit, but I think Kiyoshi's probably the Moon

I forget who first suggested this, but I like the idea of Mont as the Strength. The tarot card itself is associated with courage and self-confidence, and reversed with self-doubt, weakness, and inadequacy, which feel like they could be themes in Mont's potential Confidant, given it'll likely center around how she used to be an ice skater but had to give up on it due to injury

Yukimi feels very much like an Empress character, if we don't end up having a Haru parallel in the main team. Mainly in her demeanor, but also her struggles with her mother and the Empress tarot card's connection to motherhood

Kayo feels like a good Hierophant candidate, as an older character looking after the protagonist (at least more than his parents currently seem to be), though I could also maybe see her Confidant going in an Empress direction if Yukimi isn't the Empress

Leon as the Star seems like sort of a given; it's possible they've changed it, but it does seem to fit his demeanor so far

Yui as the Hermit or maybe the Temperance? Hermit is an obvious speculation, given the Hermit in P3 is also one you connect with through an online video game, but I feel like this might get snapped up by a theoretical Futaba parallel in the story teammates. In that case, perhaps Temperance instead? I know this one's also a teacher's arcana (in P5), and I don't necessarily think Yui's really a teacher, but the arcana is associated with the merging of opposites, which could perhaps relate to Yui and whatever her real-world life is like (compared to her video game life). In the Persona series, the SMT wiki even points out that "these characters try to escape their normal lives by engaging in their hobbies", which really sounds like it could apply to Yui as well

The reasoning on this one is pretty loose, but as mentioned before, the Tower is my best guess for Riddle right now, mostly going on the fact that P5's Tower is also the only elementary schooler of the group (and, I suppose, P4's as well). We know so little about her theoretical Confidant right now, though, that it's really hard to say

Right now, given how they're introduced, I think Ikenami and Polter will both be story teammates, and I think between the two of them, Ikenami is more who I'd expect to be the Justice (has a reputation of some kind, like how Akechi was famous), and Polter seems more like a Hermit (she's kind of quiet, and doodles in her sketchbook, which are often associated with the "introverted art student" type character). It'd be super fun if they were the other way around (Ikenami as the Hermit and Polter as the Justice), though!

As for the others, for the sake of not leaving anyone out, here's my thoughts just purely on vibes + which arcana the above assignments would leave left over (Fortune, Hanged Man, Death, Devil, Sun, Judgement):

Seiji has Emperor vibes, but I don't expect them to repeat arcana, so I don't actually think he'll be the Emperor. Seiji also has Judgement vibes to me, relative to Eriko in P1 + P2, so if that arcana isn't reserved for a story role (like Sae Niijima having it in P5, or the changed group goals in P3 and P4), I could see him having it? Maybe Fortune or Hanged Man, if not

Yaoling feels Fortune-y to me, I dunno. I could also see Sun?

Sepia... maybe Hanged Man? Or... he's not goth enough, but maybe Death? Having any idea of what his Confidant's premise is (besides maybe something with fishing) would probably help me narrow down a vibe here haha

Puppet has Sun vibes to me, both in that she's a politician's daughter and Yoshida's a politician, but also something about her running away from home and trying to make it on her own and the Sun's association in this series with being in kind of a hopeless situation, but trying to make the most of it and achieve your goals anyway

If Liben, Wuhexi, and Jitianzhudai are all also teammates (story or Idol), then we sort of run out of Arcana, haha. Wuhexi seems the look the most like he could be a Death arcana, though who really knows, and I could kind of see Liben or Jitianzhudai maybe being the Devil, but I'm really going out on a limb there, and I'm not sure what that would leave the other one to be (probably one of the extra arcana- Aeon, Jester, Hunger, Faith, Councilor, Hope, or Apostle?)

[sakebytheriver]

This fandom had no problems shipping Willow with her lifelong bully Boscha, but the moment Willow is shipped with someone who respects and is clearly interested in her suddenly everyone and their mom are clutching their pearls crying about age gaps and trauma (nothing against bosch//low but all this discourse is really grinding my nerves)

Oh God, don't even get me started on B*schlow, remember those Notps I talked about?🤮 (tbh i could prolly write a pretty long rant post about that ship and my points would have a lot more logic in them than any of the antis in the Huntlow tag, but guess how many posts in the B*schlow tag you'll find written by me)

Tbh I think a lot of people see a gay ship and think that that automatically makes it somehow better and healthier than a m/f ship without even thinking about the dynamics or how the characters fit together. Like no doubt people have been making posts about how Huntlow isn't as good or subversive as B*shlow or H*ntric because it's an m/f ship instead of being gay without taking into account the fact that it's an interracial ship with a fat woc.

But also shipping and the romantic relationships the show makes canon are not about how many boxes you can check off to get diversity points. Huntlow is a ship that was clearly meant to have some more kind of depth and development to it from the little we can see from the show so far, like the parallels of them both being considered "Half-a-witch", the way their character developments basically start and end in the opposite directions, how they both came from a place where people put them down and belittled them for their shortcomings but they've both found people who help them find their greatest potential, the mutual respect and admiration they have for each other, it is clear to me that the writers are trying to speed up a ship timeline that was supposed to be a lot longer than the timeframe they're forced to work within, with the multitude of different ship dynamics they have clearly tried to inject into this couple with what little time they have left. There's a reason why B*schlow was never going to canon, the characters don't fit together the same way, the dynamic is one that was always meant to be one dimensional bully that serves more as a plot device for Willow's character development than the Lumity dynamic the fandom tried to push it towards, not to mention that if the ship was to become canon then Willow would be acting as Bosha's teacher and redeemer which she basically already had to do with Amity, but with Huntlow they're both meant to be fully fleshed out main characters that come together in a dynamic that strengthens their characters in a mutually beneficial way that serves both of them individually as well as a couple, they meet each other near the end of their original character developments meaning they meet at the right time to walk together towards their next character developments, because the two of them went through entire arcs individually learning to stand on their own, the next obvious step for their characters is them learning how to be their new selves while with another person

Tbh I just really don't get what the issue with Huntlow is here, like why is this the ship that broke the fandom? I mean, the obvious reasons are there, of course, the racism, the fatphobia, the general uproar that comes when the fandoms favorite white boy falls for a woc instead of the other pretty white boy or girl they wanted him to fall for, but like God I was not expecting to have to fight this hard for this ship when we've only got 3 more episodes left before this show ends for good. Like are there not more pressing things we could worry about other than a very cute, very nice, very healthy ship between two traumatized kids who have never been seen as anything worth looking at twice until the other person saw them

[theprinceandthewitch]

Not to be mean or anything... but when I see people compare Luz to Caleb and think Evelyn and Caleb are supposed to be about Lumity I tab out immediately.

The parallels between Caleb and Luz don't work; and Lumity isn't Caleb+Evelyn because

Hunter is a clone of Caleb and is the only Grimwalker who looks the most like him. Hunter and the GG's are tied to Caleb whether or not they like it or are even aware of it. Their lives and deaths have always been determined by what Philip believes his brother should have been - a fellow witch-hunter who would never abandon him for the evil he wants to destroy.

2. Caleb is an orphan. The only remaining family member is his brother Philip. Before Hunter knew the truth of his origins he was raised to believe that his entire family was wiped out by wild magic. And that it was his "uncle" who saved him and is his only remaining family. This mirrors Caleb and Philip as orphans who were the only ones left of their family after tragedy befell them. Though the caretaker role has been reversed.

3. Caleb's entire deal is that he's fundamentally a good person who eventually forsakes his "oppressor" mindset. We can even see this quality present in all the GG's including Hunter. Every single one of them came to the realization that what they were doing was messed up and changed themselves. And that they'll always try to put a stop to Philip's plans. But yeah, the "unlearning of an oppressor mindset" doesn't work with Luz for reasons that are so obvious I'm not going to waste time writing them out.

4. Amity did not "entice Luz away" with magic and Luz did not run away to a new world because of Amity. Luz ran away to TBI specifically because she followed Owlbert through the door. And she didn't stay there for Amity. She stayed there only because she wanted to learn magic and live out some kind of grand destiny in a fantasy world. AGAIN, Luz did not run away to TBI because she wanted to start a more peaceful life with her lover - she "ran away" because she wanted to learn magic and live out some kind of grand destiny in a fantasy world. She never planned on staying on TBI for the rest of her life despite dating someone from TBI. And I honestly don't see this show ending in a situation where Camilla and Luz are going to spend the rest of their lives on TBI. The most likely outcome is that they're going to find a way to go back and forth between worlds.

Also I want to point out that unlike Philip's and Caleb's relationship, Camilla's and Luz's relationship isn't hinted at being unhealthy and eventually abusive. This is important to note because Caleb most likely "abandoned" Philip because he came to realize their relationship was poisonous. Luz didn't INTENTIONALLY "abandon" Camilla like Caleb did with Philip. Camilla is not a toxic influence over Luz's life that Luz wanted to get away from. This is why Luz "running away" and Caleb running away doesn't - the motivations are completely different.

5. Amity does not have meaningful history with the main villain like Luz, Hunter, Evelyn and Caleb do.

6. Luz lured Hunter away from Philip. I mean this literally and from a character arc standpoint. Here, let me just copy and paste what I wrote in my pinned post:

" Okay so let me explain why this drives me crazy as someone who loves storytelling. Because this parallel doesn't start when Hunter is running away with Luz in Hollow Mind and stop in the season finale. It goes deeper than that - to a character arc level - and it goes all the way back to Hunting Palismen. This episode is the start of Hunters positive change arc and "betrayal." The person to spearhead his positive change arc and "betrayal" is our favorite WILD WITCH Luz. Completely unbeknownst to Hunter, the moment he lets Luz go he is taking a stand against Belos. And he's following Calebs footsteps by choosing a wild witch over Philip. That is so romantic it's crazy to me"

Romantic undertones aside - do you know how important this is? That both Hunter and Caleb were lured away by someone who represents something they've been taught to fear? Caleb was taught that magic was evil so any practitioners of magic were agents of the devil who needed to be killed. Hunter was taught that wild magic was dangerous and that anyone who didn't want to seal their magic were criminals that needed to be killed. Do i need to say any more than that? This is also why "Amity enticed Luz with magic" doesn't work because Luz was never afraid of magic.

7. Luz introduced Flapjack to Hunter like Evelyn did with Caleb. It's unclear whether or not Flapjack was hers or she carved him for Caleb. I'm more inclined to believe the later because of how Flapjack is a cardinal - a.k.a a creature that is not a native species on TBI. Either way, the point is: without Evelyn showing him that magic isn't evil, Caleb would have never wanted Flapjack. Just like how Hunter would have never wanted Flapjack if Luz didn't show him "wild" magic wasn't dangerous.

8. Evelyn is a Clawthorn and Amity is not. Luz isn't a Clawthorn either but she's heavily associated with this family. And this family has alot of ties to the plot of TOH. Amity doesn't hold the same weight in the story like the Clawthorns do.

9. Luz is a "witch from another world".

People tend to forget what wild witches are and how magic works in universe. Wild witches are witches/demons who refuse to limit themselves to one of the nine main forms of magic.

Magic operates in two ways: either the spellcaster writes a spell in glyphs to perform it or the bile sack, which produces all the glyphs, combines them for the caster. For the former, if you know all the glyphs then you have access to all the same spells someone with a bile sack would have. However, unlike a person with a bile sack, you need to spend some time writing out combinations to figure out how to get the spell you want. This is why this parallel still works despite Luz not being an "actual" witch. Because, even without a bile sack, she still has excess to all forms of magic, just like any wild witch with a bile sack would have.

I need to point out Luz not being an "actual" witch is irrelevant. The point is that Evelyn and Luz represent something Caleb and Hunter were indoctrinated to fear. Evelyn representing magic and Luz representing WILD magic. Through Luz and Evelyn, Caleb and Hunter came to realize the thing they feared wasn't actually dangerous. And because of Luz and Evelyn, Hunter and Caleb were "lured away" from Philip so they could try and live more peaceful and fulfilling lives.

It just doesn't work with any other combo of characters besides Luz and Hunter.

[beautifulterriblequeen]

The Thief and the Tinker, Part 4: Circles and Cycles

part 3

Part 4

Viren: *smirks and plinks Runaan's coin to Ethari*

Ethari, furious: You throw another Moonshadow at me and I'm gonna lose it.

Circles and Cycles

Angst rating: 8/10

Back to Ethari, because we're not done with him yet. Ethari is soft, but he isn't weak. He won't be a willing pawn for Viren. He loves Runaan to the point of invention, and his devotion is more constant than the moon itself. He'll agree to do what Viren says, and he'll be Very Sad. But his spirit is in no way broken. Viren bribing him with the coins containing his family will only have the opposite effect. It'll give Ethari something to fight for.

We could get Focused Chaos Ethari. We could get Angery Trickster Ethari. We could get Rules, What Rules? Ethari. Let him try to steal the coins, try to break them, try to kill Viren, and be stymied at every turn, until he settles and seems cowed. And then all he does is craft his way out of the problem.

What if we are gifted with Iron Man Elf Ethari, who pretends to build a fake Key for Viren, but meanwhile he's really building a coinbuster with whatever he can get his hands on - primal stones, magically imbued gemstones, stolen artifacts, his own arcanum, his own reputation as the Master Craftsman of the Silvergrove. He'll use almost - almost - anything, to stop Viren and free his family.

Ethari may have to choose between those two things, though. And he's a hero, deep down, just like his family, just like his daughter. If he has to choose, he'll choose to stop Viren and save Xadia. He'll pay the same price as his family has if he must.

He'd let Viren think he was motivated purely by wanting his family back, but Ethari is far too steeped in the illusion and sacrifice for that to be all there is to his motives. It's a so-close-and-yet-so-far thing, how he and Viren almost embody the same ideals. Almost. Ethari would take one look at Viren, who just burnt down his whole Forest, he'd see the biggest threat in Xadia, and he'd say anything to get a chance to stop this juggernaut of destruction from getting his hands on whatever that ultimate power really is, locked behind that missing key. If he has to abandon his people and bawl his eyes out to convince Viren he's in, then he will.

And Viren wouldn't make it easy for him. He knows clever when he sees it. He went through all this trouble to persuade Ethari to work with him. He would need to keep Ethari as off-balance as possible to ensure that he keeps working as he should.

Angsty jewelry, anyone?

Viren giving Ethari his husband in pendant form to remind him what he's working for, when Viren and Ethari both know full well that only dark magic can open the hellcoins. Ethari wearing another pendant of his love, except it's not a metaphor this time. It's literally his love, in a coin around his neck.

Viren would love making Ethari stay close to him of his own free will if he ever hoped to free Runaan. Making people bind themselves to you is a big power flex. Remember that TDP stream future-season teaser note about Bait being in a creepy restraint in a future season?

This card is written on in all-caps, so that really could be "Bait" or "bait," or--knowing this show--both. Viren's been using Runaan as bait for Ethari all along. Putting his coin in a dark magic pendant casing for Ethari to wear would be a great parallel for that. Oh god. Oh man.

Maybe he'll stab the coin's scary casing right through that circle on Ethari's chest, right over his heart, make that Iron Man reference really obvious. Ethari also losing his shirt at some point, for angsty Viren-related reasons? It's more likely than you think. I mean... Ethari is literally involved in both forms of forging at this point. Shirt's gotta come off for uhhhh work reasons. And because he's hot. Because of all the forging. Mmhmm. I mean how else are we finally going to discover what his markings look like this is research I swear

I mentioned that I liked god-tier villains, right? Yeah, this is amazing. I haven't wanted to die and ascend over an idea for quite a while, but Ethari vs Viren in a drawn-out battle of wills would kill me in the best way. Especially since, while it looks like they're essentially fighting for who gets Runaan, they're truly fighting a much larger battle with much higher stakes. They're fighting for the future itself. It's an epic struggle between the Narrative of Strength and the Narrative of Love. And we've seen what happens, over and over, when the Narrative of Strength gets to call the shots.

On a meta note: If Ruthari's story arc isn't a love letter from one trauma survivor to another, and on a broader scope to all survivors who see it, I don't know what is. Sometimes life just chews us up and spits us out and we can't stop it and it breaks us. But sometimes we can reach out and grasp the chance to help each other, even after that, even when it hurts a lot, because we know what it means to be loved, and to love, and to want a safer future for each other and for people we'll never meet. The future is worth standing together for, helping each other back up for, fighting side by side for, even if you can't see how it'll end, or even how to begin. We are stronger together, and sometimes we need to fight for our "together" before we can fight for anything else. And that's worth it, every time.

This is glorious, it's beautiful, it's tragic, it's amazing, it makes me want to dance, it makes me want to scream into the void, it makes me want to slap someone with a semi truck. No, someone specific, don't worry, and he super deserves it.

Because Ethari is going to win. He was always going to win. He's soft, and he's clever, and he hasn't forgotten what love means. It's what he's fighting for. Not power, not control. Love. He doesn't want to dictate Runaan's future or anyone else's. He just wants his husband--and everyone else--to have one at all.

So he's going to win.

What thwarting Viren looks like, I couldn't possibly guess. TDP is no stranger to angst, so there will probably be a high cost involved in outwitting the dark mage. Maybe not everyone can be rescued from the coins. Maybe Ethari will lose his life, or his soul, or his vision, or something else really angsty. Viren could even kill him and resurrect him as a smoky craftsman, or a zombie craftsman, or something equally biddable but horrible. The only thing I'm sure of is that Ethari would never willingly make a working Key of Aaravos Ethari as long as there's a chance Viren could possess it. But I do believe that if he gets the right opportunity while he's busy saving the world from Viren's dark intentions, he'll break his husband's hellcoin open somehow and set him free, even if he has to smile at the devil to do it.

Ethari understands the difference between "you can" and "therefore you should." He might sacrifice his own world to save his husband, but he'd never sacrifice someone else's world. That's one of the Moonshadow cultural limits I've noticed: they accept boundaries when it comes to other people's autonomous rights, especially regarding life and death.

These limits could get pushed. Ethari will be under great duress and emotional strain if he goes through this kind of interaction with Viren. And maybe he will choose some dark things. Everyone else has. But I'm placing all my eggs in the basket labeled "Saved By Love." Either I'm right, or I'll get the best angst omelets in the universe. And I do love omelets. A villain invented them, you know. ;)

Another support for Ethari not making the key for Viren: the real Key exists!

Callum has it right now. The plot doesn't need Ethari's key (yet? ever?), but it does need Ethari to learn what he's made of, to stand up for something, or against something, or both at once. And once he learns what he will and won't do and the universe has rewarded his discovery with the return of his beloved husband then Ethari will be ready to take on whatever else the plot has in mind for him.

Depending on the plan, all of these events could happen in S4, as a setup for even bigger things to follow. Viren's wishes can be thwarted here and the show's overall tension will only continue to rise. It would let Ethari flex yes pls his skills so we know who he is, it would show how driven Viren can be for a long-term goal, it would let Claudia saunter further downwards, it would reveal some human/Moonshadow history, and it would resolve the seasons-long tension regarding Runaan's fate, allowing for the cycle of speculation, feels, angst, and Ruthari fanart to begin again. ;) Viren would need to find another way to pursue his long-term goal. And Callum's Key will get a little more clarity on just how important it is to the fate of the world - which will make everything he does, and everyone he talks to, and anyone who knows what he's carrying, intensely important.

Nyx is gonna steal it isn't she, omg chaos birb

To Viren, Ethari was a main course, meant to be devoured and consumed in his lifelong quest for something that will finally satisfy. But to Ethari, Viren was just empty calories to be passed over in favor of ordering his perennial favorite dish, one more time.

Once Ethari escapes Viren's clutches with as much of his family as he can rescue, Viren may turn back to looking for the real Key, especially if someone's seen it recently. Hunting a kid probably seems easier than hunting a full-grown Moonshadow craftsman who just outsmarted him. okay so maybe Nyx stealing it would be a good thing and save Callum's life

Ethari could go on to help repair the Sunforge, or rebuild the Moonhenge, or work on constructing Moonshadow villages in Katolis if he hasn't been ghosted for abandoning everyone after the forest fire. He might build magical devices for any number of reasons, to help all kinds of characters. Hopefully, wherever he goes, he'll have Runaan with him, in some way, for at least a little while. Cycles be like, and I feel like Runaan will not want to remain still for long, for whatever reason. Does he need revenge, atonement, justice, a new body, to find Rayla, to find Ezran? He'll be back in action as soon as he can, I think.

Okay, but, I'm so soft at the thought of a scene where Runaan and Ethari come before King Ezran. The husbands tried to save their people Runaan's way, the old way, and it only continued to endanger them. Following the cycle, as Moonshadows do, was the wrong move. But the son of the last human Runaan killed reached out with mercy and broke a thousand years of suffering and sorrow and hatred. Ezran did what Runaan couldn't: he saved the Moonshadow elves from total destruction. And that, more than anything else in the world, could soften one very broody assassin's heart toward humans again.

What would Runaan do, if his heart truly changed toward humans? What would he say to Ezran? I could see him struggling for a long moment before dropping to one knee to pledge his heart as he once had to do before the Dragon Throne. He doesn't know any other way but to serve. Ezran, reading the whole room and everyone's feelings before he tells Runaan that No, we don't do that here. That he's free, and free means free. No chains, no oaths. Just trust and friendship. He should get to make his own decisions for a change, even though that can be hard and scary sometimes. Runaan being genuinely scared, because that's too much freedom. But he's not alone. He has Ethari, and Ezran, and Rayla, and Callum, and their people, and their allies. And no matter what else happens, the people of Katolis - elven and human - will find a way forward. Together.

part 5

[erics-meep-morps]

Hi! ^.^ 1) What are your favorite things about a) Lapis and b) Peridot? 2) What else other than SU are you watching / reading / playing / enjoying right now and what's good about it?

Hello friend!

I'm not sure where to begin with 1a and 1b. Haha. There's just so much I love about Lapis and Peridot, but I'll try to make it as short and simple as possible. I’ll start off stating the (possibly) obvious: I think they’re so cute, adorable, dorky and precious. Every time I see them I just want to gently hold them. 🥺

1a) I relate a lot to Lapis, and see parallels between our struggles, our recovery from past events, and living on Earth. I'll be honest that there are a lot of days I feel pessimistic about the world and humanity as Lapis originally felt, but I try to keep the optimism that she has in Season 3 and beyond. I also love her interest in meep morps, and that was one of my influences in using Photoshop, joining Tumblr, and posting my "meep morps" on social media. And when I have an art idea I can't draw then I commission someone. It's nice to see things I imagine become reality in art, as well as supporting artists.

1b) I love Peridot's enthusiasm, spunkiness, attention to details, and fixation on certain things like botany and Camp Pining Hearts. I'm usually very reserved about my interests, but remembering how open and excited she is to talk about her interests gives me encouragement to be more open with people about my interests. 

For both of them I love how human they are. I know all of the gems have human characteristics, but I think I relate to Lapis and Peridot the most. Seeing their journey from hating Earth to loving Earth was an amazing experience. They're both well-written characters that mean a lot to me. When I struggle navigating through life on this crazy planet I try to remember the optimism Lapis and Peridot have for Earth, and not letting my struggles and past events control my life in the present and future. They're also a reminder that self-improvement is a never-ending process. We're not perfect, we make mistakes, but that doesn't mean we're terrible people. We're always growing and doing our best. 💙💚

2) Regarding shows I've been watching Amphibia, The Owl House, and Rick and Morty. I think all three of them have great stories, and in terms of the former two they give me a lot of comfort and I learn some life lessons from those shows. Rick and Morty is just good entertainment with zany stories. I've also been following Adventure Time: Distant Lands whenever a new episode comes out. So far I've loved every episode and it's nice to once again look forward to a show that rekindled my interest in animated shows where part of the target audience is children. Adventure Time made me realize that just because a show is partly aimed at children doesn't mean adults can't enjoy it too, and it led me to loving other shows including Steven Universe.

Outside of watching shows my main enjoyments are walks, bike rides, and watching trains. I don't have a job yet since I'm mostly focusing on finishing my master's thesis, so I have a lot of free time to explore new places on foot or bike, as well as playing the waiting game at the tracks and getting pictures and videos of the trains I see.

Thank you very much for this ask! 😊